Swedish Tea Ring

Ama’s Swedish Tea Ring

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Makes 2 tea rings

Now THIS brings back Christmas memories. I remember my mom making many of these for neighbors at Christmas time. Thanks for the visions I still have of watching you bake Mom.

1 recipe 12-hour butterhorn roll dough

Filling for two (2) tea rings:

½ C butter, melted

2/3 C granulated sugar

1 C raisins

2 tsp grated orange peel

1 tsp ground cardamom, fresh  

¾ C slivered almonds or pecans, toasted

¼ C Almond paste (optional)

Icing:

1 C powdered sugar

1 TBL lemon juice

¼ tsp vanilla

1 TBL milk

*

6 red candied cherries, halved

4 green candied cherries, cut into sixths

1. Preheat oven to 375º.  Butter two baking sheets.
2. Divide the butterhorn dough in half with a sharp knife. 
3. Before rolling the dough with a rolling pin, lightly dust the rolling surface with flour.  Working with one half at a time, roll each half in to a 9 x 14-inch rectangle. 
4. Spread each half w/ ¼ C melted butter.  Sprinkle with 1/3 C granulated sugar (mix in orange zest to sugar), raisins and nuts, and dabs of almond paste. 
5. From the long end, roll into a long roll as for Cinnamon Rolls.  Pinch the edge closed.  Transfer the long roll to buttered baking sheet, shaping it into a circle. Pinch ends together. 
6. With scissors cut two-thirds into the circle at one-inch intervals.  Twist each 1-inch piece a one-fourth turn to left to make tea ring.  Allow to rise 5-6 hours in a cool place, or less in a warm place.  Bake 20-25 minutes.
7. Drizzle thin icing in back and forth motion over tea rings while still warm (icing should look like thin threads—or spread icing on uncut part of wreath and let some drip down).  Place 5 halved candied cherries (cut side down) around top of tea ring.  Put one green cherry “leaf” on each side of each cherry.
8. Deliver to your neighbors warm J.

*Apricot Tea Ring (a good Easter dessert):  12 ounces dried apricots, diced, 2 cups water, 6 tablespoons brown sugar, 4 teaspoons orange juice, 1/2 cup chopped pecans.  Simmer apricots and water together for 20-30 min.  Add remaining ingredients.  Proceed with usual tea ring recipe, substituting this filling instead.  You could place a dyed Easter Egg in the center of mini tea rings before baking.

*Cinnamon/Cardamom Tea Ring:  Instead of adding cardamom to filling, add 1 tsp cardamom to dough (stir it in to milk/yeast mixture before stirring in flour).  Then, add 2 tsp cinnamon to filling.

*Lemon Scented Tea Ring:  Add zest of one lemon to the dough, and 1-2 TBL lemon juice to icing.