Cookbook:Stollen

| German Cuisine

Stollen, is a rich, fruit bread dusted with icing sugar, which is traditionally made at Christmas.

Procedure

 * 1) Put the raisins, currents, citrus peel, and cherries in a bowl with the rum/brandy and leave them to soak for at least 1 hour.
 * 2) In a small bowl, stir the yeast and 1 teaspoon sugar into the water. Leave this for 5 minutes for fresh yeast and 15 minutes for dried yeast.
 * 3) Sprinkle 1½ tablespoons of the flour into the fruit together with the almonds. Stir the mixture until the flour is completely absorbed.
 * 4) Warm the milk until it is lukewarm and stir in the remaining sugar until it has dissolved. Then, stir in the lemon rind.
 * 5) Place all but 2 oz (50 g) of the flour in a large bowl with the salt. Pour in the yeast mixture and mix thoroughly.
 * 6) Add the egg and the milk and sugar mixture to the flour and then beat in the softened butter.
 * 7) Mix everything into a dough, turn it onto a floured work surface and knead it, using the rest of the flour, until it is no longer sticky.
 * 8) Gradually add the fruit and almonds whilst continuing to knead the dough.
 * 9) Clean the large bowl and brush the inside with 1 tablespoon of the melted butter.
 * 10) Brush the top of the dough with another 2 tablespoons of the melted butter and place it in the bowl.
 * 11) Cover the dough with a clean cloth and leave it for 2 hours, or until it has doubled in size.
 * 12) Punch down the dough and leave it to rest for 10 minutes.
 * 13) Roll the dough into a rectangle measuring 12 x 8 inches (30 x 20 cm), and brush it with the remaining melted butter.
 * 14) Fold two opposite sides of the rectangle towards the middle, overlapping them slightly. Press the joint gently to keep it in place.
 * 15) Taper the ends of the loaf slightly and push the sides gently together to form a mound in the middle. The loaf should be about 3½ inches (9 cm) wide and 14 inches (35 cm) long.
 * 16) Place the loaf on a floured baking sheet and brush it with any remaining melted butter. Leave it in a warm place for an hour or until it has doubled in size.
 * 17) Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C)
 * 18) Bake the stollen for 45 minutes, or until it is brown and crusty.
 * 19) Allow the stollen to cool and then sift the icing sugar over the top.