My Food Trials: Stollen – Christmas bread recipe with pictures

For me, Stollen is the epitome of Christmas celebration food.

Bread is bread – but stick to the basics and with the addition of some interesting ingredients – it can get very tasty. A choice of sweet or savoury...

This festive fruit bread is the most expensive bread I’ve made but so far, but ranks as my all-time favourite.

If the thought of buying all the ingredients in one go causes you to reach for the phone to get some budgetary advice, start buying some ingredients now, so when Christmas week arrives you can enjoy the process.

I used our bread making machine to take care of the dough making, but if you like the artisan approach to doing everything by hand – go for it.

And - since the recipe makes two loaves, you’ll have one spare to give as a gift.

Stollen for Christmas

Stollen – Christmas bread recipe

Ingredients

125g mixed peel

100g raisins

100g dried cranberries

5 tablespoons dark rum I don’t drink rum, but one of those small bottles (think airline food) is the exact amount you’ll need.)

14g dried yeast

60g caster sugar

250ml warm milk (=1 cup)

freshly grated nutmeg

700g flour

pinch of salt

85g butter, melted

4 eggs

100g shelled pistachios, coarsely chopped

300g marzipan

2 tablespoons milk for egg glaze

1 cup icing sugar

¼ cup water

Method

Mix together the fruit and peel. Sprinkle the rum over and set aside.

Dissolve the yeast and a pinch of the sugar in the warm (not hot) milk and set aside somewhere warm to activate.

When it starts to bubble (about 10 minutes), sprinkle on the nutmeg and remaining sugar.

Rub the flour and salt together with the butter then stir in the yeast mix.

(this is where the trusty bread machine came in handy – but Please! – remember...only use the dough option – You are NOT using the machine to bake the bread as well)

Beat 2 eggs and add to the yeast mix with the fruit.

The dough should be elastic and firm; add a little more milk if it is crumbly.

Cover with a clean cloth and place in a large bowl.

(If you are using the dough only function on your bread machine then let it rise the dough for you)

Set aside somewhere warm to rest until it doubles in size (about 40 minutes).

Knock down gently, fold over, tip out on a floured surface and knead lightly.

Split the dough into 2 balls.

Roll the first ball into a long oval about 20cm x 10cm and 5mm thick.

Sprinkle half the pistachios over.

Roll out half the marzipan into a log and place in the centre of the dough.

marzipan

Roll the dough firmly round the marzipan.

Beat 2 eggs with 2 tablespoons of milk and a sprinkling of sugar, and brush the edges of the dough to seal.

Form into a firm, long sausage shape and seal the ends by folding over the edges and tucking.

Repeat with the other ball of dough.

Place the 2 loaves on a baking tray that has been sprayed or lined with baking paper. Set aside again to prove (rise); they will swell, but not quite double.