Braided Coffee Cake

Here it is! The very very very best breakfast pastry ever!


Start with

1/4 c Butter
3 oz Cream Cheese
2 Cups of  Bisquick
 Cut the butter and cream cheese into the Bisquick. 

Stir in:
1/3 c Milk
Knead 10 times (and check out this super cute apron of Amy's)

Roll it out onto a cookie sheet lined with foil or parchment

Mix the filling next:
5 oz Cream cheese
1/3 c sugar
1 tsp almond extract

Then: here's the fun part! Choose your fruity filling!
I used these:

but I have also used jam, pie filling, or nothing at all (just the cream cheese)
Then set it up like this: Cut 1" strips on the outside thirds of the pastry, put the cream cheese stuff in the middle then top with your choice of filling.

Next you start braiding:

Till it looks like this:

Put it in an oven that's at 425 for 15 or so minutes. Don't over bake it... but make sure it's all the way brown, or you'll have doughy stuff in the middle (which I don't like).
And when it comes out, it might look something like this:

Then you've got to make a glaze:
1 c powdered sugar
1 tsp Almond extract
1 1/2 Tbsp water/milk
drizzle it on your slightly cooled coffee cake and it should look like this:

and as soon as you cut into it, it's likely to look a little more like this:



Seriously though, this is the best. It has even won awards!