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Baking Memories THE JOY OF GENERATIONAL RECIPES The smell of fresh baked bread, cookies, pies, and cakes fills the house with aromas that can’t be beat. More than just creating something to eat, baking passes cherished family recipes to the next generation. Whether it’s mama’s apple pie or your grandma’s famous chocolate cake, we all treasure these recipes to honor and remember those no longer with us. Sharing family recipes also creates bonding opportunities with kids and grandkids, sparking conversations and family traditions. Last but not least: we relish these time-honored recipes because they’re delicious!
A HOLIDAY JEWEL
RALPH OLSEN - TRILOGY® AT THE VINEYARDS As a youngster growing up in Buffalo, New York, I watched with anticipation every Christmas as my Norwegian grandmother, Pauline Halverson Olsen, straight out of Oslo, Norway, transformed our tiny kitchen into a Julekake factory. This ritual marked the grand opening of the Christmas holidays! While baking, the aroma filled the house. Once finished, she brushed the tops with egg wash and allowed to cool before carefully wrapping each with white tissue paper as holiday gifts for friends and family. The baking tradition continued with my mother and father, and then my wife picked up the tradition when our children were growing up. After several years, she passed the torch to me “Viking Ralph,” and I became lead baker. When the first batch comes out of the oven, we slice open a warm loaf and butter-up a few slices to “quality check!” Once cleared, we bag all the loaves, tie them with holiday bows, attach handmade tags, and share them with family, friends, and Trilogy neighbors.
NORWEGIAN JULEKAKE
DO THIS: Heat butter, milk, and salt just to scalding. Stir occasionally. Do not boil. Cool.
GET THIS: 2 cups butter 2 cups whole milk 1 teaspoon salt 3 tablespoons bulk yeast 3 cups warm water
Dissolve yeast in the warm water (90-110 degrees.) Stir sugar into yeast. Set yeast in a warm place to proof. In a very large bowl, mix the flour, raisins, candied fruit, and cardamom by hand. In a large mixer bowl beat the eggs lightly, using a paddle attachment. Add liquid ingredients. Add most of the flour mixture until the dough is stiff. Dump the dough on a floured surface. Mix in the rest of the flour mixture and knead for ten minutes. Clean the very large bowl and butter it. Set the dough in the buttered bowl. Cover with a clean dish towel and let rise in a warm place until doubled – about 75 minutes.
5 pounds King Arthur's bread flour
Punch down the dough. Knead well. Form dough into eight balls. (Weigh the dough to create even-sized loaves.) Place each dough ball on a buttered metal pie pan. Cover with dish towels and let rise in a warm place until doubled – about 45 minutes.
3-4 cups golden raisins
Bake at 350 degrees for about 35 minutes total. Place four loaves on each of two oven shelves.
2 cups candied fruit (fruitcake mix) 4 teaspoons ground cardamom
About halfway through baking time, shift pans from the top oven shelf onto the lower shelf and vice versa. Continue baking until loaves are golden brown. Remove pans and place loaves on cooling racks.
4 large eggs (plus one for final egg wash)
Beat egg with 2 tsp water and brush tops of loaves with egg wash to create shine. Cool and enjoy!
1 cup sugar
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