Place sugar and warm water in a bowl, stirring to dissolve. Sprinkle with yeast, stir and cover. Let stand around 5 minutes until foamy.
Warm milk in small saucepan on medium heat. Add sugar and salt and stir to dissolve. Add the butter and stir to melt.
Combine yeast and milk mixtures in the bowl of a stand mixer. Add 2 cups of flour and stir to combine. Secure bowl in place on the stand mixer fitted with a hook attachment. Lock in position and run machine on low setting.
Mix the eggs together in a small cup before adding them to the bowl. The remaining 3 cups of flour go in, little by little. Beat until you have a soft, sticky dough.
Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead for about 8 minutes, until smooth and elastic. Sprinkle with dried cranberries and orange peel, folding into the dough. Place dough into a large lightly greased bowl. Cover with a tea towel and let rise in a warm place for an hour, or until doubled in bulk.
Make the filling:
While the dough rises, place cranberries in a food processor or chopper and roughly chop. Measure one cup of cranberries and transfer to a small saucepan. Process orange peel and flesh in the same manner and transfer 1/2 cup into the saucepan.
Stir together with brown sugar and almond extract and bring mixture to a simmer. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
Remove from heat and cool completely.
Make the wreath:
Turn the dough out onto floured work surface and roll it out to a rectangle that’s about 10 × 15-inches (or even slightly bigger) and about 1/4-inch thick. Spread the filling across the surface, then sprinkle with almond flour.
Starting on a long side, roll the dough up into a log. Trim the ends to create a clean cut. Lift log onto a parchment-lined pizza stone or baking dish and shape into a ring. Cut slits 2/3 through the ring, 1-inch apart and turn each section on its side.
Cover and let rise until double in bulk, about 1 hour.
Make the glaze:
Place sugar and butter in a small bowl and beat lightly using a hand mixer. Add milk and almond extract and beat to remove lumps and create a smooth glaze. Add a tiny bit more milk to thin slightly. Transfer glaze to a piping bag.
Bake the bun wreath:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Transfer wreath to oven and bake for 30 minutes, rotating it at the halfway point. Bake until golden brown. Cool to room temperature before applying the glaze.
Decorate:
Place cooled wreath onto serving plate or tray, then transfer onto a lazy Susan. Create a zig zag pattern of glaze going from the centre to the outside of the ring, gently turning the lazy Susan so the glaze is applied evenly.
Sprinkle with toasted almonds and serve.
Cranberry-Orange Bun Wreath
Ingredients
For the dough:
½ cup water, lukewarm
½ teaspoon granulated sugar
1 package active dry yeast (1 tablespoon)
1 cup homogenized milk
1 stick (½ cup) butter
½ cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
5 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 eggs
½ cup dried cranberries, chopped
½ cup glazed orange peel
For the filling:
1 cup chopped fresh cranberries
½ cup chopped orange peel and flesh
¾ cup dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon pure almond extract
¼ cup almond flour
For the topping:
2 ½ cups confectioners’ (icing) sugar
2 tablespoons butter, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure almond extract
3 tablespoons homogenized milk, room temperature
½ cup sliced almonds, toasted
Directions
Make the dough:
Place sugar and warm water in a bowl, stirring to dissolve. Sprinkle with yeast, stir and cover. Let stand around 5 minutes until foamy.
Warm milk in small saucepan on medium heat. Add sugar and salt and stir to dissolve. Add the butter and stir to melt.
Combine yeast and milk mixtures in the bowl of a stand mixer. Add 2 cups of flour and stir to combine. Secure bowl in place on the stand mixer fitted with a hook attachment. Lock in position and run machine on low setting.
Mix the eggs together in a small cup before adding them to the bowl. The remaining 3 cups of flour go in, little by little. Beat until you have a soft, sticky dough.
Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead for about 8 minutes, until smooth and elastic. Sprinkle with dried cranberries and orange peel, folding into the dough. Place dough into a large lightly greased bowl. Cover with a tea towel and let rise in a warm place for an hour, or until doubled in bulk.
Make the filling:
While the dough rises, place cranberries in a food processor or chopper and roughly chop. Measure one cup of cranberries and transfer to a small saucepan. Process orange peel and flesh in the same manner and transfer 1/2 cup into the saucepan.
Stir together with brown sugar and almond extract and bring mixture to a simmer. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
Remove from heat and cool completely.
Make the wreath:
Turn the dough out onto floured work surface and roll it out to a rectangle that’s about 10 × 15-inches (or even slightly bigger) and about 1/4-inch thick. Spread the filling across the surface, then sprinkle with almond flour.
Starting on a long side, roll the dough up into a log. Trim the ends to create a clean cut. Lift log onto a parchment-lined pizza stone or baking dish and shape into a ring. Cut slits 2/3 through the ring, 1-inch apart and turn each section on its side.
