Christmas Stollen (German Christmas Bread)
, Updated Oct 08, 2025
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Delicious Christmas Stollen packed with juicy fruit, citrus peel, almonds and marzipan. Follow my easy Stollen recipe to bake your own Christstollen this holiday season! A great make-ahead recipe that’s suitable for gifting and freezing.
If there’s one bake that truly captures the spirit of Christmas, it’s Stollen. This sweet, fruit-studded bread from Germany is dense, aromatic and deliciously buttery, a loaf meant to be shared, gifted, and savored over the festive season.
My version keeps all the tradition (rum-soaked fruit, marzipan, a blanket of sugar “snow”) but with simplified steps and modern timing so it’s easier to make at home. Bake it once and you’ll see why it’s worth the wait — Stollen actually tastes better after a few days as the flavors deepen and the crumb softens.
What is Stollen?
Stollen (also known as Christstollen) originated in 15th-century Germany, especially in Dresden, where it’s still celebrated with an annual festival. Traditionally, the shape symbolizes baby Jesus wrapped in swaddling clothes, and the coating of powdered sugar represents snow. Over time, the recipe evolved from a simple bread to a luxurious treat enriched with butter, eggs, fruit, and marzipan – a festive staple in every German home.
There are many varieties of Stollen (take a look at my Stollen bites which are made with quark and contain no yeast). I discovered this delicious bread on my visits to Germany and it remains one of my favorite Christmas bakes to this day.
What goes into Stollen
- Flour, almond flour, sugar & yeast: All-purpose flour gives structure, almond flour keeps the dough moist, rapid rise yeast provides rise and sugar feeds the yeast and adds just enough sweetness to balance the rich filling.
- Dried Fruit & rum: Dried fruit (such as raisins, sultanas, currants and candied peel) is soaked overnight in rum or brandy to plump and flavor it. The alcohol helps the fruit stay juicy and adds a subtle warmth to the dough.
- Marzipan (almond paste): That golden “log” hidden inside each slice! It adds a rich almond sweetness and keeps the interior moist. You can skip it, but I highly recommend including it for the full experience.
- Spices and citrus zest: Cinnamon, nutmeg and cardamom bring cozy warmth, while orange or lemon zest brightens the flavor.
- Butter, eggs and milk: These enrich the dough, giving it a soft crumb that’s closer to brioche than bread.
- Finishing Touches: Melted butter and powdered sugar (or “sweet snow” to quote my son). Stollen bread is meant to be wrapped and left to mature before sharing making it the perfect make-ahead Christmas recipe.
How to Make Stollen Step-by-Step
Prepare the dough
- Place the dried fruit in a bowl and add the rum. Cover the bowl with a plate and leave the fruit to soak overnight.
- The following day measure the flour, yeast, sugar, almond flour and spices into a large mixing bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook). Stir to combine the dry ingredients.
- Heat the milk and butter in a saucepan or the microwave until the milk is barely warm and butter starts to melt. Stir in eggs, vanilla and orange zest.
- Add the liquid ingredients into the bowl with the flour and beat on low speed with an electric hand mixer fitted with dough hooks or a stand mixer. Increase the speed and miix until the dough starts to come away from the edges of the bowl, about five minutes.
- Leave the dough to rest for 10 minutes then beat in the soaked dry fruit and citrus peel. You can also mix the fruit in by hand if you like.
- Cover the bowl and place someplace warm to rise for 90 minutes or until it has risen visibly. The dough will not quite double in size like bread dough does.
Shape the Stollen
- Lightly dust your worktop with flour and turn the dough onto it. Cut into two pieces and roll each into a little ball. Roll or press each ball into an oval shape. Roll the marzipan into a log the length of the oval.
- Make a dent on the left hand side of the oval (off-center) with a rolling pin and place the marzipan in the little trough.
- Make a dent on the right hand side and fold over to encase the marzipan. Tuck the ends under. Use your hands to press on the Stollen to shape it so that it has a little “hump” right off center. Shape the second loaf.
- Cover the stollen loosely with plastic wrap and allow it to rise for an hour. Pick any dried fruit that sit on top of the loaves off as they might burn.
Bake and dust with sugar
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C) towards the end of the second rise and bake for 30-35 minutes. Brush the warm stollen with melted butter and dust liberally with powdered sugar to cover. Leave to cool completely.
