Stollen

Christmassy and delicious!

Gaggenau’s own recipe.

PREP TIME: 15 minutes

APPLIANCE: Oven - Settings 190°C

COOKING TIME: 35-40 minutes

DIFFICULTY: Medium

christmas-stollen-1907520_1920.jpg
 

Ingredients

  • 150ml milk

  • 50g caster sugar

  • 2 level teaspoons dried yeast

  • 350g strong white bread flour

  • ¼ teaspoon salt

  • 110g softened butter

  • 1 egg, beaten

  • 40g currants

  • 50g sultanas

  • 25g mixed candied peel, finely diced

  • 40g no soak apricots, chopped

  • 25g glacé cherries, rinsed, dried & quartered

  • 25g almonds, chopped

  • The grated zest of ½ lemon

  • 175g marzipan

For the glaze

  • 110g icing sugar, sifted

  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice

 

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 190oC. Warm the milk, till you can just still dip your little finger in it and pour it into a glass jug. Add 1 teaspoon of the sugar along with the dried yeast and leave it until it forms a frothy head of about 2.5cm.

  2. Sift 300g of the flour together with the salt and remaining sugar into a mixing bowl, and make a well in the centre. Pour the milk and yeast mixture into this, then add the softened butter and beaten egg. Mix everything together – either with your hands or with a wooden spoon – until the mixture is well blended and leaves the side of the bowl cleanly.

  3. Work in the fruits, peel, nuts and lemon zest, distributing them as evenly as possible. Knead the dough on a working surface for 5 minutes until it is springy and elastic.

  4. Leave the dough in a warm place, covered with cling film, until it has doubled in size. After that, turn the risen dough out on to a board floured with the reserved 25g of flour, and knock the air out of it and knead the dough until it’s smooth and elastic.

  5. Roll or press out the dough to an oblong (25cm x 20cm). Using your hands, roll out the marzipan to form a sausage-shape and place this along the centre of the dough, finishing just short of the edges.

  6. Fold the dough over the marzipan and carefully place the whole thing on a baking sheet, allowing plenty of room for expansion. Leave it to prove in a warm place until it has doubled in size again, then bake in the oven for 35-40 minutes. Allow it to cool on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes before lifting it on to a wire rack to finish cooling.

  7. Meanwhile make the glaze by mixing the sifted icing sugar with the lemon juice, then use a small palette knife to spread this all over the top surface of the stolen (while it’s still warm). Serve as fresh as possible, cut into thick slices, with or without butter.