Cover and let rise until double in bulk, about 1 hour.
Make the glaze:
Place sugar and butter in a small bowl and beat lightly using a hand mixer. Add milk and almond extract and beat to remove lumps and create a smooth glaze. Add a tiny bit more milk to thin slightly. Transfer glaze to a piping bag.
Bake the bun wreath:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Transfer wreath to oven and bake for 30 minutes, rotating it at the halfway point. Bake until golden brown. Cool to room temperature before applying the glaze.
Decorate:
Place cooled wreath onto serving plate or tray, then transfer onto a lazy Susan. Create a zig zag pattern of glaze going from the centre to the outside of the ring, gently turning the lazy Susan so the glaze is applied evenly.
Sprinkle with toasted almonds and serve.
Cranberry-Orange Bun Wreath
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Our trusted yeast dough studded with dried and candied fruit, rolled with orange and cranberries then baked in a wreath shape…
A festive treat for a holiday breakfast or brunch, this CRANBERRY-ORANGE BUN WREATH is the star attraction!
Don’t think twice about making this CRANBERRY-ORANGE BUN WREATH, just do it! Not only will your family and friends be super impressed by your baking skills, you’ll feel awesome too. Best of all, this wondrous baked good is exceptionally tasty and serving it with a favourite morning beverage like fresh fruit juice, a smoothie, coffee, tea or hot chocolate is all you need to start your holiday off in a celebratory way.
This recipe is a total keeper. Remember to PIN it to a favourite baking, breakfast, brunch or holiday Pinterest board. You can also bookmark the page for easy access and share the joy of deliciousness with others by sending THIS LINK to friends. They’ll love you for it!
There are four keys moments in this recipe: making a yeast dough, creating the cranberry-orange filling, shaping the wreath and garnishing the finished baked good. They’re all pretty simple so fear not, you got this!
Here are a few tricks and tips to help you make a CRANBERRY-ORANGE BUN WREATH as beautiful as ours:
GO DOUGH
Frequent visitors to Weekend at the Cottage may notice that the ingredients and directions for the dough portion of this recipe seems a bit familiar. Rightly so, this is the same stellar dough we used to make our ULTIMATE GOOEY CINNAMON BUNS.
If you’ve never made a yeast dough before, this is the one to begin with. You might want to watch the VIDEO of us making the recipe first, just to give you a sense of the process. The only other suggestion is to check the expiration date on your active dry yeast before you begin. Fresh yeast is the only way to go. Rise up everybody!
ADDED FLAVOUR
You know us, always trying to make things memorable. In the case of this beautiful baked good, we thought we’d add two flavour enhancements to the dough itself. Dried and candied fruit in a yeast dough is nothing new; we often see it in challah and panettone bread recipes.
We had some leftover candied orange peel from our HOLIDAY FRUITCAKE, plus some dried cranberries on hand. Sprinkling them onto the freshly made dough and folding them in is an easy step and welcome addition to the dough. They also look lovely when you slice into the finished bun wreath, you’ll see.
FILLING
The filling for our rolled wreath also springboards from the cranberry-orange flavour combo, but this time we use fresh cranberries and an orange. Look for both of these ingredients in the fruits and vegetables section of your grocery store. Sometimes whole cranberries are only available frozen which is fine, just defrost them before chopping.
We’ve provided a few links down below for some of the kitchen tools and utensils we used to make this recipe, one of which is a food chopper. This useful tool helped us chop both the cranberries and orange with little effort.
Cooking the chopped cranberries and orange on medium heat with a bit of brown sugar is also easy work. The addition of the pure almond extract to the filling takes it to a whole other level. Sweetened cranberries and orange cooked with a fragrant nuttiness is so perfect. Who knew?
IN SHAPE
Getting your bun wreath in shape will be easier than you think. To begin, simply roll out the risen dough into a rectangle. Next step is to spread the cooled filling out across the surface evenly. I suggest spreading the filling right to the edge of the dough so that you get a nice pinwheel when rolled up.
Next step is to create a log out of the large rectangle of dough. It’s surprisingly easy to work with and you’ll be able to coax it into a log in no time. Be sure to make clean trimming cuts on each end of the log, keeping the look super professional.
Although you can bake your bun wreath on a parchment-lined baking tray, we found a pizza stone worked perfectly for the task. The circular stone acts as a guide for when you transfer the log and gather the two ends to create the wreath shape.
CUT AND TWIST
Cutting the slits into the wreath and then twisting them to reveal the pinwheel centre is the final step before covering it and leaving to rise for an hour before baking. We suggest sharpening your favourite utility knife before you do to ensure clean cuts into the dough.
Speaking of clean cuts, we also think wiping the knife between cuts is also a good idea. The cranberry-orange filling is a little wet and very colourful, but it also clings to the knife. A clean blade keeps the sliced dough clean.
