Gingerbread and Sweet Brioche! These two delicious desserts are served up in one BEAUTIFUL PRESENTATION!
This dessert is a beautifully decorated Brioche Russian Kulich chocked-full of Amaretto soaked cranberries and white chocolate served on a deliciously soft Royal Icing Gingerbread cookie tea plate and fork! What a show-stopper!
I had so much fun making this dessert. I had my mom in mind the whole time and thought it would be a perfect gift for her.
The Kulich – Russian Easter Bread
When I saw Kulich for the first time, I was so in awe! I saw them on Pinterest and I couldn’t get enough of looking at the amazing ways they were decorated!
They were so elegant, and I am just drawn to beautiful elegant desserts! THOSE are the ones I usually like to try and make! Beautiful to the eye, and then delicious to eat, well that’s just speaking my language!
Before I made Kulich, I wondered, are they any good? Well, let me tell you, these little loafs of magic melt in your mouth! They turned out SO GOOD that my hubby and I could not stop eating them!
The Kulich Recipe that I used Was Translated From A Russian Website!
When I started looking for a recipe, I really wasn’t sure which recipes were authentic Russian Kulich. I saw a lot that were in English, but a lot of bakers said they put their own twist on it.
Even though the authentic recipe allows for a bit of customizing, I wanted the real thing, so I found a recipe on a Russian online baking store called “A Taste Of Creativity“. Only problem was, it was in the Slavic language, and I had NO IDEA what it was saying!
So I sat down and spent a bit of time on Google Translate, and that is the recipe I tested, loved and wound up using. It is delicious and I am SO GLAD I tried it! Not to mention that it’s so exciting to be able to experience the food of another culture; one I know nothing about.
You can read much more about Kulich in my Kulich Blog Post and get the recipe there! I waited until I made my Gingerbread Plate and fork and had them all decorated before I made the Kulich, so it would be as fresh as possible!
The Gingerbread
I knew I wanted to try and make a pretty gingerbread tea plate and fork to put the Kulich on, but I knew I would have to figure some things out on both!
First, I saw a vision in my mind of a pretty scalloped tea plate with little roses on it. I wasn’t sure at all that I could actually make a scalloped Gingerbread plate. How would the scallops stay up during baking?
I also saw in my mind a pretty vintage fork lying on the plate. But in making a fork, how could I get the arches in it right?
I knew that for both the plate and the fork, I needed a mold of some kind. Or I would have to use something that could withstand oven temperatures. However, for the Gingerbread Recipe, I knew exactly what to use!
My Go-To Soft Gingerbread is SO GOOD, and That’s What I Decided To Use!
For my recipe for the Gingerbread, I have two that are my go-to’s. For structures like Gingerbread Houses, and 3D Desserts, I like to use Teri Pringle Wood Butlers recipe. It’s a honey gingerbread recipe and is a bit more sturdy than my soft recipe. It is really good and I definitely could have used hers.
However, my mom really LOVES my go-to soft Gingerbread, so even though for this project, I technically should have used Teri’s, I went ahead and decided to use the soft! I could just picture breaking the plate in half to take a bite, and it being yummy soft Gingerbread!
I have made a LOT of Gingerbread over the last 7 years, and it’s because it might just be my FAVORITE cookie! It’s all because I found this AMAZING recipe from Melissa on her wonderful Blog, Bless This Mess Please. You should really check out her Blog and her recipes!
Ya’ll, this Gingerbread Recipe is FABULOUS, WONDERFUL, AMAZING and DELISH! NOTHING needs to be tweaked! It is PERFECT just like it is! I make it every Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving, etc! Lol! People LOVE this Gingerbread!
How I made the Gingerbread Plate
The first thing I needed to figure out with the plate is how to make the scallops like in my vision. I was picturing a somewhat vintage looking tea plate, and I kept seeing the scalloped look.
My first attempt was a failure, LOL! I took pieces of foil and filled them with dry beans, and folded them up to make them the width of the scallops.
This didn’t work so well. One mistake I made was not supporting the gingerbread with some parchment paper or foil under it, preventing the dough from falling as it baked, and that’s what happened.
On my next attempt, It worked out much better. I knew I wanted more scallops and I decided to try piping tips with a small point or hole. I knew the tips had to have small openings so that the tip would lay as close to the parchment paper as possible. You can see the difference in the two plates. The second is MUCH better!
So by the third time I made it, I had it figured out! I made the scallops a bit deeper by pushing the piping tips further under the plate, using Corn syrup to keep the piping tips in place while adding them all.
