Categories: Breads, Breakfast, Christmas, Pastries

Ingredients

• 2 cups sour cream
• 2 pkgs. dry yeast
• 1/2 cup warm water
• 1/4 cup butter or margarine melted
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 2 eggs
• 6 cups better for bread flour (you may need a little less or a little more)
• FILLING:
• 3 each 8 oz. pkgs. cream cheese softened
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 tablespoons Minute Tapioca
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
• sugar, to taste
• GLAZE:
• 1 bag powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• milk as needed
• DECORATIONS:
• 1 large container candied red cherries
• 1 container green candied cherries

Directions

1. Heat sour cream over low heat until just luke warm.

2. Dissolve yeast in warm water with a couple additional tablespoons sugar added.

3. Using a heavy duty mixer, beat eggs, add sugar, butter and salt.

4. Slowly add the warm sour cream, beat well.

5. Add your dissolved yeast mixture.

6. Start adding the better for bread flour, sifting in one cup at a time. Switch to a dough hook on your mixer when necessary. Continue adding flour…you don’t want this dough real stiff like for bread…but just barely stiff enough so you will be able to work with it.

7. Knead until smooth, about 10 minutes. Place dough in greased bowl; and butter top of dough.

8. Cover; let rise in a warm place until double in size, about 1 hour.

9. Heat oven to 375 degrees.

10. Punch down dough, divide into 3 equal parts. Roll or pat each part into rectangle about 15×6 inches.

11. Place on greased baking sheet. Tip: I get a strip of foil, grease it, put it on the baking sheet…stretch or pat out my dough on the foil. This makes moving the baked roll to a serving plate or wrapping for freezing much easier.

12. With scissors, make 2 inch cuts ad 1/2 inch intervals on long sides of dough rectangles.

13. Spread 1/3 of the filling down the center of each rectangle. Criss-cross strips over filling…sort of like braiding. Stretch filled dough braid to 22 inches, Curve to form a “cane” shape.

14. Butter “cane”, allow to rise in warm place about 15 to 20 minutes.

15. Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown.

16. When cool, decorate with candied red and green cherries to resemble holly berries and leaves and drizzle with glaze.

17. FILLING: To make filling, mix all ingredients together. Add sugar as needed until it is sweet enough to your taste. Tip: You can make this a day ahead and let come to room temp while you are making dough.

18. GLAZE: Mix powdered sugar and vanilla with just a little milk to make a glaze that drizzles nicely.

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