How to Wrap and Store Stollen
Proper wrapping is what transforms a freshly baked loaf into a melt-in-your-mouth Christmas treat. Once your Stollen has cooled completely:
- Wrap Tightly – First, wrap the loaf snugly in parchment or wax paper to keep the sugar layer intact. Then wrap again in aluminum foil for an airtight seal. Avoid plastic wrap at this stage — it can trap moisture and make the sugar sticky.
- Store in a Cool, Dry Place: Keep the wrapped loaf at cool room temperature (around 60–68°F / 15–20°C), away from direct sunlight or heat sources. Don’t refrigerate, it will dry out the bread and make it go stale fast!
- Let It Mature: Storing the stollen allows the taste to mature and the wonderful aromas of the fruit, rum and spices to intensify. It tastes best after 3–5 days when the flavors have a chance to meld and the crumb softens. Traditionally it is aged for up to 2–3 weeks, with the flavor improving each day.
- Freezing Instuctions: Stollen freezes beautifully! Wrap it tightly (but skip the sugar coating until after thawing) and freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight at room temperature, then brush with a little melted butter and dust with fresh sugar before serving.
Recipe Notes
- Using Active Dry Yeast: If you’re using active dry yeast rather than instant yeast, you’ll just need to activate it first. Heat the milk until it’s lukewarm but not hot. Stir in a tablespoon of sugar from the recipe and sprinkle 3 teaspoons active dry yeast over the milk. Let stand for 5–10 minutes, or until it becomes bubbly. Once activated, add to your dry ingredients along with the and continue the recipe as written.
- Substitutions: Replace the rum with orange juice if you are avoiding alcohol – but be aware that the rum helps preserve the bread for longer.
- Don’t skip the butter and sugar coating: It keeps the loaf moist and adds that signature flavor.
- Avoid overbaking: Stollen should be firm but not dry — check at 30 minutes. Your bread is fully baked when the internal temperature reaches 190–200°F (88–93°C) on an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of the loaf.
👉 Related recipes: Stollen Bites (no yeast!), German Lebkuchen Cookies, Austrian Linzer Cookies, Greek Melomakarona – Honey Christmas Cookies.
HAVE YOU MADE MY STOLLEN RECIPE? Please leave a rating, post a photo on my Facebook page, share it on Instagram with @supergolden88 and the tag #supergoldenbakes and make my day!
Christmas Stollen Recipe
Delicious Christmas Stollen packed with juicy fruit, citrus peel, almonds and marzipan. Follow my German Stollen recipe to bake your own Stollen this Christmas! A great make-ahead recipe that's suitable for gifting and freezing.
Video
Ingredients
For the dried Fruit
- 7 oz (200g) rasins or mixed dried fruit
- ⅓ cup (80ml) rum or orange juice
For the Stollen
- 3 cups (375g) flour all-purpose / plain
- ¼ cup (50g) sugar
- 3 tsp rapid rise yeast
- 1 cup (100g) ground almonds or almond flour
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground cardamom
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- ½ cup (120ml) milk
- ¾ cup (150g) butter softened, unsalted
- 2 large eggs
- 1 orange zest only
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup (200g) candied citrus peel orange and lemon
- 8 oz (230g) marzipan divided in half (optional)
For coating and spinkling
- ⅓ cup (75g) butter unsalted, melted
- sugar powdered / icing sugar, as needed
Instructions
Prepare the dough
- Place the dried fruit in a bowl and add the rum. Cover the bowl with a plate and leave the fruit to soak overnight.7 oz (200g) rasins, ⅓ cup (80ml) rum, 1 cup (200g) candied citrus peel
- The following day measure the flour, yeast, sugar, almond flour and spices into a bowl (or the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the dough hook). Stir to combine the dry ingredients.3 cups (375g) flour, ¼ cup (50g) sugar, 3 tsp rapid rise yeast, 1 cup (100g) ground almonds, ½ tsp ground cinnamon, ¼ tsp ground cardamom, ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- Heat the milk and butter in a saucepan or the microwave until the milk is barely warm and butter starts to melt. Stir in the eggs, vanilla and orange zest.½ cup (120ml) milk, ¾ cup (150g) butter, 2 large eggs, 1 orange, 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Add the liquid ingredients into the bowl with the flour and beat on low speed with an electric hand mixer fitted with dough hooks or a stand mixer. Increase the speed and mix until the dough starts to come away from the edges of the bowl, about five minutes.
