~ Christmas Wishes for You ~
~ And A Stollen Too ~
~ And for them too ~
~Dear Stollen Purists ~
No doubt you feel strongly about your Stollen so I do not claim that this is THE definative stollen recipe but I do vouch for the fact that it IS a dry fruit studded, mouth-wateringly delicious and incredible cake-like bread.
You will therefore forgive me if you like your stollen hard as Bratt Pitt's bottoms because mine is moist in it's texture. You will also find yourself disappointed if you like yours as a log because I have chosen to go with the much more rustic, fold-over version.
Quite honestly, I wouldn't dream to claim that this version has the artistry of the 150 Official Dresden bakers, who make their famous Dresden stollen sold at the local Christmas market Striezelmarkt, distinguished by a special seal depicting King Augustus II the Strong but as Stollens go, it's a star and sure to be polished off, toasted for breakfast (or not!) and slathered with buttah (oh yes!).
Ho, Ho, Ho!
Devaki
Gather the ingredients -
Dough - Bread flour, active dry yeast, warm milk, large eggs, sugar, light brown sugar, salt, baking powder, salted butter, ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, vegetable oil - to coat dough
Fruit mixture - golden raisins, glazed red cherries - halved, chopped candied orange peel, chopped candied lemon peel, Rum or Brandy, lemon emulsion (much more potent than extract)
Homemade Marzipan - sliced almonds, powdered sugar, egg and all-purpose flour
Glaze - softened or melted butter & powdered sugar
Proof the yeast -
To do this, warm the milk in microwave safe dish to about 110 deg F (warm) and to it add 1 tbs sugar. Stir and add the yeast. Stir to combine. Set aside for about 10 minutes till doubled in volume and foaming over. If this has not occured it means that the yeast is basically kaput so discard the mix and begin again with a new yeast packet.
Prepare the fruit mixture -
While the yeast is proofing, bring together the fruit mixture so it macerates for a bit. You can also allow it to macerate overnight if you so choose.
Use a kitchen scale and weigh all the dry fruits and place in a large mixing bowl.
Measure out the Rum or Brandy and the lemon emulsion and add to the candied fruit mixture.
Stir to combine and set aside.
The Dough -
To work the dough you can of course knead by hand but it is so much simpler to use a food processor or a electric stand mixer fitted with a dough hook -
I am using my food processor. To the bowl, add the dry ingredients - bread flour, 1/4 cup sugar, 1/4 cup light brown sugar, salt, baking powder, ground cinnamon and ground nutmeg. Pulse to combine.
Cut the butter into chunks. Once the yeast has foamed over, to the flour mixture, add the butter, eggs and yeast.
Pulse till a soft dough has formed. The dough will be quite soft and sticky. This is fine for the moment so set aside while.
Preheat the oven to 200 deg F.
Prepare a clean working surface on which you can knead the dough.
Add the macerated fruit mixture to the dough and knead for about 8-9 minutes or until the dough and the fruits are combined.
Prepare a large bowl and add vegetable oil to coat the bowl. Place the dough in the oil and turn over to coat all sides with oil. Form a ball and cover with a damp cotton cloth.
Turn the oven off. Place the bowl in the oven for 1-1/2 hours so it expands to double its volume.
While the dough is resting, prepare the marzipan -
Marzipan -
In a food processor, add the almonds and grind to a dust. I have left them a little bit crumbly but if you want a very fine textured marzipan, grind to a dust.
Add the egg, powdered sugar and the all-purpose flour. Pulse till the mixture is throughly combined to a paste.
Marzipan is incredibly sticky so the best way to handle it in my opinion is to use a plastic wrap like cling wrap. Place the marzipan paste on a sheet of cling wrap.
Fold the clingwrap over and roll the marzipan so it forms a long uniform roll about 1" round. Place in the refrigerator to cool so it is easier to handle.
Remove the stollen dough that has now expanded dough from the oven. Turn the oven back on to 200 deg F to pre-heat.
On a lightly floured, clean work surface, divide the stollen into 2-3 portions.
You can either choose to make 2 large or 3 smaller size stollens. The traditional size for a stollen is about 2 lbs. I have chosen to fix 2 qty, 1 lb stollens for gifts and 1 larger 1-1/2 lb stollen for home. Use a kitchen scale so you can control the portions accurately.
Once you've divied the stollen dough portions, flatten each to a disk about 1/2-3/4" thick.
Transfer these to baking sheets lined with double-layered parchment paper.
Cook's Note - This is an important step for even browning and not ending up with over-brown stollen bottoms.
Remove the marzipan roll from the refrigerator. Discard the plastic-wrap and divide the roll into 2-3 portion, 1 qty for each stollen.
Place the marzipan in the center of each stollen and fold the top half over the bottom. Leave a lip so the bottom edge is exposes 1/2-3/4". Press to seal all the edges together. Do the same for each stollen.
Turn the oven off once again. Place the stollens in the warm oven for about 30-40 minutes so they rise.
Remove from the oven.
Pre-heat the oven to 350 deg F.
Place the baking sheets in the center of the oven, all on the same rack, side by side. Bake for 10 minutes. Lower the oven temperature to 325 deg F and bake for another 30-40 minutes till beautifully golden brown.
Remove the trays from the oven. Paint the stollens with softened or melted butter lavishly.
While the stollens are still hot, sprinkle lots of powdered sugar on them. This is absorb into the crust forming a sugar crust.
Once the stollens have thoroughly cooled, sprinkle some more powdered sugar on the surface to give it a smooth, attractive finish.
Cook's Note - It is important to sprinkle the sugar on while the stollens are hot so they absorb the sugar instead of the sugar just sitting on top once cooled.
