Traditional German Stollen Recipe

"This recipe comes from DH's grandmother — Wilhelmina Henrietta VonBergen. It calls for angelica, which has been damn near impossible to find in recent years but I did find a source by Googling, which is listed below. If you don’t want go order on line, leave it out. I generally don't care for breads and cakes loaded with dried fruit, but this stuff is amazing. Serve it with unsalted butter. I’ve brought it to church gatherings where little old German ladies have gotten almost teary-eyed and said it reminded them of their mother’s stollen. I wouldn't even attempt to make this without my KitchenAid, and I'm in awe of how ladies managed this "back in the day.""

Step by Step Method

Step 1

Combine the fruits and soak in 1/2 cup brandy for several hours, or overnight. (This may require more brandy if the fruit is very dry.)

Step 2

Drain the fruits, reserving the brandy. Pat the fruit dry and sprinkle with 1/4 cup flour and toss.

Step 3

Beat the milk, sugar and salt until well blended. Stir in the reserved brandy from the fruits, grated lemon rind, and vanilla.

Step 4

Put 5 cups of flour in a bowl. Add the milk mixture, yeast, and beaten eggs. Gradually beat in the soft butter. Knead for 15 minutes.

Step 5

Flatten out the dough and work in the fruit. Put the dough with the fruit into a buttered bowl and let rise until doubled in bulk.

Step 6

Punch the dough down and divide in half. Take each half, flatten out into a rectangle, fold in thirds and press down. Let the dough rest for a few minutes, and form into 2 oval loaves. Place on well-buttered baking sheets, brush with melted butter, and let rise until doubled in bulk.

Step 7

Brush each loaf with 2 Tbsp. of melted butter and sprinkle with 2 Tbsp. of sugar. Bake at 375° F for 40 minutes, or until brown and crusty.

Step 8

The link that I found for angelica is here: http://www.markethallfoods.com/products.php?product=Candied-Angelica-from-Lilamand But the angelica can be omitted.