Italian Christmas Bread with Eggnog Glaze

My husband fondly recalls the Anise Bread that his Italian grandmother used to make during the holidays. She evidently never had a recipe (and never used a bread machine!) so this is what I came up with for a quick, special Christmas bread. This rich bread has a wonderful aroma while baking.

Step: 1

Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

Step: 2

Spread hazelnuts evenly on a baking sheet. Bake until lightly toasted, about 5 to 7 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven, transfer the nuts to a bowl, and let them cool.

Step: 3

Place the eggnog, sugar, salt, butter, egg, egg yolk, bread flour, yeast, anise seed, and cinnamon into the bread machine. Program the machine for a basic cycle with the crust as “medium.” Press start. Do not use the delay timer.

Step: 4

Place the cooled toasted hazelnuts into the machine between Knead Cycle 1 and Knead Cycle 2. When the baking cycle ends, immediately remove the bread from the pan and allow it to cool on a rack.

Step: 5

Prepare the glaze by combining the confectioners' sugar and eggnog in a bowl; mix well. It should be a drizzling consistency. Drizzle the glaze on the cooled bread before slicing.

Per Serving: 195 calories; protein 5.2g; carbohydrates 28g; fat 7.2g; cholesterol 39.3mg; sodium 102.9mg.

The best flavour of the flour can make a real difference to your bread. Different brands do vary. Extra-strong or Canadian flours, which are naturally higher in gluten, may give you a better rise than standard dough flours – especially if you’re make wholemeal bread , which doesn’t always rise as well as clear bread.

To make this in a breadmaker , add all the ingredients to your breadmaker and follow the makers instructions.

A bread first rising can be make in the fridge 24 hours . This slows down the time it takes to rise to double its size, giving it a deeper flavour. It’s also a great limit , as you can start it yesterday , then finish it off the next day.