Stollen
Fruit Christmas bread
Dresden Christmas Stollen with raisins, candied peel and a thick sugar coat (rum optional)
GermanDresden has baked Christstollen for more than 500 years, and every December the city holds a Stollen festival with a giant loaf paraded through the old town to the Striezelmarkt. The loaf's shape, folded over and dusted white, is said to show the Christ child wrapped in swaddling cloth. It's a rich, dense yeast bread, heavy with butter, raisins, candied peel and almonds, brushed with melted butter straight from the oven and buried in sugar. It's baked weeks before Christmas and sliced thinly through Advent. Chef's tip: wrap it tightly and let it rest for at least a week before cutting; the flavours ripen and the crumb turns moist.
- Total time
- 120 min
- Difficulty
- hard
- Serves
- 16
Ingredients
For the fruit
- 9 oz raisins
- 3 ½ oz candied orange and lemon peelchopped
- ¼ cup dark rum or orange juice
For the dough
- 1 ⅛ lb plain flour
- ½ oz instant dried yeast
- 2 ⅞ oz sugar
- ½ tsp salt
- ¾ cup milklukewarm
- 8 oz buttersoft
- 1 tbsp lemon zest
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 ⅞ oz blanched almondschopped
- 7 oz marzipan (optional)
For the coating
- 3 ½ oz buttermelted
- 3 tbsp caster sugar
- 2 ⅞ oz icing sugar
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Method
0/9 doneStep 1: The day before, mix 9 oz raisins and 3 ½ oz candied orange and lemon peel with ¼ cup dark rum or orange juice in a bowl, cover and leave overnight to soak up the liquid.
Step 2: Mix 1 ⅛ lb plain flour, ½ oz instant dried yeast, 2 ⅞ oz sugar and ½ tsp salt in a large bowl. Add ¾ cup milk, 8 oz butter, 1 tbsp lemon zest, 1 tsp vanilla extract and 1 tsp mixed spice (cardamom, nutmeg, mace) and knead for 8–10 minutes, until smooth, glossy and no longer sticky. It's a rich, heavy dough.
10 minStep 3: Knead in the soaked fruit and 2 ⅞ oz blanched almonds gently by hand, just until evenly spread. A common mistake is kneading too hard at this stage: the fruit breaks up and turns the dough grey. Cover and leave somewhere warm for 1–1½ hours, until risen by about half.
90 minStep 4: Divide the dough in two. Press each half into an oval about 25 × 20 cm. If using 7 oz marzipan, roll it into two 20 cm logs and lay one along each oval, slightly off-centre.
Step 5: Fold the wider side over so it doesn't quite reach the far edge, then press down along the fold with the side of your hand to make the typical Stollen hump. Put both loaves on a lined tray, cover and rise for 30 minutes.
30 minStep 6: Heat the oven to 350°F (325°F fan). Pick off any raisins poking out of the surface; they burn and turn bitter.
Step 7: Bake for 45–55 minutes, until deep golden and the base sounds hollow when tapped. Cover loosely with foil if the top browns too quickly.
50 minStep 8: While still hot, brush the loaves all over with 3 ½ oz butter, several times, letting it soak in. Sprinkle with 3 tbsp caster sugar, then when cool sift over a thick layer of 2 ⅞ oz icing sugar.
Step 9: Wrap tightly in baking paper and foil and keep in a cool place for 1–3 weeks before slicing. Dust with more icing sugar before serving in thin slices.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 390 kcal
- Protein
- 6 g
- Carbs
- 52 g
- Fat
- 18 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does stollen take?
- About 120 minutes in total: 60 minutes to prepare and 60 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 16 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- What can I use instead of dark rum or orange juice?
- Mandarin or pineapple juice, same amount.
- What can I use instead of plain flour?
- Self-raising flour, same amount (then leave out the baking powder).
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Perfect for:Christmas