Fogaças de Palmela

Ingredients:

- 500g bread dough;

- 500g of yellow sugar;

- Between 1000 to 1200g of flour *;

- 125g of lard;

- 2 eggs + 1 egg to paint;

- Juice of 2 oranges;

- Scrape of 1 orange;

- 1 glass of brandy;

- 30g of cinnamon **;

- 50g of fennel **.

* May take a little more flour depending on the size of eggs and oranges.

** Fennel and cinnamon are to taste, however the amount of fennel should always be greater than cinnamon

Cooking Mode:

The eggs are attached to the dough bread. Then the orange juice and zest, the lard, the sugar, the fennel, the brandy and finally the flour.

After all well connected and kneaded, let rise for 30 minutes.

Dolls are molded, decorated and painted with beaten egg.

GINGERBREAD (PIPARKOOGID)

Ingredients (makes 3 tray fulls):

2 dl syrup (dark syrup makes dark, golden syrup light cookies)

250 g butter

2 dl sugar

550 g flour

2 tbsp cinnamon

2 tsp ground clover

2 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp ground cardamon

2 tsp bicarbonate of soda

2 eggs

How to make:

Pour the syrup and sugar in a big pot. Bring the mix to boil. Take the pot from the stove. Mix in the butter and seasoning. Whip in the eggs.

Mix flour with bicarb soda. Add them to the syrup mix.

The dough should be rather soft in consistency. Pour the dough in cling film. Wrap it up and put it in the fridge till the next day.

Next day take the dough out of the fridge and let it sit for about 30 min.

Set the oven on 200oC.

The take a rolling pin and roll the dough out (3-5 mm thick). Put some flour on the table and on the rolling pin before starting the process.

With some cookie cutters, cut out different shape gingerbread. Put them on an oven tray covered with baking paper. Bake for 8-10 minutes.

PORTUGAL

Hungarian Bejgli

Ingredients: 500 g flour250 g butter2 eggs50 g sugar20 g yeast1 dl milkpinch of saltfor the filling:300 g poppy200 g sugar50 g wheet groat3 dl milk8 g vanillalemon zestfor the other filling:300 g walnut200 g sugar16 g vanillalemon zestshopping list100 g butter1 dl sourcream

How to make it

Warm milk a bit. It should be lukewarm.Add a teaspoon sugar and yeast.Add diced butter to flour, add beaten eggs, sugar and pinch of salt.Mix in milk with yeast with milk and knead a dough.Leave for 2 hours on a warm place.Poppy filling:Cook milk, add with sugar and wheet groat mixed grated poppy and let it cool down.Add lemon zest.Walnut filling:Mix grated walnut with sugar, lemon zest and vanilla.Melt butter with sour cream.When you fill them, spread walnut mixture and sprinkle from the melted butter-sour cream mixture on it.Form 4 small dough pieces.Roll them out into a 1/2 cm thick rectangle on a floured board.

Spread filling onto the dough, leave out a 2-3 cm strip at the longer side.Fold back a 2-3 cm strip at the shorter sides (prevents the stuffing from coming out).Roll the dough up and place them in buttered oven dish.Brush the top of the rolls with slightly beaten egg.Prick the top and the sides of the rolls with a fork, it prevents cracking.Bake in preheated oven at 180 °C for about 35 minutes until the top gets a nice brown colour.

ROSCÓN DE REYES (SPAIN)

Roscon de Reyes is a traditional dessert, served the night before or the morning of Reyes or Epiphany on Jan. 6, when children in Spain receive gifts from the Reyes Magos (Wise Men)

It is traditional to put several surprises inside the roscon's dough. A porcelain figure of a baby wrapped in foil and a dry bean are hidden in the dough. Whoever finds the baby will have good luck and be the king of the party, but if you find the bean, you pay for the cake.

INGREDIENTS:

-4 cups unbleached flour

-1/2 teaspoon salt

-1 ounce active dry yeast

-1/3 cup lukewarm milk (mixed with 1/3 cup lukewarm water)

-6 tablespoons butter

-6 tablespoons sugar

-Grated rind of 1 lemon

-Grated rind of 1 orange

-2 large eggs

-1 tablespoon brandy

-1 tablespoon water

-1 large egg white (lightly beaten)

-2 cups candied fruit (assorted figs, oranges, lemons, mangos or cherries, chopped or left in large pieces)