Traditional German Stollen

Stollen is an essential and traditional flavor in our house at Christmastime. Our family, which is of German ancestry, enjoys at least one stollen every holiday season, with a cup of tea or on a cold evening. The stollen, a traditional German fruitcake, is often baked with a marzipan core and combines candied and dried fruits for a hearty and refined taste. Stollen can sometimes be dry, but is perfect when served with butter or tea. 

Though we used to purchase a season's supply of stollen at a nearby German Delicatessen, Zum Stammtisch, I decided to try my hand at making this traditional European treat. This recipe, originally from Rescue Ranger at GroupRecipes.com, passed down through his family over hundreds of years. The author writes:

[This recipe for] traditional German Christmas Stolen [was] passed down through the ages in my family...[The] original recipe was without the marzipan [and dated from] 1700, but at some point in the 1800s a relative added the Marzipan to the recipe. It has remained ever since. 

While this old-fashioned recipe takes a bit of time and a careful touch, I found it just as satisfying as our store-bought stollen from Germany. I simplified the recipe slightly by using store-bought marzipan, but I've included the recipe fore homemade marzipan as well. You can find prepared marzipan in the baking or holiday aisle.

These cakes make excellent gifts, can be shipped easily, and serve as a tasty but not-overly-rich dessert after a filling holiday dinner.

The Recipe:

2 cakes (.6 oz each) compressed yeast

1 1/2 cups plus 2 tbsps lukewarm milk

2 potions of 3 1/3 cups each flour

1 stick room-temperature butter

1 stick room-temperature margarine

2/3 cup sugar

2 tsps salt
Zest of one lemon
1/2 tsp of almond extract
1 cup sliced almonds
1 cup almonds, rehydrated in rum overnight
1/2 cup each of candied lemon and orange peel
1/2 cup candied or dried cherries
Confectioners' sugar for dusting


For the marzipan:


1 lb almonds, blanched, peeled, and coarsely chopped
3 large egg whites, room temperature
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbsps rosewater (or 4 tsps almond or vanilla extract)
3 to 4 cups confectioners' sugar

Crumble yeast into lukewarm milk and stir until dissolved. Stir in 3 1/3 cups of the flour. Cover and let rise 20 minutes. In a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter, margarine, sugar, salt, 3 1/3 cups of the flour, lemon zest, and flavorings. (Mixture will be very stiff). Add yeast mixture and mix well at slow speed until well combined. Add almonds, drained raisins, and candied peels. Let the dough rest for 30 minutes until increased in volume by about 1/4.

Deflate the dough by turning it out onto a lightly floured surface. Roll the marzipan into a rope and place it in the center of the dough. Fold the dough over to cover it, and pinch the seams together to seal. Place the loaf, seam side down, Repeat with second half of dough.

Transfer breads to greased baking sheets seam side down. Cover and let rise about 30 to 40 minutes or until dough has increased in volume by 1/4. Bake at 330 F about 45 minutes, until golden brown and a knife inserted into bread comes out clean. Wash with melted butter and sift with confectioners' sugar.

To keep the loaves fresh until use, wrap them tightly in plastic wrap, and wait to wash and dust them.

Marzipan Preparation:


Grind the almonds in a blender or coffee grinder -- or with a mortar and pestle -- until they resemble a fine powder. In a bowl, beat the egg whites with salt until frothy. Add the vanilla, almond extract, or rosewater. Sift in the first 3 cups of powdered sugar 1 cup at a time, kneading the mass in the bowl after each addition. Add just enough of the last cup of powdered sugar to form smooth, pliable dough that is not too sticky.

Divide the dough into portions and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Keep refrigerated in an airtight container up to 8 weeks.