How to make Stollen-A Daring Bakers Challenge

If you’re like me, your first question was probably, “What is stollen?” It sounds like a verb trying to be a noun—but it’s a German sweet bread, traditionally made with raisins, nuts, and citron. And yes, I also asked, “What is citron?” It’s a citrus fruit—kind of like a lemon or orange, but not quite. I had to look it up (a picture helped!). It looks beautiful, but unfortunately, it’s not something I can find at my local store.

If you’re a fruit cake fan, this challenge would be right up your alley, but I have to admit I’m not a fruit cake fan or like chewy things in my bread.  Although not a fruit cake fan, I was excited to learn some new techniques to enhance my bread-making skills.  Bread can sometimes be challenging, so Penny from Sweet Sadie’s Baking chose the challenge that offered us bakers many helps. One of the recipe references she advised was a recipe by Martha Stewart.  I liked the fact that Martha’s recipe had a video to watch, so I wasn’t so apprehensive after viewing it. I changed the original recipe by Martha Stewart to something that I would like better and to what was available to me.  In the South, pecans are grown everywhere and that is the nut our family prefers, so blanched almonds got substituted with pecans.  A Granny Smith apple in place of dried apricots was more convenient since my bag of apricots got left at the store, which happens more times than not.  All the apprehension disappeared once I got elbow deep in flour and began to see the bread coming together.  The bread dough was easy to work with and roll out, it rose well and baked well too.  I was pleasantly surprised at the whole experience.  I guess Stollen wasn’t all that bad after all, but the true test is in the tasting, and I’m happy to say it was delicious.

Ingredients:
1 cup packed mixed dried berries (cranberries, cherries, blueberries)
1/4 cup white grape juice
1/4 cup orange juice
5 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
6 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1 cup milk
10 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus 3 tablespoons, melted
1/4 cup warm water (about 110 degrees)
2 packages active dry yeast (5 teaspoons)
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
Grated zest of 1 orange
Grated zest of 1 lemon
1 Granny Smith apple peeled and sliced thin
1 cup pecans coarsely chopped
Confectioners’ sugar for dusting

Directions:

Step 1: Measure dried fruit into a small bowl. Pour orange and white grape juice over it; set aside.

Step 2: Sift dry ingredients into a large bowl. In a small bowl, mix yeast with warm water; let sit 2–3 min.

Step 3: Heat milk and butter in a saucepan until melted. Lightly beat eggs. Add eggs, milk mixture, and yeast to dry ingredients. Knead with mixer on low until dough is smooth and pulls from the bowl.

Step 4: Add mixed berries, kneading in about 1/2 cup flour. Turn dough onto floured surface.

Step 5: Add apple, citrus peel, and nuts. Knead by hand until well combined.

Step 6: Place dough in a large oiled bowl, turning to coat. Cover and let rise in a warm place for ~2 1/2 hrs. Punch down and turn onto a floured surface.

Step 7: Roll dough into 1/4″ thick rectangle. Roll into a cylinder, then shape into a circle. Place on parchment-lined pan. Cut slits ~3″ apart to form wreath. Brush with 2 T. melted butter.

Step 8: Bake at 375°F for 30–45 min on the lowest rack. Cool on a wire rack and dust with powdered sugar.

Tagged as: apple, bread, breakfast, cranberry, Daring-Bakers-Challenge, fruit, holiday, nuts