Dan Lepard’s Stollen Recipe

This stollen is one of many treats lovingly inflicted upon kith and kin for Christmas, alongside boatloads of cookies and chocolate. If my number crunching is correct, at a going rate of 3500 calories per pound, my beat-up oven is responsible for a metric ton of holiday season weight gain. I’m just glad that no one’s complaining and not much of the poundage ended up on me.

It was difficult to decide on a stollen recipe not because I lacked choices, but because I had way too many. There was no time to deal with a dud, so when Nils gave Dan Lepard’s extra moist stollen a thumbs up, I knew which recipe to try.

Don’t let the long list of ingredients discourage you — most of the recipe items are spices and fruits. Everything will come together quickly because there’s not much kneading and the smooth dough is easy to handle by hand.

Shaping the stollen is probably the most fun part about making it. There’s something satisfying about enclosing a roll of marzipan in fruit-studded dough.

recipe adapted from Dan Lepard
Yeastspotting at Wild Yeast Blog
Bread Baking Day #15: Festive Breads hosted by Annarasa

Dan Lepard’s Extra Moist Stollen Recipe

makes one stollen

Ingredients:

Ingredients                  Volume          Ounces          Grams
bread flour                   2 3/4 cups         12.3          350
granulated sugar                1/3 cup + 2 tsp   2.6           75
salt                            3/4 tsp
cardamom, ground                1/2 tsp
mace, ground                    1/2 tsp
clove, ground                   1/2 tsp
cinnamon, ground                  1 tsp
raisins                         1/2 cup           2.6           75
dried currants                  1/2 cup           2.6           75
candied citron                  1/2 cup           2.6           75
instant yeast                     4 tsp

whole milk                      2/3 cup           5.3          150
whole rye or whole wheat flour    3 tbsp           .9           25
unsalted butter, melt and cool  1/2 cup + 1 tbsp  4.4          125
large egg                         1
large egg yolks                   2
dark rum                          2 tbsp
finely grated lemon zest          1 lemon

marzipan, rolled into an 8-inch stick             8.8          250

melted butter and confectioner's sugar, for finishing

Directions:

Mix             Stir the flour, sugar, salt, ground spices, fruits,
                and yeast together.

                In a small skillet, bring the whole milk and whole
                rye or wheat flour just to a boil. It will resemble
                a thick porridge.

                In a clean bowl, add the boiled milk and the
                melted butter and stir, followed by the eggs, rum,
                and lemon zest.

                Add the liquid to the flour mixture and mix until
                the dough is evenly hydrated.

Rest            10 minutes

Knead           Knead lightly by hand just until smooth, about
                1 to 2 minutes.

Bulk Ferment    90 minutes

Shape           Deflate the dough by kneading lightly. Shape
                into an offset fendu and roll with the
                marzipan as shown:

Gently pat the dough into an 8- by 10- inch rectangle. Using a rolling pin, make an indentation just off the center of the dough and lay the marzipan on top.

Roll and press down on the edges to seal the marzipan in the dough.

Shaped stollen

Final Proof     about 45 minutes at room temperature, or until
                almost doubled in size

Preheat Oven    360ºF / 180ºC

Bake            35 minutes at 360ºF / 180ºC

Finishing       Brush with melted butter and generously sift
                confectioner's sugar over the top.

Links related to Dan Lepard’s Recipe for Extra Moist Stollen:

• Stollen recipe discussion at Dan Lepard’s bread and baking forum

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