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( Dresden Christmas Fruit Bread )
Dresdner Stollen
( Dresden Christmas Fruit Bread )
Ingredients
To make two 13-inch loaves
2½ oz seedless raisins
2½ oz currants
5 oz mixed candied citrus peel
1½ oz angelica, cut into ¼ inch dice
2½ oz glacé cherries, cut in half
6 tablespoons rum or arrack
3 tablespoons lukewarm water
1½ oz fresh yeast or ¾ oz dried yeast
6 oz plus a pinch of sugar
1 lb 6 oz plus 1½ tablespoons plain flour
⅜ pint milk
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon almond essence
½ teaspoon finely grated fresh lemon rind
2 eggs, at room temperature
6 oz unsalted butter, cut into ¼ inch pats and softened
4 oz melted unsalted butter
3 oz blanched slivered almonds
1 oz icing sugar
Method
Put the raisins, currants, candied citrus peel, angelica and cherries into a bowl. Pour the rum over them, tossing the fruit about to coat the pieces evenly. Soak for at least 1 hour.
Pour the lukewarm water into a small bowl and sprinkle it with the yeast and a pinch of sugar. Let the mixture stand for 2 or 3 minutes, then stir to dissolve the yeast completely. Set the bowl in a warm, draught-free place for about 5 minutes, until the mixture almost doubles in volume.
Meanwhile, drain the fruit, reserving the rum or arrack, and pat the pieces completely dry with kitchen paper. Put the fruit into a bowl, sprinkle it with 1½ tablespoons of the flour, and turn it about with a spoon until the flour is completely absorbed. Set aside.
Put the milk, 4 oz of the sugar and the salt in a heavy, medium-sized saucepan. Heat to lukewarm (110° to 115°F.), stirring constantly until the sugar dissolves. Stir in the reserved rum, the almond essence and fresh lemon rind off the heat, and finally the yeast mixture.
Put 1¼ lb of the flour in a large bowl and with a fork stir in the yeast mixture, ¼ pint or so at a time. Beat the eggs until frothy and stir them into the dough, then beat in the pats of softened butter. Gather the dough into a ball and place it on a board sprinkled with the rest of the flour. Knead the dough, by pushing it down with the heels of your hands, pressing it forward and folding it back on itself. Continue the kneading for about 15 minutes, until all the flour is incorporated and the dough is smooth and elastic. Flour your hands lightly from time to time. Now press the fruit and almonds into the dough, 4 tablespoons or so at a time, but do not knead or handle it too much or the dough will discolour. Coat a deep bowl with 1 teaspoon of melted butter and drop in the dough. Brush the top of the dough with another 2 teaspoons of melted butter, drape a towel over the bowl and set it in a warm, draught-free place for about 2 hours, until the dough doubles in bulk.
Punch the dough down and divide it into two equal pieces. Let them rest for 10 minutes, then roll the pieces out into strips about 12 inches long, 8 inches wide and ½ inch thick. Brush each strip with 1½ tablespoons of the melted butter and sprinkle each with 1½ tablespoons of the remaining sugar. Fold each strip lengthways in the following way: bring one long side over to the centre of the strip and press the edge down lightly. Then fold the other long side across it, overlapping the seam down the centre by about 1 inch. Press the edge gently to keep it in place. Taper the ends of the loaf slightly with lightly floured hands and pat the sides gently together to mound it in the centre. The finished loaf should be about 3½ to 4 inches wide and 13 inches long.
Coat the bottom of an 11-by-17-inch Swiss-roll tin with a pastry brush, and a tablespoon of melted butter. Place the loaves on the tin and brush them with the rest of the melted butter. Set the loaves aside in a warm draught-free place for about 1 hour, until doubled in bulk. Preheat the oven to Mark 5: 375°F. Then bake the bread in the centre of the oven for about 45 minutes, until golden brown and crusty. Transfer the loaves to wire racks to cool completely. lust before serving, sift the icing sugar over the loaves.
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