- Leave the dough to rest for 10 minutes then beat in the soaked dry fruit and citrus peel. You can also mix the fruit in by hand if you like.
- Cover the bowl and place someplace warm to rise for 90 minutes or until it has risen visibly. The dough will not quite double in size like bread dough does, it remains a bit dense.
Shape the stollen
- Lightly dust your worktop with flour and turn the dough onto it. Cut into two pieces and roll each into a little ball.
- Roll or press each ball into an oval shape. Roll the marzipan into a log the length of the oval.8 oz (230g) marzipan
- Make a dent on the left hand side of the oval (off-center) with a rolling pin and place the marzipan in the little trough. Make a dent on the right hand side and fold over to encase the marzipan.Tuck the ends under. Use your hands to press on the Stollen to shape it so that it has a little “hump” right off center. Shape the second loaf.
- Cover the stollen loosely with plastic wrap and allow it to rise for an hour. Pick any dried fruit that sit on top of the loaves off as they might burn.
Bake
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C) towards the end of the second rise and bake for 30-35 minutes. Brush the warm stollen with melted butter and dust liberally with powdered sugar to cover. Leave to cool completely.⅓ cup (75g) butter, sugar
- If you can, wrap the loaves tightly with plastic wrap and foil and leave them to mature for up to two weeks before sharing (see recipe notes).
Notes
Proper wrapping is what transforms a freshly baked loaf into a melt-in-your-mouth Christmas treat. Once your Stollen has cooled completely:
- Wrap Tightly – First, wrap the loaf snugly in parchment or wax paper to keep the sugar layer intact. Then wrap again in aluminum foil for an airtight seal. Avoid plastic wrap at this stage — it can trap moisture and make the sugar sticky.
- Store in a Cool, Dry Place: Keep the wrapped loaf at cool room temperature (around 60–68°F / 15–20°C), away from direct sunlight or heat sources. Don’t refrigerate, it will dry out the bread and make it go stale fast!
- Let It Mature: Storing the stollen allows the taste to mature and the wonderful aromas of the fruit, rum and spices to intensify. It tastes best after 3–5 days when the flavors have a chance to meld and the crumb softens. Traditionally it is aged for up to 2–3 weeks, with the flavor improving each day.
- Freezing Instuctions: Stollen freezes beautifully! Wrap it tightly (but skip the sugar coating until after thawing) and freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight at room temperature, then brush with a little melted butter and dust with fresh sugar before serving.
Nutrition
Calories: 2693kcal | Carbohydrates: 324g | Protein: 46g | Fat: 134g | Saturated Fat: 67g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 27g | Trans Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 272mg | Sodium: 911mg | Potassium: 1339mg | Fiber: 29g | Sugar: 145g | Vitamin A: 3345IU | Vitamin C: 36mg | Calcium: 463mg | Iron: 14mg
Nutritional information is always approximate, and will depend on quality of ingredients and serving sizes.
This looks like a good, straightforward recipe – thank you.
However, it doesn’t say whether the oven temperature is for a conventional oven or a fan oven. Which is it, please?
I’ve looked at other stollen recipes and they seem to vary.
Thanks.
Hi Sharon the temperature is without fan. If you are using a fan oven the temperature will need to be reduced by 10-14 degrees. Hope this helps, Lucy
although it is a great recipe with detailed instructions, not only did you leave out egg(s) in the ingredients list, but also did not mention if to grease or not to grease the baking sheet. respectfully Isolde
My apologies Isolde, I have now amended. Its always good to get feedback, I appreciate it
one more question. Did you mention making your own candied Citrn? I (candied lemon and orange peels). am sure I came across it but can’t seem to find it anymore. would you pls send me the instructions. I would greatly appreciate it.
I don’t have that I am afraid but I believe this recipe is a good one https://www.davidlebovitz.com/candied-citron-recipe/
you forgot to mention eggs in the list of ingredients so I added 2 going by other stollen recipes and a picture that looks like 2 eggs!
PS: also just lovesd your lebkuchen recipe, closest I ever came to the Jahrmarkt lebkuchen Herzen we loved as children. since all my males in the family love lebkuchen and insist on it for Christmas presents, I used to bake 2 batches of 48 ea one width almonds, one with hazselnuts, which involved hard-to-get Pottasche and were generally much more complicated, I will surely go for your simpler recipe.