Apricot Couronne Christmas Bread

A celebration of festive flavors, blending the sweetness of dried apricots with the richness of marzipan, wrapped in a tender, golden-brown dough.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time: 3

Cook Time: 25

Course: Baking

Cuisine: French

Keyword: Christmas baking, dried apricots, marzipan, sweet Christmas breads, Traditional Christmas Breads

Servings: loaf

Calories: 5100kcal

Ingredients

For the Dough

250 g white bread flour
¼ tsp salt
8 g fast-action dried yeast (1 pkg)
50 g unsalted butter softened
135 ml full-fat milk
½ tsp sugar
1 medium egg lightly beaten

For the Filling

90 g unsalted butter softened
70 g light brown sugar
120 g dried apricots
60 g raisins
Finely grated zest and juice of one large orange approx. 100 ml of orange juice
35 g un-bleached all purpose flour
65 g walnut pieces
225 g marzipan

To Finish

50 g apricot jam
25 g flaked almonds (lightly toasted if you prefer)
100 g icing sugar (optional

Instructions

The day before, chop the apricots to pieces roughly the same size as the raisins. Place the raisins and chopped apricots into a bowl.
Juice and zest the orange. Place 2 tsp of the juice and 1/3 about 1/4 of the zest into a small dish and set aside (this will be incorporated into the dough)
Add the remaining juice and zest to the dried fruit and stir to combine. Set aside to macerate.
The next day, drain the fruit and set aside.
In a small bowl, or measuring cup, warm the milk. Stir in the sugar to dissolve then add the dry yeast. Let sit for 10 minutes, until foamy.
To make the dough, Add the flour and salt into a large mixing bowl. Gently whisk the egg, then add to the flour along with the soft butter, milk/yeast mixture and the reserved orange juice and zest. Using your hand, gently mix, until you have a soft ball of dough.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured worktop and knead for 8-10 minutes until the dough feels smooth and silky. Place the dough into a lightly oiled large bowl. Cover, and leave to rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
While the dough is rising, make the filling. Place the soft butter, brown sugar, drained apricots, raisins, flour, and walnuts into a bowl and mix thoroughly. Set aside until needed.
Line a baking tray with parchment paper or a silicone baking sheet.
Turn the risen dough onto the lightly floured worktop. Without punching it down to deflate, roll it out to a rectangle about 25cm x 33cm, with a long edge of the dough nearest to you.
Spread the apricot fruit mixture evenly over the dough.
On a floured surface, roll out the marzipan to approx. 24cm x 32cm rectangle and lay it over top of the apricot mixture.
Starting from a long edge, roll up the dough tightly like a Swiss roll. Roll it slightly to seal.
Cut the dough in half lengthwise, then twist the two strands together. Form the dough into a circle and twist/pinch the two ends together to create a "crown" Carefully transfer the crown to the prepared baking sheet. Cover and leave to prove for 30–45 minutes. The dough should spring back when gently poked with a fingertip.
While the dough is rising, preheat your oven to 200°C/180°C fan/400°F When the couronne is ready for baking, uncover the baking sheet and place it in the oven. Bake for 25–35 minutes until risen and golden. Transfer to a wire rack.
Gently heat the apricot jam with a splash of water. Brush over the warm bread to glaze.
Mix the icing sugar with enough water to make a thin icing. Drizzle over the bread and sprinkle with the flaked almonds.
Leave to cool.

Nutrition

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!