Christmas Stollen is a traditional German sweet yeast bread made with rum soaked raisins, almonds and marzipan. Stollen is a yeast bread, not a cake. But it's likeness to bread and its lack of sweetness (typical of Christmas baking) make it a unique flavour perfect with a nice cup of coffee.
Prep Time3 hourshrs
Cook Time25 minutesmins
Total Time3 hourshrs25 minutesmins
Course: baking, Dessert, holiday specialties
Cuisine: German
Keyword: christmas, holiday specialties, stollen
Servings: 16
Calories: 545kcal
Author: Getty Stewart
Ingredients
1/4cupspiced rum
1/2cupgolden sultana raisins
1/2cupdark raisins
3 1/2 - 4cupsall-purpose flourdivided
3teaspoonsactive dry yeast
1/2cupgranulated sugar
3/4teaspoonsalt
2/3cupmilkwarm
2/3cupbuttermelted
1large egglightly beaten
1/2cupcandied citrus peel
2tsporange zest
3/4cupsliced almonds
8ozmarzipan
Topping
4tablespoonsbuttermelted
1cupicing sugar
Instructions
Combine raisins and rum in a small bowl; set aside to soak overnight.
In large bowl, mix 3 1/2 cups flour, instant yeast, sugar and salt.
Heat milk to 110°F (lukewarm). Mix in melted butter and egg.
Make a well in the flour mixture and stir in liquid ingredients. Stir until ingredients are combined then use your hands to knead into a smooth, springy dough.
Knead dough thoroughly for about 8 minutes adding more flour only as needed to prevent stickiness. (The goal is to prevent stickiness, not to incorporate all the flour.)
Knead in raisins, citrus peel, orange zest and sliced almonds. Add additional flour as needed to prevent stickiness. Knead until all fruits and nuts have been incorporated into a smooth dough. It will seem like all these ingredients won't fit - but they will, keep kneading.
Form dough into a ball and place in an oiled bowl turning a few times to coat all sides. Cover with a clean, damp towel and place in a warm, draft-free area to rise for 1 hour to 2 hours. Dough will be more springy but don't expect it to grow too much.
Punch down dough and divide into two pieces.
On a lightly floured work surface use a rolling pin to form each piece into an 8 x 10 inch oval about 1/2 to 1 inch thick.
Split marzipan into 2 pieces. Shape each piece into a log about 9 inches long (or 1 inch less than the length of your rolled out dough). Flatten the marzipan logs with a rolling pin.
Fold the dough in half lengthwise, remove any raisins, citrus peel or almonds that are on top of the outside surface of the dough. Unfold dough, fold up the other side and remove any uncovered fruits and nuts from that side as well. (An important step to avoid burnt nuts and raisins). Unfold dough and place removed raisins, citrus peel and nuts on top of the dough.
Place marzipan strips into the center of each piece of dough.
Fold the dough lengthwise to cover the marzipan and leaving a 1/2 inch strip of dough exposed to give your stollen the traditional hump. Gently press the top edge of the dough into the bottom edge and form your stollen to the desired shape.
Transfer stollen to baking sheet, loosely cover and let rest in a warm place for 45 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C).
Bake stollen until golden brown all over about 25 to 30 minutes. For extra confidence that your stollen is baked through use a digital thermometer. Bread is done at 190 to 195°F (88-90°C)You can use a digital thermometer to test done
Topping
Brush stollen immediately with melted butter. Sprinkle with a coating of icing sugar. Repeat for extra thick topping.
Notes
Yield: 2 Loaves, serves 12-16 generous servings.Stollen improves with age. For best results wrap tightly and allow to sit for 2 weeks - if you can wait that long! To freeze stollen, do not add topping. Wrap tightly in wax paper or aluminum foil before putting in freezer bag. Top with melted butter and icing sugar after it has thawed completely.