Dresdner Christstollen

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Large mixing bowl or stand mixer with dough hook
• •Rimmed baking sheet
• •Pastry brush
• •Fine sieve for icing sugar
• •Baking parchment and foil or a tight Stollen tin

Instructions

1. 1

   Soak the fruit

   Mix the raisins, currants, candied orange peel, candied lemon peel, and rum in a bowl, cover it, and leave it overnight. The dried fruit must drink before it goes into the dough; dry fruit steals moisture from the crumb while the loaf rests, and then you get a Stollen that cuts like old cork.

   Chop the candied peel fine. Big chunks taste bitter and bully the slice; small pieces season the loaf evenly.
2. 2

   Wake the yeast

   Warm the milk only to lukewarm, then stir in the yeast, a spoon of the sugar, and a spoon of the flour. Leave it 10 to 15 minutes until it looks creamy and alive. Hot milk kills yeast, cold milk slows it down, and this heavy butter dough needs every bit of strength the yeast can give.

3. 3

   Make the dough

   Put the remaining flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, and lemon zest in a large bowl. Add the yeast mixture, egg yolks, and softened butter, then knead until the dough is smooth, heavy, and only just tacky. Do not keep throwing flour at it. Extra flour makes shaping easier for five minutes and the finished loaf dry for three weeks.

4. 4

   Fold in fruit

   Drain off any loose rum and knead the soaked fruit and chopped almonds into the dough by hand. Work slowly and fold more than you punch, because tearing the dough smears fruit through the crumb and breaks the raisins. If a few pieces fall out, press them back in. Weggeworfen wird nichts.

5. 5

   First rise

   Cover the dough and let it rise in a warm place until swollen by about half, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Do not expect it to double like a lean bread. Butter, sugar, fruit, and nuts weigh the yeast down, so a modest rise is right; waiting for a balloon gives you tired dough.

6. 6

   Shape the loaves

   Divide the dough in two. Pat each piece into a thick oval, then fold one long side over just past the middle so it forms the old Stollen ridge, like a blanket folded over. Press lightly along the fold but don't flatten it. The shape is not decoration; the thicker middle protects the fruit and keeps the loaf moist as it bakes.

7. 7

   Second rise

   Set the loaves on a lined baking sheet, cover them loosely, and let them rise 45 to 60 minutes until slightly puffed. Stop there. Overproofed Stollen spreads flat in the oven, and a flat Stollen is only expensive fruit bread with bad posture.

8. 8

   Bake gently

   Bake at 180C for 15 minutes, then reduce to 160C and bake 35 to 45 minutes more, until the loaves are deep golden and sound firm when tapped underneath. Runter mit der Temperatur: the first heat sets the shape, the lower heat cooks the heavy centre before the fruit on the outside burns.

9. 9

   Butter and sugar

   While the loaves are still warm, brush them all over with melted butter, wait a minute, and brush again until the butter is used. Sift icing sugar over thickly. Warm crust drinks the butter, butter catches the sugar, and together they make the keeping coat that carries the loaf through Advent. Nicht aus dem Glas, not from a packet either; this is the finish.

10. 10

    Wrap and mature

    Let the loaves cool completely, then wrap each first in baking parchment and then in foil or a tin. Store in a cool place for at least 2 weeks before cutting. The fruit softens the crumb, the butter settles, and the spice stops shouting. Slice thinly with coffee. Schön ist, was schmeckt.

Chef Tips

• •Use good candied peel or make your own. Cheap peel tastes mostly of sugar and bitterness, and in Stollen there is nowhere for it to hide.
• •Soak the fruit overnight and drain it before kneading. Wet rum on the outside of the fruit makes the dough slippery; rum inside the fruit keeps the loaf moist while it ripens.
• •Bake two loaves because the keeping time is the point. One goes to the Christmas table, the other waits for the quiet days after, when Stollen tastes even better.
• •Store it cool, wrapped, and dry. The refrigerator makes butter hard and dulls the aroma; a cool pantry, cellar, or unheated room is better.
• •Cut thin slices from the middle and push the cut faces back together before wrapping. Less exposed crumb means less drying. Simple thrift, and it works.

Advance Preparation

• •Soak the fruit the night before mixing; it is the first quiet step, and it keeps the finished loaf from drying out during its rest.
• •Bake the Stollen 2 to 4 weeks before Christmas. Two weeks is the minimum; three is better if your storage place is cool and dry.
• •Refresh the sugar coat before serving if it has been absorbed into the butter. Sift on a fresh layer of icing sugar just before slicing.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 100g)