Stollen Bread (German Christmas Bread)

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This conventional German stollen bread is the very best deal with for the vacations! It’s a scrumptious candy bread stuffed with cranberries, raisins, candied citrus, and a luscious almond filling.

I really like German meals and seeking to recreate it at house! A couple of extra recipes you’ll have to take a look at out: red meat schnitzel, German oven pancakes, and this German potato salad! (It’s one in all my favourite facets!)

German Christmas Fruit Loaf (Christstollen)

This vacation season, switch out your conventional fruit cake for this tasty German model! Translated, “stollen” approach fruit loaf. Those are eaten all yr spherical, however in December they’re known as Christstollen. Stollen bread is comfortable with the very best chunk. Very similar to a fruit cake, it’s additionally loaded with cranberries, raisins, and candied citrus for scrumptious fruity taste!

What actually makes stollen just right, although, is its tasty almond filling. I exploit almond paste on this recipe, nevertheless it’s additionally usually made with marzipan! Stollen is the very best aggregate of flavors and textures. It’s candy, nutty, and fruity! You’ve were given to present this scrumptious German pastry a check out for Christmas. It is going to simply turn out to be a brand new circle of relatives custom!

What You’ll Want to Make Stollen

I’ve damaged this listing of elements up into a couple of other portions so it’s more straightforward to prepare. If you’ll’t to find almond paste at your native grocery shop, take a look at my pointers phase underneath on the right way to make it at house.

Fruit and Nut Aggregate

• Dried End result: In my stollen bread I used dried cranberries and golden raisins for the very best aggregate of tart and candy.
• Candied Citrus: I used each candied orange and lemon peel. If you’ll’t to find those in-store, use my recipe right here to lead them to from scratch!
• Slivered Almonds: Provides a bit of further nuttiness to the stollen.
• Darkish Rum: Added for additonal taste.

Bread

• Milk: I all the time like to make use of complete milk for bread for the reason that fats content material makes it comfortable and smooth. Be sure you use milk that’s heat to lend a hand turn on the yeast!
• Yeast: I used energetic dry yeast.
• Sugar: Simply common granulated sugar works nice to sweeten up the dough.
• Bread Flour: Bread flour has the next protein content material than all-purpose flour, so it produces extra gluten and provides your stollen extra chunk.
• Massive Egg: Binds the entire elements in combination!
• Softened Butter: I used unsalted butter as a result of we upload salt one at a time.
• Vanilla: Vanilla and candy breads move hand-in-hand! Upload some in for an additional pop of taste.
• Lemon Zest: I upload lemon zest for a slightly of zesty taste.
• Salt: Assists in keeping your stollen from tasting bland.
• Spices: No Christmas bread is entire with out spice! I used cardamom, nutmeg, and cinnamon for the very best vacation taste.

Almond Filling

• Almond Paste: For the filling of the stollen. You’ll additionally use marzipan as a substitute. If you’ll’t to find both on the shop, you’ll make it from scratch the use of my directions underneath.

Garnish

• Melted Butter: Not anything compares to a bit of melted butter brushed on most sensible of selfmade bread!
• Powdered Sugar: Stollen is historically made with powdered sugar dusted on most sensible, however you’ll forget this if you wish to have your bread to be much less candy.

How one can Make Stollen Bread

I do know all of the directions could also be intimidating, however making stollen is in reality lovely easy! It simply takes a bit of time and endurance to get your dough proper.

Getting ready the Fruit and Nut Aggregate

1. Mix Elements: Get ready the fruit and nut aggregate through combining dried cranberries, raisins, candied fruit peels, almonds, and rum.
2. Soak in Rum: Permit the mix to soak, stirring on occasion till you are prepared to make use of it.

Making the Dough

1. Turn on Yeast: Within the bowl of a stand mixer mix your milk, yeast, and sugar. Let the mix relaxation for roughly 5 mins, it must turn out to be bubbly because the yeast turns on.
2. Mix: Upload to the bowl 3 cups of your bread flour, egg, butter, vanilla, lemon zest, salt, cardamom, nutmeg, and cinnamon.
3. Combine: The use of the dough hook attachment combine the dough on low velocity to include all of the elements and convey the dough in combination. As soon as dough has come in combination, whether it is too sticky and rainy, upload extra bread flour ¼ cup at a time. Then permit it to combine for a couple of extra mins on low velocity. Build up velocity to medium prime and blend for roughly 3-5 mins, this will likely increase the gluten.
4. Evidence: Take away dough from mixer and position in a frivolously greased bowl and canopy to evidence till it has doubled in measurement, about 45 mins to an hour.
5. Create Bread Paperwork: Whilst the dough is resting, create two oblong paperwork with tin foil and position them on a sheet of parchment paper, those will lend a hand the stollen bread to stay it’s form whilst baking. When you’ve got stollen bread paperwork you’ll use the ones.
6. Form and Fold: When dough has doubled in measurement, sell off out onto a frivolously floured floor and pound to degas. Fold for your fruit and nut aggregate, straining out any extra juice previously. Then paintings the dough till the fruit and nut aggregate is calmly dispensed all the way through the dough. Permit the dough to relaxation, lined within the bowl for every other 10 mins.

Including Filling and Baking

1. Upload Almond Filling: Sell off the dough again onto a frivolously floured floor and minimize it into two equivalent halves. Stretch every part right into a rectangle and put aside. Take your almond paste and roll right into a rectangle between two sheets of parchment paper. Lower the almond paste rectangle in part and position one on every rectangle of dough, rather off to at least one facet.
2. Form and Evidence: Stretch the dough over the almond paste and protected your seam at the facet of the loaf. The seam is baked at the facet of the loaf to create the vintage stollen bread shape. Be sure you protected it tight. Position the shaped loaves onto your ready paperwork at the sheet pan and canopy, permit the loaves to evidence till slightly below double in measurement. Do a slightly check to peer if the loaves are able to bake through frivolously poking down every loaf about 5 instances. The pokes must rather spring again however nonetheless be visual. In the event that they spring again and the dough continues to be tricky they want extra time, if the loaf begins to deflate while you carry out the check your dough is over-proofed.
3. Bake: As soon as the loaves are able, bake them at 350° Fahrenheit for 40-50 mins. I love to rotate the pan round after about half-hour to verify a good bake. You additionally would possibly wish to quilt the loaves with foil after half-hour if they’re browning too briefly. The loaves are able when they’re a gentle golden brown and temp out to 190° Fahrenheit.
4. Upload Topping: Take away the loaves from the oven and brush with melted butter, as soon as the loaves have cooled a bit of, mud every one generously with powdered sugar.