Then I used a foil band and wrapped it around the piping tips because I knew once the corn syrup heated up in the oven that they would release and I needed the piping tips to stay in place during baking and cooling.
This worked Great! I was very happy with my plate! A bit of advice if you try this. Always make 2 or even 3, that way if you mess one up during baking or decorating, you’ve got a spare ready to go!
Again, on the piping tips, try and make sure the tip is on the smaller side, so that it’s a subtle transition into the rise of the scallop.
Decorating the Gingerbread Plate
For decorating, I knew I wanted to use pink and white, and I knew I wanted to add little roses that you would find on a china tea set, so I did white in the middle with pink roses using the wet on wet method of flooding, then added the pink with white dots, and then decorated the edging.
You can see this in my video. There are SO many cute ways you could decorate the plate!
How I Made The Gingerbread Fork
For the fork, I wanted a dainty one. So I found a photo of a really pretty vintage fork online and printed it off the size I wanted it. This took a few printings to get just the right size. I had the plate for reference.
On my first try, I cut the dough around my fork template, then laid strips of foil filled with beans under the stem and the end of the prongs. It was ok, but not great! Then I had the idea of actually using a real fork and just baking it on top as the mold. That worked great!
I cut parchment paper strips and attached them to the fork with corn syrup so it wouldn’t slide off, and it baked up a beautiful fork. I was so pleased!
The only problem I had was humidity. While I was making this, it was raining almost every day, and the humidity was terrible!
The fork cookie just seemed to get softer and softer. I let it dry overnight, and the next day when I tried to move it, it broke. Thankfully I had an extra cookie, so I decorated it (a bit differently), and I was good to go.
If you make the fork, it’s best to store it ON the actual fork until you are ready to present and eat it. That way the stem has the support it needs. I really don’t think it would have been a problem if the humidity wasn’t SO high, but that’s just my guess.
Decorating The Fork
For my fork, I flooded it all a gray color, and then painted it with my Mini Paint Palette with a metallic silver. I think the color was spot on! If you are interested in Edible Paint Palettes, you can get them here. They are amazing and fun!! You can see this on my video.
Free Plate and Fork Template
If you would like to make a plate and fork, you can get the template here! I have included the plate which when printed out should give you a plate of 6.75 inches in Diameter. I have also included the template of where I put my piping tips. This is just a guide so that the scallops will be evenly placed.
If you would like to make SURE the size of the plate and cutlery is the same as mine, be sure to measure the plate once you have printed it off. Some printers leave more padding around the page than others. I always choose, “Do Not Scale” when I print, and make sure my printer is set on 100%.
If you don’t do any of this, it may be a bit smaller than mine, but I really don’t think it will make a big difference.
Again I used Corn syrup to hold the piping tips in until I wrapped the foil band around them. You can see all of that in the video.
I also went ahead and included a spoon and knife, in case you would like to make these. I hope you enjoy it!
I Made My Flowers During Cookie Drying Times
During this whole process, anytime I had down time with drying or baking, I would make Royal Icing Flower Transfers. I made three different ones in colors that complimented the color theme I was going for.
Royal Icing Transfers are great! To make them, just pipe your flower on a piece of parchment or acetate, let them dry, paint them or add details, then once they are completely dry, pop them off and add them where you want on your baked goodie.
For this project, I wanted them for the tops of the Kulich.
Time To Bake and DecorateThe Kulich
Once your Gingerbread pieces are fully decorated and dry, and your Royal Icing Transfers are ready to go, it’s time to bake the Kulich. Again, here is my Kulich Recipe.
Once they are out of the oven and completely cooled, I added the Royal Icing to the tops in white. After they have dried at least 30 minutes to an hour, I added a brown wreath, then added my flowers, and finished with the leaves.
It’s Finally Time To Put It All Together! Yay!
THIS is what I have been waiting for! I couldn’t wait to bring all three pieces together! It was so exciting! And when I finally did, I LOVED it! It was a blast to make, and something that I felt would be a wonderful gift for that special loved one, friend or family member!
Making it was definitely a labor of love, but for me and those that love a project, it’s all totally worth it! I hoped you’ve enjoyed this, and thanks so much for taking the time to check out my Blog!
If you enjoyed this project, you might like some of my other Gingerbread Projects, such as my Gingerbread Shadow Box, Easter Gingerbread Egg or my Easter Gingerbread House!
God Bless!
