JULIA CHILD CHANGED MY LIFE

In seventh and eighth-grade we had Home Mechanics and Home Economics. Boys and girls (in separate classes of course) learned about plumbing, electrical work, woodworking and metal working, sewing, and cooking. I never finished the apron we were supposed to make in sewing, but I always finished cooking everything we were supposed to cook. Unfortunately, after cooking whatever, we had to eat it. Believe me, I NEVER ate creamed chipped beef on toast again.

Fortunately, it was soon after this–1963–that Julia Child appeared on television as the French Chef. Several friends and I watched this extraordinary lady whipping egg whites, lining pans with the skins of eggplants, and occasionally pounding things with a mallet while shouting, "Whammy!" Now that was my kind of cooking. I have to thank Julia of blessed memory from saving me from being one of those hopeless bachelors who lives on frozen dinners and Chinese takeaway.

I am thumbing through the cookbook she wrote based on her first shows, noting how many of her recipes I still use. Harricotts Verts au Maitre d'Hotel. Actually that's only green beans with butter and parsley, but it sounds much more impressive in French. Canard a l'Orange, duck with orange sauce–my Thanksgiving meal. Ratatouille,no there are no rats in it; only eggplant, zucchini, onion, tomatoes, peppers and herbs. The famous Buche de Noel, Yule Log Cake. Daube de Boeuf a la Provencale, beef casserole, which I once had explode in the oven. (Well it does have 1 1/2 cups vermouth and a quarter cup gin in it.) Soupe a l'Oignon, but of course. Cotelettes a la Nivernaise, pork chop casserole, only I don't put any nasty artichokes in it. I am adverse to eating things with the word "choke" in their name. And finally the great show stopper of all Cherries Jubilee. (It's supposed to catch fire.)

Now I have come to experiment a bit with cooking, usually starting with some recipe and reworking and improving it. One of my successes was for turkey-bean soup. It got included in a cookbook, mind you. Also, over a number of years, I developed my own recipe for Christmas Stollen. I much prefer my stollen to any store-bought variety, even stuff from the famous Dinkel's bakery in Chicago. People used to ask me to bake them a loaf, but I stopped taking orders when I had to make nine loaves one Christmas. Recently, however, someone asked for the recipe even though they had never tried my version. So, in the interest of spreading holiday cheer the rest of the year (and because you can buy candied fruit at half-price right now), here is my recipe for stollen.

CHRISTMAS STOLLEN
Wayne Kofink's Version

Fruit mixture

1/2 cup currants
3/4 cup golden raisins
8 oz. mixed candied fruit and peel
2 tablespoons grated orange peel
1 tablespoon grated lemon peel
1/3 cup dark rum, brandy, or Triple Sec
8 oz candied cherries

Dough

5 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3 packages active dry yeast
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamon seed*
1 1/4 cups milk
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup butter
1 slightly beaten egg

Glaze

1 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons hot water
½ teaspoon butter

1. Combine together currants, raisins, mixed fruit, orange peel, lemon peel, and dark rum in a bowl. (Do not add the cherries.) Cover with plastic wrap and keep refrigerated for several days, stirring occasionally. Remove from refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature before you start making dough.

2. In a large mixing bowl combine 2 cups flour, yeast, cinnamon and cardamon seed.
*Whole cardamon is often sold still in the pods. Open the pods and remove the small seeds. Then grind the seeds.

3. Combine milk, salt, sugar, and butter in a small sauce pan and heat until warm (115 to 120 degrees) and the butter is melted. Add to flour mixture. Add egg to flour mixture.

4. Beat with an electric mixer at low speed for 1/2 minute, scraping sides of bowl constantly. Then beat at high speed for 3 minutes.

5. Add fruit mixture. (Not cherries.) Stir in remaining flour either by hand or with an electric mixer with a dough hook at a low speed.

6. Either turn out onto a floured surface and knead for 5 minutes or use an electric mixer with a dough hook. When the kneading is finished, the dough should be moderately soft, smooth and elastic. If using a mixer, the dough should "clean the bowl."

7. Shape the dough into a ball and place in a large, greased bowl. Turn the dough over once, then cover the bowl with a cloth, and let it rise in a warm place for 1 3/4 hours.

8. Punch down the dough, turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide into thirds. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes

9. Roll one-third of the dough into 9 X 12 rectangle. Place 1/3 of the cherries (about 15 of them) in a row the length of the dough about 3 inches from the long edge. You may have to stagger the row to fit all the cherries on. (Doing the cherries this way will allow you to have whole slices of cherries when you serve the stollen. If you add them during the kneading process, they will be broken to bits.) Without stretching the dough, fold one long edge over the cherries to within one inch of the opposite side. You should have a loaf about 5 inches wide and 12 inches long with the cherries hidden inside. Place on a greased baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough.

10. Cover the loaves and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour. Then bake at 375 degrees for 20 to 22 minutes. The loaves should be golden brown and have a hollow sound when tapped. Let them cool on wire racks.

11. Combine powdered sugar, butter, and hot water. Brush glaze over loaves with a pastry brush.

Loaves can be frozen for future use. Wrap them in plastic wrap and then aluminum foil and place in a freezer bag.