Soft Weckmann sweet bread figures with raisin buttons for St. Nicholas Day

Tip: tap a step to mark it as done.

1. Activate the yeast

   10 min

   Pour 100 ml of the lukewarm milk into a cup, crumble in the yeast, and add 1 tsp of the granulated sugar. Stir and leave in a warm place for 10 minutes, until foamy.

2. Mix and knead the dough

   10 min

   Sift the semi-coarse wheat flour into a bowl and add the remaining granulated sugar, vanilla sugar, and salt. Add the yeast mixture, remaining milk, egg, and lukewarm melted butter. Knead for about 10 minutes, until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the bowl.

3. Let the dough rise

   1 hr

   Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel and let the dough rise in a warm, draft-free place for about 60 minutes, until doubled in size.

4. Shape the figures

   20 min

   Briefly knead the risen dough on a floured work surface and divide it into 8 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a log about 16 cm long. Press down with the edge of your hand about 4 cm from one end to form the head and neck. Using a sharp knife, make an angled cut about 4 cm long on each side of the body, then gently pull the resulting arms away from the body. Cut upward through the center of the bottom of the body for about 5 cm and spread the legs slightly apart.

5. Decorate and let rise again

   20 min

   Transfer the figures to two baking sheets lined with parchment paper, spacing them about 4 cm apart. Press two raisins deep into each head for eyes and three into each body for buttons. If you have a small clay pipe, insert it diagonally into one hand. Cover with a kitchen towel and let rise for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F).

6. Brush and bake

   30 min

   Whisk the egg yolk with 2 tbsp of milk and gently brush it over the figures. Bake one sheet at a time on the middle rack at 180°C (350°F) for 13–15 minutes, until golden brown.

7. Let cool

   10 min

   Let the baked figures cool briefly on the baking sheet, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely. Wait until they are completely cool before putting them into St. Nicholas Day treat bags.

   

Tip: Do not make the neck too thin, or the head could break off during rising and baking; press the raisins deep into the dough so they do not get pushed out as it rises. To keep the figures softer the next day, store them in a bag once completely cool.

This recipe was translated from the Slovak original: Mäkký Mikuláš z kysnutého cesta: panáčik s gombíkmi z hrozienok do mikulášskeho balíčka