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| Recipe Archive > Cakes & Biscuits > |
 Stollen
(The recipe makes 4-5 Stollens)
This traditional fruited yeast bread is finished with three generous dustings of Whitworths icing sugar to give it extra sweetness and richness. The icing sugar also provides a thick snowy-white, air-tight coating as the bread is often made several weeks before Christmas to allow the flavours to develop and mature.
If you are pressed for time, buy a quality marzipan. I recommend a make called Renshaw available from cake specialist shops and some good supermarkets. Mix the marzipan with a generous splash of rum for a really special flavour.
Equipment & Ingredients
| For the dried fruit marinade: |
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200g (7oz) mixed cut peel |
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115g (4oz) whole glace cherries, halved |
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115g (4oz) flaked almonds |
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Ground mixed spice to include ½tsp each of mace, nutmeg, cloves and cinnamon |
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Zest of 3 medium sized lemons |
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225g (8oz) white bread flour |
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15g (½oz) Whitworths caster sugar |
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450g (1lb) white bread flour |
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375g (13oz) unsalted butter, room tempreature |
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100g (3½oz) Whitworths caster sugar |
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75g (2¾oz) egg (scant 2 small eggs) |
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400g (14oz) marzipan, home made, or a quality shop bought one, (see recipe intro) |
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To finish - Unsalted melted butter and Whitworths icing sugar, sifted |
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Method
(1) For the marinade. Soak the dried fruit, almonds, spice and lemon zest in the rum and leave covered for 24 hours.
(2 ) Now prepare group (A) ingredients.
Sieve the flour and sugar into a large mixing bowl and make a well in the centre. Using a cooking thermometer warm the milk in a small saucepan to 37°C / 98°F, then crumble in the fresh yeast creaming it into the warm liquid with your fingertips until silky smooth. Pour it into the flour all at once and mix well until the mixture forms a slack dough. Cover the bowl in clingfilm and leave in a warm place until frothy and doubled in size (about 20 minutes).
(3) Now prepare Group (B) ingredients.
Place the flour, butter, sugar and salt into a mixer bowl of a food processor, or knead with your fingertips and work it to a light crumb consistency . Form a well in the crumb mixture and add the eggs to the well. Next add the frothy ferment (Group A) to the well. Now you can bring all the ingredients together and work them to a smooth dough, this will take about 10 minutes.
(4) Place the dough in a large clean bowl. Cover with clingfilm and leave to prove in a warm place until doubled in size for about 1 hour.
(5) Turn out and knock back the dough lightly, then add the dried fruit marinade, incorporating it and any juices into the dough until well dispersed, for about 3-4 minutes. Form the dough into a smooth fat sausage and divide into approximately 500g (1lb 2oz) pieces. Keeping the rest covered as you work. Roll and pat each piece into a fat oval shape 17cm x 24cm (6½ x 9½ inches) then dampen along the edge of one side with water.
(6) Divide the marzipan into four pieces weighing 100g (3½oz) each and roll the pieces into four long sausage shapes 19cm (7½ inches) long. Place a roll of almond paste along the centre of each oval leaving a 2.5cm (1 inch) margin of dough at each end, then fold over one side of the oval to the other (in a similar way that you would make a cornish pasty), pressing the two edges together slightly underneath the shape so that the weight of the dough will help seal it.
(7 ) Place on the prepared baking sheets and leave uncovered in a warm place to rise for approximately 30 minutes until doubled in size. Bake in a preheated oven at 200°C / 400°C / Gas Mark 6, for about 35 minutes.
For the traditional Whitworths icing sugar coating: While the breads are still warm brush them generously with melted butter and thoroughly dredge with sifted icing sugar. Leave for 30 minutes, then brush over some more melted butter and dredge thickly again with more icing sugar. After 10 minutes dredge again with more icing sugar. Store wrapped in three layers of cling film, then wrap well in Christmassy decorated cellophane sealed with ribbon. Keep until Christmas. Serve in thin slices with coffee or a dessert wine.
Tip
Stollen dries out quickly, so keep it well wrapped and cut it on the point of serving.
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