Favourite Holiday Dessert Stollen

Recipe below! Professional baker Anna Olson shows you how to make a rich, sweet, cake-like bread perfect for the holidays. This 'German Christmas bread' is dotted with dried fruits and nuts, but what stands out is the marzipan centre. Like a festive fruitcake, stollen can be made well ahead of time and frozen to serve over the holidays or give as a gift.

• Ingredients •

Fruit & nuts:

• 2 cups (300 g) raisins
• 1½ cups (165 g) sliced or slivered almonds
• 1 cup (150 g) diced candied orange peel
• 1 cup (140 g) coarsely chopped dried cherries or cranberries
• ½ cup (125 mL) rum
• 1 tsp ground cardamom
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp ground nutmeg
• ¼ tsp ground cloves
• ¼ tsp ground allspice

Sponge starter:

• 1 cup (250 mL) 2% milk, lukewarm
• 1 cup (150 g) bread flour
• 1 (2¼ tsp/7 g) pkg instant dry yeast

Dough:

• ½ cup (125 mL) 2% milk, lukewarm
• 4 cups (600 g) bread flour
• ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 2 egg yolks
• Finely grated zest of 1 orange
• 1 tsp fine salt
• ¾ cup (175 g) unsalted butter, cut into pieces, at room temperature

Assembly:

• 8 oz (240 g) Marzipan (see below) or store-bought
• ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
• ⅓ cup (80 mL) water
• ¼ cup (60 g) unsalted butter
• 1 cup (130 g) icing sugar

• Directions •

1. Toss fruits and nuts with the rum in a large bowl, then stir in spices. Cover bowl and let sit on the counter for a day, stirring occasionally.

2. For starter, stir milk, flour and yeast together by hand in a large mixing bowl or in bowl of a stand mixer. Let sit for 30 minutes, uncovered.

3. For dough, add milk, flour, sugar, egg, egg yolks, orange zest and salt to the starter. If using a mixer, combine on low speed with a dough hook. Add the butter and then increase the speed by a level and knead until the dough looks elastic and pulls away from the sides. It should still be soft and stick a little to your hands when touched. If mixing by hand, stir the dough (including butter) with a wooden spoon until the flour is no longer visible. Tip the dough out onto a lightly floured counter and knead by hand until elastic. Place dough in an ungreased bowl, cover and let rise for an hour (it won’t rise too noticeably).

4. Uncover the dough and add the fruits and nuts. Use your hands to work the dried fruits into the dough—don’t be afraid to really get in there to mix it. Cover the bowl and let rise for 20 minutes.

5. Line two baking trays with parchment paper and lightly dust a work surface with flour. Turn the dough out and divide it into 3 pieces. Roll the first piece into an oval about 9 inches (23 cm) long and 7 inches (18 cm) wide. Divide the marzipan into 3 pieces, knead to soften and roll each piece into an 8-inch (20 cm) rope. Place 1 piece of marzipan slightly left of centre on the rolled-out dough. Fold the dough from the left side over the marzipan, pressing down to create a seam to cover it. Fold the dough from the right side to meet this seam and press down again. Repeat with the two remaining pieces of dough and marzipan. Cover the trays with tea towels and let sit for 30 minutes.

6. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).

7. Uncover the stollen and bake for 50 to 60 minutes, until the loaves are a rich golden brown.

8. For the glaze, bring the granulated sugar and water to a simmer over medium heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Turn off the heat and stir in the butter until melted and hold warm. After the stollen have been out of the oven for 10 minutes, use a tea towel to hold a loaf in one hand, then brush the glaze all over the outside of the stollen and place on a rack to cool completely. Once cooled, generously dust each stollen with icing sugar.

The stollen will keep, well wrapped in plastic, at room temperature for 1 week or in the fridge for up to 3 months.