Cranberry Twist Bread

1. In a large bowl stir together 1 cup of the flour and the yeast; set aside. In a small saucepan heat and stir milk, 2 tablespoons of the granulated sugar, the 2 tablespoons butter, and 1/2 teaspoon salt until warm (120 degree F to 130 degree F). Add milk mixture to flour mixture; add egg. Beat with an electric mixer on low to medium speed for 30 seconds, scraping sides of bowl. Beat on high speed for 3 minutes. Stir in as much of the remaining flour as you can.

2. Turn out dough onto a floured surface. Knead in enough remaining flour to make a soft dough that is smooth and elastic (3 to 5 minutes total). Shape dough into a ball. Place in a lightly greased bowl; turn once. Cover; let rise in a warm place until double (1 to 1-1/2 hours).

3. Meanwhile, for filling, in a small bowl stir together cranberries, remaining sugar, pecans, orange peel, and spice; set aside.

4. Punch down dough. Turn out onto lightly floured surface. Cover; let rest 10 minutes. Grease a baking sheet. Roll dough into a 14x10-inch rectangle. Brush with melted butter. Spread filling over dough. Starting from a long side, roll dough into a spiral. Seal seam. Place seam side down and cut roll in half lengthwise. Place cut sides up, side by side, on prepared baking sheet. Loosely twist halves together, keeping the cut sides up. Pinch ends to seal. Cover; let rise in a warm place until nearly double (about 30 minutes).

5. Bake in a 375 degree F oven about 25 minutes or until golden brown (if necessary, cover loosely with foil the last 10 minutes to prevent overbrowning). Remove from baking sheet; cool on a wire rack. Drizzle with Orange Icing. Makes 16 servings.

Orange Icing
Stir together 1/2 cup sifted powdered sugar and enough orange juice (2 to 3 teaspoons) to make icing of drizzling consistency.