Recipe: Candy Cane Coffee Cakes (Betty Crocker Hostess Cookbook, 1960's)

This recipe was featured in the 1967 Betty Crocker "Hostess" cookbook, the 1965 "Betty Crocker Holidays on Parade" cookbook as well as a 1974 Betty Crocker paperback cookbook.

CANDY CANE COFFEE CAKES

FOR SOUR CREAM YEAST DOUGH:
2 cups dairy sour cream
2 packages active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water (105 to 115 degrees F)
1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
1/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoons salt
2 eggs
6 cups all-purpose flour, about

FOR THE CAKE:
1 1/2 cups finely chopped dried apricots
1 1/2 cups finely chopped maraschino cherries
soft butter or margarine

THIN ICING:
2 cups confectioner's sugar, sifted
2 tablespoons water

FOR SOUR CREAM YEAST DOUGH:
Heat sour cream over low heat just until lukewarm. Dissolve yeast in the warm water. Stir in sour cream, butter, sugar, salt, eggs and 2 cups of the flour. Beat until smooth. Mix in enough remaining flour to make it easy to handle.

Turn dough onto well-floured board. Knead until smooth, about 10 minutes. Place in greased bowl. Turn once to bring greased side up. Cover. Let rise in warm place until double, about 1 hour. To test for rising, stick two fingers in dough. If holes remain but top stays smooth, dough is ready.

MAKE CAKE:
Heat oven to 375 degrees.

Punch down dough: Divide into three equal parts. Roll each part into a rectangle, 15x6-inches. Place on greased baking sheet. With scissors, make 2-inch cuts at 1/2-inch intervals on both long sides of the rectangles.

Combine apricots and cherries. Spread 1/3 of the fruit mixture down the center of each of the rectangles. Crisscross strips over the filling. Stretch dough to 22-inches. Curve to form a "cane."

Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. While warm, brush with butter and drizzle canes with Thin Icing. If desired, decorate with cherry halves or pieces.

FOR THIN ICING:
Blend 2 cups powdered sugar with about 2 tablespoons water. If icing is too stiff, add water a drop at a time. If too thin, add more powdered sugar a little at a time.

Yield: This recipe makes 3 cakes, 1 for the table, 2 for gifts.