Surprisingly, imported Stollen from Germany is readily available in Seattle. Yes, a lot of folks have roots in Germany or have spent time there with the US armed forces; but I didn’t expect that Stollen would make the jump across the Atlantic. It does lend itself well to export though, since a true Stollen improves with age and is best served several weeks after baking.
In this household, of course, commercially baked Stollen – imported or otherwise – is simply unacceptable. Keeping in mind that a Stollen will need to age a couple of weeks, Thanksgiving weekend is a great time to make it. In fact it’s almost too late: the first advent is on December 2nd, which is next weekend!
Traditional Stollen with Whole Grain Flour
This recipe is based on my mother’s Stollen – I cannot remember a Christmas that we did not enjoy this delicious sweetbread. She would wrap the Stollen in aluminum foil and place them on top of a wardrobe in a cool room to age. The arrival of these shiny packages was observed with much excitement by us children, a sure sign that the Christmas season was nigh.
I have modified the recipe a bit to suit my preferences: replacing suet (which, I must admit, does yield a superior texture) with butter, and some of the white flour with whole grain. The addition of pecans is also a nod to the New World.
Starter
1 tsp dry yeast
- 300 g whole wheat flour
- 300 ml milk
- Allow to ferment at least 6h or overnight.
Preparation
- Starter
- 400 g butter at room temperature
500 g whole wheat flour
- 200 g refined wheat flour
- 10 g salt
- 300 g sugar
- 150 g almonds, chopped
- 100 g pecans, chopped
- 100 g candied citron, chopped
- 50 g candied orange zest, chopped
150 g raisins
- 150 g sultanas
- 80 ml brandy
- 100 g dried sweet cherries, chopped
- zest of an orange
- zest of a lemon
- spice mix to taste: vanilla, crushed cloves, crushed cardamom, crushed allspice, bitter almond oil
- milk as necessary
A day in advance, soak the raisins and sultanas in the brandy.
Add flour, salt, sugar, and spice mix to the starter. Mix to a soft dough, adding milk as necessary. Add the butter and keep kneading until it is shiny and there is a good development of gluten. By hand, carefully fold in the remaining ingredients.
Proof until risen about 30%. This may take 4 hours or more. Fold, and proof for another 2 hours. Divide and shape: the traditional shape is a flattened loaf that has been folded over on itself. This is achieved by using a rolling pin to indent the loaf at about 1/3rd of its width and then folding over the smaller section.
Allow about 1 hour for the final proof. Bake at 380-400F for about 1 hour.
Immediately brush with melted butter and sprinkle with powdered sugar. Allow to cool, then wrap in aluminum foil and store for at least 2 weeks in a cool room. To serve, sprinkle once more with powdered sugar and slice very thinly.
YeastSpotting submission #6