Teesa
Russian Easter Bread (Kulich)
Equipment
- Panettone Baking Molds I used Panettone Baking Molds 2-3/4" x 2” or 3 x 3 cake pans.
- Hand or Stand Mixer
- Food Thermometer
Ingredients
Yeast Flour Mixture
- 11 g Active Yeast
- 200 ml Milk
- 130 g AP Flour
Kulich Bread Dough
- 185 g Butter Melted
- 780 g AP Flour Sifted 2 Times
- 1 tsp Salt
- 20 Lrg Egg Yolks – This is not a typo. 20 is the right number. 🙂 Room Temp
- 180 g Sugar
- 200 g Dried Cranberries or Raisins
- 200 g White Chocolate Bar or Chips
- 1 Egg For Egg Wash
Instructions
Soak Dried Cranberries up to 2 hours – 2 weeks Before Making Dough
- Soak dried cranberries in liquid of choice. You can use water, orange juice, fruit juice, rum, brandy or even whiskey or other alcohols of choice. I used Amaretto, and it was really good! The alcohol taste is not there, it is just a wonderful flavor. I soaked mine for about 3 hours before I made my dough, but some soak up to 2 weeks. The longer they soak, the more flavor they will have. Put dried cranberries or raisins in a bowl, then cover with liquid. Cover bowl until using. To store overnight or longer, store in fridge. Bring to room temp before using.
Yeast Dough
- Warm milk to between 80℉ – 90℉, then add in yeast and 130g of flour. Whisk together and set in a warm place to rise. Depending on temperature of where it rises, can take approx and hour or so.
Prepare Other Ingredients
- Melt the butter in the microwave and set aside.
- Sift the 780 grams of flour twice. Add salt, whisk together and set aside.
- Separate the 20 yolks from the egg whites and set aside.
- Drain cranberries and dry. Cover with 1 to 1.5 T of flour. Stir to cover and set aside.
Make Kulich Dough
- Once the Yeast Dough has doubled in size, then proceed with mixing the Kulich dough. In a large bowl, mix the egg yolks and sugar together with a mixer. Don’t do this early and let the sugar/egg yolk mix sit, because the sugar can burn the eggs. Only do it once the Yeast Dough has doubled in size and you are ready to proceed with adding the rest of the ingredients.
- Add the melted butter to the egg yolk/sugar mixture, and whisk together, then add the Yeast Dough. Whisk to combine.
- Add in the flour mixture in thirds. Stir until just combined, then add cranberries and white chocolate. Don't over mix.
- Using your hand, pull the dough together. Cover with a damp towel and put in a warm place to rise for approximately 2 hours. Needs to double in size.
Prepare Baking Molds
- Prepare panettone molds or cake tins with deep sides. I used small panettone molds and 3 x 3 cake tins, because I wanted to try both, however you can use the size of your choice. I did not spray my panettone molds, but I will try it next time. For cake tins, brush with butter then line bottom and sides with parchment paper.
- Once dough has doubled, punch down. Then pull apart with hands and fill each mold to ½ – ¾ full. Stretch the dough to the bottom to make the tops are as smooth as possible.
- Place in a warm spot and let rise until doubled. Takes approximately an hour or so.
- Make Egg Wash. Combine egg with 1 tsp – 1 Tbsp of water.
- Once final rise is ready, brush egg wash over the top of each bread.
Bake
- Bake on an uncrowded cookie sheet. If the cookie sheet is too crowded, they will not bake evenly. Make sure there is space around each so the color of the bread and the bake is even. Bake until inside is 190℉. (I baked 6 at a time and it took approx 15 minutes)
- Remove the breads from the oven and put on it’s side and leave it in this position until the bottom cools down. (I actually for got to do this, but it’s in the original recipe).
Video
Notes
- I used small panettone molds and 3 x 3 cake tins. I wanted to try both of the sizes, however you can use the size of your choice. I did not spray my panettone molds, but I will try it next time. For cake tins, brush with butter then line bottom and sides with parchment paper. The cake tins made taller breads. Some use empty tin cans, like the kind canned veggies come in. I have not tried that.
- To speed rising I preheat my oven to 100 degrees F, and then turn it off. I wait a couple of minutes then put in the warm oven to rise.
- Bake on an uncrowded cookie sheet. If the cookie sheet is too crowded, they will not bake evenly. Make sure there is space around each so the color of the bread and the bake is even. I baked 6 at a time and it took approx 15 minutes.
- Once completely cooled, store in a bag or container with as little air as possible.
