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WREATHS, SUGAR (a Danish recipe)
Mash the yolks of three hard-boiled eggs, and add four raw ones, a quarter of a pound of moist sugar, a quarter of a pound of fresh butter, and half a pound of flour; knead to a stiff paste; pull off small pieces, dip each in flour, roll them with the hand and form into rings; rub the upper part with white of egg. Strew over with coarse-pounded sugar, and bake of a light-brown colour. Sufficient for thirty-six rings or wreaths.
A butter-and-egg-yolk ring biscuit of the Scandinavian type, glazed with egg white and pearl sugar. The dough is unusual in using cooked yolks alongside raw, which is what gives these their short, sandy crumb.
- The four raw eggs are almost certainly yolksHalf a pound of flour cannot absorb four whole eggs and remain "a stiff paste" — it would be batter. Read this as four raw yolks, consistent with the related Scandinavian recipes, and keep one white back for the glaze.
- Weights in cupsA quarter pound of sugar is about half a cup packed; a quarter pound of butter is one US stick; half a pound of flour is roughly 1 3/4 cups. With the yolks the dough comes to something over 500 g, which divides sensibly into thirty-six small rings.
- Moist sugarVictorian "moist sugar" is unrefined or partly refined soft sugar — light brown sugar is the closest modern equivalent. Granulated white will work but gives a paler, drier biscuit.
- Coarse-pounded sugarThis is pearl or nib sugar, sold for Belgian waffles and Scandinavian baking. It holds its shape in the oven rather than dissolving; crushed sugar cubes are the traditional substitute.
- OvenNo temperature is given; the recipe judges by colour alone, "bake of a light-brown colour." Bake at 350F for 10 to 12 minutes, until the rings are just light brown at the edges — these are pale biscuits and are easily overbaked.
- Chill before shapingThe hinge of the recipe. A dough this rich goes greasy and unmanageable in warm hands, and the rings spread and lose their shape. Rest it covered in the refrigerator for at least half an hour, and work with a portion at a time.
- Forming the ringsRoll each piece into a pencil-thin rope about four inches long, then overlap the ends rather than pinching them flush; the overlap survives baking, a butt joint tends to open.
- Yield and keepingThirty-six rings, each a two-bite biscuit. In a tin they will keep for a couple of weeks.
The hard-boiled yolk mashed into the raw dough is the signature of the Norwegian Christmas ring berlinerkranser, and ring or wreath biscuits of this kind are a fixture of Scandinavian holiday baking. Cooked yolk is emulsified and cannot form gluten, so it shortens the dough further than butter alone can, giving the crumbling texture these are prized for. The title's parenthetical "a Danish recipe" is the only sourcing offered.