Holiday Stollen Bread
Ingredients
Stollen Filling
- 2 cups dark raisins
- ¾ cup golden raisins
- ¼ cup candied lemon peel
- 1 cup candied orange peel
- 4 tbsp dark rum
- 2 tbsp vanilla extract
- 10 oz almond paste, divided & rolled into 2 cylindrical tubes, about 5" in length & ¾" in diameter
Starter
- 2 tsp dry yeast
- ¼ cup + 2 tbsp bread flour
- ¼ cup milk
Stollen Dough
- 1⅓ cup bread flour
- 5 tsp sugar
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 tbsp almond paste
- ⅔ cup butter
- ¼ tsp nutmeg
- ¼ tsp cardamom
- non-stick cooking spray
- melted butter
- sugar, for dusting
How-to
Prepare Filling
- Macerate all dried fruit in rum and vanilla one day prior to making the stollen. Set almond paste aside
Stollen Starter
- Hydrate yeast in milk. Mix with flour and let rest for 2 hours in a slightly warm area
Make Stollen Dough, Proof & Bake
- In a stand mixer, mix almond paste and butter with paddle attachment until creamy
- Add yolk and mix until combined
- Add sugar, salt, nutmeg & cardamom until combined
- Change to hook attachment and add flour and starter. Mix on low speed for 3 minutes. Raise speed to medium and mix for 8-10 additional minutes
- Add macerated fruit and mix at low speed for 3 minutes, then raise speed to medium and mix for an additional 4 minutes
- Cover dough with plastic wrap and let rest for 1 hour
- Divide dough and shape into 2 loaves. Place each half of dough on counter and roll in the middle of the loaves, lengthwise, with a rolling pin to create a crevice to place the tube of almond paste. Fold dough up and around paste, pressing edges to seal. Allow to rest for 30 minutes, covered loosely with plastic wrap
- Preheat oven to 325º
- Bake loaves for 45 minutes on sheet pan greased with non-stick cooking spray
- Remove from oven, allow to cool
- Brush loaves with melted butter and sprinkle generously with white sugar. Slice and serve