Yeasted St Nicholas bread men with raisins and honey

Yeasted St Nicholas bread men made from a spelt yeast dough with milk, butter and honey, with raisins for eyes and buttons, baked until golden brown. A family-friendly breakfast for St Nicholas' Day, makes 8.

At a glance

• Serves 8
• Prep time: 40 min
• Cooking time: 36 min
• Total time: 76 min
• Calories: 345 kcal per serving
• Protein: 10 g
• Fat: 10 g
• Carbs: 53 g

Ingredients

• 500g spelt flour
• 40g raisins
• 250ml milk
• 60g honey
• 60g butter
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 tbsp milk
• 1/2 cube of fresh yeast
• 1 pinch of salt

Method

You’ll need: oven · chopping board · knife

1. Warm the milk until lukewarm and dissolve the yeast and honey in it. Knead with the flour, salt, soft butter and egg for 8 min into a smooth dough, cover and leave to rise for 1 hour.
2. Divide the dough into eight pieces. Roll each into an oval, make cuts at the bottom for the legs and at the sides for the arms, and shape a head with a hat at the top.
3. Place the figures on two baking trays lined with baking paper and press in raisins for the eyes and buttons. Leave to rise for 20 min.
4. Preheat the oven to 180 °C (160 °C fan). Whisk the egg yolk and milk and brush the figures with it.
5. Bake the bread men one tray at a time for 15 to 18 min each at 180 °C, until golden brown, and leave them to cool on a wire rack.

Good to know

On the morning of 6 December, a yeasted St Nicholas stands next to every plate. You can knead the dough the evening before and let it rise overnight in the fridge. Shaping the figures is a lovely job for children.

Swaps

Spelt flour → plain flour (type 550). Honey → maple syrup. Raisins → almonds or hazelnuts (contain nuts; not whole for toddlers). Butter → ghee.

Cooking tips

Overnight version: make the dough with only 7 g of yeast, cover the shaped figures on the tray and put them in the fridge, then leave them to rise for 30 min at room temperature in the morning.

Storage

Best fresh; keeps for 2 days in a bread tin or up to 2 months frozen.

Allergens

Contains gluten (spelt), milk and egg. Because of the honey, not for babies under 1 year old. Suitable in pregnancy.