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.
Try also my Quick and Easy Stollen Bites
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What is Stollen?
Stollen is a traditional German bread baked at Christmas (Christstollen). This fruity bread is packed with dried fruit, candied citrus peel and (sometimes) marzipan.
Stollen is brushed with melted butter while still warm from the oven then covered with a dusting of powdered sugar. It tastes absolutely divine and actually gets even more delicious as it matures.
By the way, Stollen is supposed to symbolize baby Jesus in his swaddling clothes – hence the name Christstollen.
There are many varieties of Stollen – this dense cake-like yeast bread has been around for centuries after all! I discovered Stollen as a student on my visits to Germany and it remains one of my absolutely favorite Christmas recipes.
What goes into Stollen
Stollen is made with all-purpose flour, yeast, sugar, ground almonds and enriched with milk, butter, eggs, rum, dried fruit, orange zest, candied citrus peel, vanilla and warming spices.
I love adding marzipan (almond paste) into my Stollen but you can make it without if you are not a fan!
The finishing touches are 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
Full measurements and instructions can be found on the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page. Please take a look at the steps and video before attempting this recipe!
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 bowl (or the bowl of your 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 the 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.
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.
HOW TO SHAPE STOLLEN
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.
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.
If you can, wrap the loaves tightly with plastic wrap and foil and leave them to mature for up to two weeks before sharing. Alternatively you can freeze for up to two months.
RECIPE TIPS
- Stollen is usually shaped so it has a little “bump”. While this is traditional it doesn’t affect the taste in any way.
- You can leave the marzipan out if you like.
- Storing the stollen allows the taste to mature and the wonderful aromas of the fruit, rum and spices to intensify.
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Christmas Stollen Recipe
Ingredients
For the dried Fruit
- 7 oz (200g) rasins or mixed dried fruit
- ⅓ cup (80ml) rum
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
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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, 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.
- 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.
- If you can, wrap the loaves tightly with plastic wrap and foil and leave them to mature for up to two weeks before sharing. Alternatively you can freeze for up to two months.
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