Stollen (German Christmas Bread

• Produce

  • 1/2 cup Candied lemon peel
  • 1/2 cup Candied orange peel
  • 1 Lemon, Small
  • 1 cup Raisins

• Refrigerated

  • 2 Eggs

• Baking & Spices

  • 1 tbsp Active dry yeast
  • 3 1/2 cup All-purpose flour, unbleached
  • 1/4 cup Powdered sugar
  • 1/2 tsp Salt
  • 1/4 cup Sugar
  • 1/4 tsp Vanilla extract, pure

• Nuts & Seeds

  • 1/2 cup Almonds

• Dairy

  • 1/2 cup Butter
  • 6 tbsp Milk

• Beer, Wine & Liquor

  • 1/2 cup Rum, White

• Liquids

  • 1/2 cup Water

Found on curiouscuisiniere.com

Description

Ingredients

• 1 c raisins
• ½ c candied lemon peel, diced (Make your own Candied Lemon Peel!)
• ½ c candied orange peel, diced (Make your own Candied Orange Peel!)
• 1 small lemon, zested (roughly ½ tsp zest)
• ½ c white rum
• ½ c water
• 2 Tbsp - ¼ c warm milk (80F)
• ¼ c sugar
• 1 Tbsp active dry yeast
• 3 ½ c unbleached all purpose flour
• ½ c butter, room temperature
• 2 eggs, room temperature
• ½ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp pure vanilla extract
• ½ c almonds, chopped
• ¼ c powdered sugar

Directions

• Mix raisins, lemon peel, orange peel, lemon zest, rum, and water. Let stand overnight.
• Drain the raisins, reserving the soaking liquid. Place the soaking liquid in a liquid measuring cup and add milk to reach ½ c + 2 Tbsp of liquid.
• In the bowl of a large stand mixer, fitted with a dough hook, mix together milk and fruit soaking liquid mixture, sugar, yeast, flour, softened butter, eggs, salt, and vanilla. Mix with the dough hook 7-10 minutes, until a smooth dough forms.
• Add the drained fruit and chopped almonds. Knead on low speed until the fruit and almonds have been incorporated, 5-7 minutes. (If necessary, add a tablespoon or two of flour to help the dough come back together in a smooth ball.)
• Take the dough hook off of the mixer and cover the dough in the bowl with a damp tea towel. Let it rise in a warm, draft-free place until doubled, 2 hours.
• Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and shape it by rolling it into a 12 x 8 inch rectangle (roughly ½ inch thick). Fold the two long sides towards the middle, going ⅓ of the way, so that the middle ⅓ of the bread is now slightly higher (with 3 layers of dough). Place the shaped dough onto a greased baking sheet and press the long edges slightly to accentuate the bump down the center. Cover it loosely with your damp towel and let rise one final time, until doubled, roughly 1 hour.
• Near the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 350F.
• Once risen, brush the top of the dough with melted butter and bake for 40-45 minutes, until golden and hollow-sounding when tapped.
• Once partially cooled, dust with powdered sugar. Let cool completely on a wire rack. Dust again with powdered sugar before serving.