Christmas Bread With Dates And Walnuts - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp active dry yeast
4 cup all purpose flour
3 tbsp butter or margarine
1/4 cup sugar
2 None eggs
1 pinch salt
7 oz marzipan
1 1/3 cup dried dates, finely chopped
1 1/4 cup walnuts, chopped finely
7 tbsp rose water
1 1/4 cup powdered sugar
None None candied rose petals to decorate

Preparation

Warm the milk to about 100\u00b0F and combine with vanilla extract and yeast. Stir until incorporated and set aside for 10 minutes. Sift flour into a large bowl and make a well in the center. Pour milk mixture into the well and stir to combine with a wooden spoon. Cover the mixture and keep in a warm place for about 15 minutes. Melt the butter and mix it with the sugar, 1 egg, and salt. Add the butter mixture to the the flour mixture and knead with the dough hook of a hand mixer (or by hand) until smooth. Cover the dough and let it rest for 30-40 minutes in a warm place.
Coarsely chop the marzipan and place in a food processor with the dates and the walnuts. Pulse mixture a few times. Add 5 tbsp of rose water and 1 egg, and pulse a few more times. Roll the dough out on a floured surface into a rectangle roughly 18 inches x 12 inches. Spread the marzipan mixture on top of the dough evenly, and press it down with your fingers. Roll the dough into a log from the long side. Cut the log in half lengthwise and braid the two halves. Put the bread on a parchment-lined baking tray and set aside to rest for about 10 minutes. Preheat the oven to 400\u00b0F. Bake the cake for 30-40 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack.
To make the icing, mix the powdered sugar with 2 tbsp of rose water and stir until smooth. Brush it over the cake and garnish with rose petals. Let icing dry before serving.