I will not be exaggerating if I say that you've got your last minute Christmas gifts covered.
Traditionally, stollen is best if keep for 1-2 weeks before serving because similar to fruit cake, the flavors season and mature. Lets just say that within the first 15 minutes of making an appearance from the oven, half our stollen had disappeared.
The next morning, I cut it into 1/2" thick slices and toasted it in the oven for about 10 minutes to a nice crusty golden brown. Delish served slathered with butter.
24 hours later, Stollen? What Stollen?
Recipe for
'Christollen' ~ German Christmas Stollen
Preparation time - 30 minutes
Rising time - 1hr-30 minutes
Baking time- 40 minutes
Makes 3 small loaves or 2 large loaves
Shopping list
Dough-
4 cups bread flour
1/4 cup flour during kneading
1 tbs active dry yeast
1 cup warm milk
1 tbs sugar to proof yeast
2 large eggs
1/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
6 oz salted butter
1-1/2 tsp cinnamon powder
1/2 tsp nutmeg powder
1/2 tbs vegetable oil - to coat dough
Fruit mixture -
6 oz golden raisins
4 oz glazed red cherries, halved
4 oz chopped candied orange peel
3 oz chopped candied lemon peel
1/4 cup Rum or Brandy
1 tsp lemon emulsion (much stronger than extract)
Homemade Marzipan -
6 oz sliced almonds
4 oz powdered sugar
1egg
1 tbs all-purpose flour
Glaze -
4 oz softened or melted butter
1/2 cup powdered sugar
Method -
Proof the yeast -
To do this, warm the milk in microwave safe dish to about 110 deg F (warm) and to it add 1 tbs sugar. Stir and add the yeast. Stir to combine. Set aside for about 10 minutes till doubled in volume and foaming over. If this has not occured it means that the yeast is basically kaput so discard the mix and begin again with a new yeast packet.
Prepare the fruit mixture -
While the yeast is proofing, bring together the fruit mixture so it macerates for a bit. You can also allow it to macerate overnight if you so choose.
Use a kitchen scale and weigh all the dry fruits and place in a large mixing bowl.
Measure out the Rum or Brandy and the lemon emulsion and add to the candied fruit mixture.
Stir to combine and set aside.
The Dough -
To work the dough you can of course knead by hand but it is so much simpler to use a food processor or a electric stand mixer fitted with a dough hook -
I am using my food processor. To the bowl, add the dry ingredients - bread flour, 1/4 cup sugar, 1/4 cup light brown sugar, salt, baking powder, ground cinnamon and ground nutmeg. Pulse to combine.
Cut the butter into chunks. Once the yeast has foamed over, to the flour mixture, add the butter, eggs and yeast.
Pulse till a soft dough has formed. The dough will be quite soft and sticky. This is fine for the moment so set aside while.
Preheat the oven to 200 deg F.
Prepare a clean working surface on which you can knead the dough.
Add the macerated fruit mixture to the dough and knead for about 8-9 minutes or until the dough and the fruits are combined.
Prepare a large bowl and add vegetable oil to coat the bowl. Place the dough in the oil and turn over to coat all sides with oil. Form a ball and cover with a damp cotton cloth.
Turn the oven off. Place the bowl in the oven for 1-1/2 hours so it expands to double its volume.
While the dough is resting, prepare the marzipan -
Marzipan -
In a food processor, add the almonds and grind to a dust. I have left them a little bit crumbly but if you want a very fine textured marzipan, grind to a dust.
Add the egg, powdered sugar and the all-purpose flour. Pulse till the mixture is throughly combined to a paste.
Marzipan is incredibly sticky so the best way to handle it in my opinion is to use a plastic wrap like cling wrap. Place the marzipan paste on a sheet of cling wrap.
Fold the clingwrap over and roll the marzipan so it forms a long uniform roll about 1" round. Place in the refrigerator to cool so it is easier to handle.
Remove the stollen dough that has now expanded dough from the oven. Turn the oven back on to 200 deg F to pre-heat.
On a lightly floured, clean work surface, divide the stollen into 2-3 portions.
You can either choose to make 2 large or 3 smaller size stollens. The traditional size for a stollen is about 2 lbs. I have chosen to fix 2 qty, 1 lb stollens for gifts and 1 larger 1-1/2 lb stollen for home. Use a kitchen scale so you can control the portions accurately.
Once you've divied the stollen dough portions, flatten each to a disk about 1/2-3/4" thick.
Transfer these to baking sheets lined with double-layered parchment paper.
Cook's Note - This is an important step for even browning and not ending up with over-brown stollen bottoms.
Remove the marzipan roll from the refrigerator. Discard the plastic-wrap and divide the roll into 2-3 portion, 1 qty for each stollen.
Place the marzipan in the center of each stollen and fold the top half over the bottom. Leave a lip so the bottom edge is exposes 1/2-3/4". Press to seal all the edges together. Do the same for each stollen.
Turn the oven off once again. Place the stollens in the warm oven for about 30-40 minutes so they rise.
Remove from the oven. Pre-heat the oven to 350 deg F.
Place the baking sheets in the center of the oven, all on the same rack, side by side. Bake for 10 minutes. Lower the oven temperature to 325 deg F and bake for another 30-40 minutes till beautifully golden brown.
Remove the trays from the oven. Paint the stollens with softened or melted butter lavishly.
While the stollens are still hot, sprinkle lots of powdered sugar on them. This is absorb into the crust forming a sugar crust.
Once the stollens have thoroughly cooled, sprinkle some more powdered sugar on the surface to give it a smooth, attractive finish.
Cook's Note - It is important to sprinkle the sugar on while the stollens are hot so they absorb the sugar instead of the sugar just sitting on top once cooled.
Enjoy!
