Soft sweet bread men with raisin eyes — Martinmas bakery fare, made at home for the eve of the feast.

On Martinmas, German bakeries sell Weckmann — sweet bread men with raisin eyes, baked for the children who carry their lanterns through the dark. This is the Grove's home version, made the night before the feast, while the lanterns are still being folded. It is a plain, warm bread, sweetened just enough, and it tastes best shared: one for you, one for whoever is at the gate, the way Martin would have wanted it.

What Goes In

3 cups plain flour · 1 packet (2¼ teaspoons) active dry yeast · ¼ cup sugar · ½ teaspoon salt · ½ cup warm milk · 1 egg, beaten · ¼ cup butter, melted and cooled a little · a handful of raisins, for eyes and buttons · a little beaten egg or milk, for brushing. Makes 6 bread men.

How It's Made

1. Stir the yeast into the warm milk with a pinch of the sugar and leave it 10 minutes, until it foams.

2. Mix the flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Pour in the yeast milk, the beaten egg, and the melted butter, and stir until a soft dough forms.

3. Knead on a floured board for 8 to 10 minutes, until smooth and springy. Put it back in the bowl, cover it, and let it rise in a warm place for about 1 hour, until doubled.

4. Punch the dough down and divide it into 6 pieces. Shape each one into a little man — a round head, a body, arms tucked to the sides — and press in raisin eyes and buttons.

5. Set them on a lined baking tray, cover loosely, and let them rise again for 20 minutes. Brush with beaten egg or milk.

6. Bake at 375°F (190°C) for 18 to 20 minutes, until golden and sounding hollow when tapped underneath. Cool on a rack just long enough that you do not burn your fingers.

Keeping note: Best eaten the day they are baked, still warm, with butter. They keep two days in a tin, and they reheat kindly in a low oven. Make the double batch if there are children — or neighbours — at the door.