THE BAKE
Baking your CRANBERRY-ORANGE BUN WREATH requires no special direction or skill. Our 30 minute cook time worked perfectly during the testing of the recipe. You’ll know your wreath is done when the outside is a rich golden colour. It’ll smell pretty enticing too!
THE BIG FINISH
The big finish for our bun wreath isn’t just big, it’s also fun. You’re going to toast sliced almonds in a warm skillet on stovetop. It’s a simple step but can go awry in seconds if you leave the almonds unattended. We suggest you stay close to the skillet, gently tossing them about in the pan until they reach that lovely golden colour.
The second part of the finishing touches is a wonderful glaze made using readily available ingredients. It’s important that the butter and milk are both at room temperature before you make it. This ensures the glaze mixes up to a light creaminess.
Applying the glaze to the finished bun wreath is made easier using a lazy Susan (link to purchase down below). We used it previously to ice our famous MILE-HIGH COCONUT LAYER CAKE, but it also comes in handy up here in cottage country for games night. Click HERE for a list of our FAVOURITE GAMES. Hmmm, that suddenly sounds like fun; this CRANBERRY-ORANGE BUN WREATH enjoyed over a spirited game of Scrabble? Yay!
ENJOY
Now, as stunning and gorgeous as this freshly made breakfast or brunch idea looks, trust us, it tastes even better. There’s something so enjoyable about a flavourful light bread with little tidbits of cranberries and orange peel, ribboned with a tangy filling that’s flavoured with a hint of almond. It truly is a favourite for the holidays or special occasions!
A CRANBERRY-ORANGE BUN WREATH is the perfect beginning to a memorable day!
Cook Mode Use cook mode to keep your screen on while cooking.
Ingredients
For the dough:
½ cup water, lukewarm
½ teaspoon granulated sugar
1 package active dry yeast (1 tablespoon)
1 cup homogenized milk
1 stick (½ cup) butter
½ cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
5 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 eggs
½ cup dried cranberries, chopped
½ cup glazed orange peel
For the filling:
1 cup chopped fresh cranberries
½ cup chopped orange peel and flesh
¾ cup dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon pure almond extract
¼ cup almond flour
For the topping:
2 ½ cups confectioners’ (icing) sugar
2 tablespoons butter, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure almond extract
3 tablespoons homogenized milk, room temperature
½ cup sliced almonds, toasted
Directions
Make the dough:
Place sugar and warm water in a bowl, stirring to dissolve. Sprinkle with yeast, stir and cover. Let stand around 5 minutes until foamy.
Warm milk in small saucepan on medium heat. Add sugar and salt and stir to dissolve. Add the butter and stir to melt.
Combine yeast and milk mixtures in the bowl of a stand mixer. Add 2 cups of flour and stir to combine. Secure bowl in place on the stand mixer fitted with a hook attachment. Lock in position and run machine on low setting.
Mix the eggs together in a small cup before adding them to the bowl. The remaining 3 cups of flour go in, little by little. Beat until you have a soft, sticky dough.
Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead for about 8 minutes, until smooth and elastic. Sprinkle with dried cranberries and orange peel, folding into the dough. Place dough into a large lightly greased bowl. Cover with a tea towel and let rise in a warm place for an hour, or until doubled in bulk.
Make the filling:
While the dough rises, place cranberries in a food processor or chopper and roughly chop. Measure one cup of cranberries and transfer to a small saucepan. Process orange peel and flesh in the same manner and transfer 1/2 cup into the saucepan.
Stir together with brown sugar and almond extract and bring mixture to a simmer. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
Remove from heat and cool completely.
Make the wreath:
Turn the dough out onto floured work surface and roll it out to a rectangle that’s about 10 × 15-inches (or even slightly bigger) and about 1/4-inch thick. Spread the filling across the surface, then sprinkle with almond flour.
Starting on a long side, roll the dough up into a log. Trim the ends to create a clean cut. Lift log onto a parchment-lined pizza stone or baking dish and shape into a ring. Cut slits 2/3 through the ring, 1-inch apart and turn each section on its side.
Cover and let rise until double in bulk, about 1 hour.
Make the glaze:
Place sugar and butter in a small bowl and beat lightly using a hand mixer. Add milk and almond extract and beat to remove lumps and create a smooth glaze. Add a tiny bit more milk to thin slightly. Transfer glaze to a piping bag.
Bake the bun wreath:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Transfer wreath to oven and bake for 30 minutes, rotating it at the halfway point. Bake until golden brown. Cool to room temperature before applying the glaze.
Decorate:
Place cooled wreath onto serving plate or tray, then transfer onto a lazy Susan. Create a zig zag pattern of glaze going from the centre to the outside of the ring, gently turning the lazy Susan so the glaze is applied evenly.
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