A Tale of Two Stollen

While I was home for the holidays, my mom made a great traditional Christmas stollen (that is, a German bread-slash-fruitcake very similar to Italian panettone).   I really enjoyed it as a breakfast food: You see, I’m not really a breakfast person at all but if I do have something, I want it to be light and sweet, and a pastry of some sort really works for that.  (I love, love, love cheese danish for breakfast — don’t judge me!)

Last week, I was running low on cereal and decided to make myself a stollen for the rest of the week’s breakfasts.  So I whipped out my Bernard Clayton’s New Complete Book of Bread (hardback|paperback) and made the Strasbourg variant he detailed.

Stollen the First

The resulting stollen was OK.  Not fabulous, but totally edible and good enough.

I should note that I made a couple changes to his recipe here.  Since the candied fruit I can buy at the local store is full of corn syrup, tartrizine, and other sad excuses for quality ingredients, I gave it a miss and used sultanas and diced dried figs in it, instead.  Also, where the recipe called for confectioner's sugar, I used “instant dissolving” (AKA, super fine) sugar instead in order to avoid the corn starch in the former.

Apart from that the recipe called for a starter of yeast, salt, water, flour, sugar, and an egg with butter whipped into it.  This sat for a few hours, then then more flour was added along with blanched almonds, the dried fruit, a little brandy, and a bit of cardamom.  This sat until it was double, then went into the fridge overnight, and was taken out the next morning, allowed to double again, then put in the oven.  Once out it was buttered and sprinkled with sugar.

The bread was really dense, and I think the cooked figs did the overall flavor a bit of a disservice (at least to my taste buds).  There was a strong yeasty-alcohol flavor to it too, which wasn't the brandy, I don’t think.  It was interesting but, for me, it was “too interesting” for breakfast.

I should say that I often have this “too dense” problem with the Bernard Clayton recipes, and in large part, I believe it’s that this book was first published in 1973 and the flour we get at the store now has a whole lot of additives that were not in the flour then.  It just doesn’t behave as it should in some circumstances.

Stollen the Second

Anyway.  For my second attempt, I started with the recipe from the Ohio Farm Bureau, dropped the figs, then added the brandy and cardamom that I’d liked from the first recipe.

The result was a much lighter bread that tasted sweeter (though I don't think it is) and is much more the sort of thing I was really looking for.  If I’d change anything if (when) I make this again, it will be to add more dried fruit than I did for this one, and perhaps use one less egg.

I know that the crust in the photo looks quite dark, but it’s soft and sweet (and just compare the color to your nearest loaf of Wonder Bread).

The recipe I ended up with for Stollen the Second is:

1 package (2¼ teaspoons) yeast
¾ cup very warm water
½ cup sugar
½ teaspoon salt
3 whole eggs
1 egg yolk, white reserved
½ cup unsalted butter, softened and divided
3 ½ cups flour, plus extra, if necessary
½ cup chopped blanched almonds
⅓ cup sultanas
⅓ cup golden raisins
1 Tablespoon brandy
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
3 Tablespoons butter
1 Tablespoon melted butter
instant dissolving or super fine sugar

Combine the yeast and the water in a large mixing bowl. When the yeast is foamy, add the sugar, salt, eggs, egg yolk, the ½ cup of butter, and half of the flour. Beat for 8 to 10 minutes, ensuring the butter is whipped into the dough.

Stir in the remaining flour along with the almonds, sultanas, raisins, brandy, cardamom, and and zest until well mixed.  Cover the bowl with a slightly damp cloth and let it rise in a warm place until it doubles in bulk (usually 1 to 1½ hours).

When double, stir the mixture down, cover it tightly with plastic wrap, and store it in the refrigerator overnight.

Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and shape it into an oval about 12 inches long and 8 inches wide. Spread the butter over it,  then fold the dough in half lengthwise, pressing the edges together firmly.

Place the dough on a parchment-lined baking sheet, cover it, and let it rise until it is double in bulk (about 45 minutes to an hour).

Mix the reserved egg white with a tablespoon of water and use it to brush over the dough.

Heat the over to 375°F (or 190°C), then bake 30 to 35 minutes, until the loaf is deeply golden-brown.  When it comes out of the oven, brush the crust with the melted butter and sprinkle with the instant dissolving sugar.  Let the stollen cool for 30 minutes before serving.

It's not that hard to make, and it lasts a while (I just cover the exposed end with plastic wrap), so a slice a day has been a good breakfast for me.