Kougelhopf
Kougelhopf or kouglof: Alsace's tall yeasted ring cake with raisins and almonds
Walk into any bakery in Colmar, Ribeauvillé or Strasbourg on a Sunday morning and the kougelhopf sits in the window, tall and fluted, wearing a snowfall of icing sugar and a crown of whole almonds. Alsatian families buy or bake one for weekend breakfast with coffee, and slices that go stale are toasted the next day. The crumb sits halfway between brioche and cake: soft, buttery and only lightly sweet, studded with plump raisins. Many bakers soak the raisins in kirsch (cherry brandy); this recipe uses warm black tea, which plumps them just as well without alcohol. You need a kougelhopf or bundt tin of about 22 cm. Chef's tip: chill the buttered tin for 10 minutes and press the almonds into the grooves before the dough goes in, so they stay put and toast as the cake bakes.
- Total time
- 85 min
- Difficulty
- hard
- Serves
- 10
Ingredients
For the dough
For the fruit and tin
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What you'll need
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Method
0/9 doneStep 1: Pour ½ cup hot black tea over 4 oz raisins and leave them to soak while you make the dough. They should swell and soften.
30 minStep 2: In a stand mixer with the dough hook, mix 1 ⅛ lb strong white bread flour, ¼ oz fast-action dried yeast, 2 ⅞ oz caster sugar and 1 tsp salt. Add ¾ cup whole milk, 3 eggs and 1 tsp lemon zest and knead on a low speed for 5 minutes into a sticky dough.
5 minStep 3: With the mixer running, add 5 ½ oz unsalted butter a few pieces at a time, waiting until each lot disappears. Knead on medium for 8–10 minutes more, until the dough is glossy, pulls away from the bowl and stretches into a thin sheet without tearing.
10 minStep 4: Drain the raisins well, pat them dry and knead them in briefly by hand. Cover the bowl and leave in a warm place until the dough has doubled, about 1½ hours.
90 minStep 5: Brush the kougelhopf tin thickly with ⅔ oz butter for the tin, getting into every groove, and chill it for 10 minutes. Press one of the 20 whole blanched almonds into the bottom of each groove.
Step 6: Knock the dough back, flatten it into a round, poke a hole through the middle with floured fingers and drop it into the tin, smooth side down. Cover and leave to rise again until it reaches about 1 cm below the rim, 1–1½ hours.
75 minStep 7: Heat the oven to 350°F (325°F fan). Bake on the lower shelf for 40–45 minutes, until deep golden and a skewer pushed into the thickest part comes out clean. If the top browns too fast, lay a sheet of foil over it after 25 minutes.
45 minStep 8: Leave in the tin for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a rack. Common mistake: turning it out straight from the oven, when the soft crumb tears and the almonds stay stuck in the tin.
10 minStep 9: When cool, dust with 2 tbsp icing sugar. It keeps for 2 days wrapped; slice and toast it after that.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 390 kcal
- Protein
- 9 g
- Carbs
- 55 g
- Fat
- 15 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does kougelhopf take?
- About 85 minutes in total: 40 minutes to prepare and 45 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 10 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of strong white bread flour?
- Plain flour, same amount (the dough will be softer and rise a little less).
- What can I use instead of fast-action dried yeast?
- Fresh yeast, three times the weight.
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