Haven’t forgotten how to bake, and I think I can still recall how to type, too. Think I just haven’t done anything so special lately – say for 6 months, well hmm.. No, actually I have learned to make excellent choux pastry and so delicious éclairs out of it with the most gorgeous vanilla-pudding filling. You ain’t getting that recipe (yet) though. Instead this post is about something more christmassy, and actually, I’m quite happy to serve you the recipe for marzipanstollen.
I’ve tried making stollen before and somehow then they weren’t that successful at all. And something about the usual over-powering amount of raisins kills it for me. Therefore, these marzipanstollen are simply made with almonds and candied peel, no raisins included. And I always thought stollen were a tricky bake. Ha, these were simple to make, trickiest part would the the buttering-sugaring-action after baking, but it can be done.
Marzipanstollen (2 medium ones)
Mother dough:
175 g Luke-warm milk
200 g All-purpose-flour
35 g Yeast
Actual dough:
300 g All-purpose-flour
60 g Sugar
200 g Butter, cold
50 g Egg (1 egg)
5 g Salt
Aroma (lemon, vanilla)
Fruits and almonds:
100 g Almonds (slivered, chopped)
50 g Candied orange peel
50 g Candied lemon peel
And
200 g Marzipan (Almond paste)
100 g Sliced almonds
100-150 g Butter
Sugar, vanillasugar
1. Make the mother dough. Warm up the milk, dissolve the yeast into it and knead together with the flour into an elastic dough. Let it stand covered for 30-45 minutes in room-temperature.
2. Meanwhile, measure the slivered and chopped almonds into a cup. Pour warm water over them, so that they are covered. This way they soften and do not suck away the moisture from the actual dough.
3. After your mother dough is ready, add the ingredients for the actually dough into it (flour, sugar, butter, egg, salt and aromas). Use cold butter, for too warm butter melts into the dough and ruins its structure. Knead into a smooth dough and let it rest covered for another 30 minutes.
4. Drain the almonds. After the actually dough has rested for 30 minutes, knead the almonds and the candied peel gently into it.
5. Divide the dough into two (about 600 g each) and form balls. Divide the marzipan into two as well and form sticks (about 10 cm long). Flatten the dough balls and place the marzipan sticks in the middle of them. Close the dough around the marzipan. Brush the stollen with water, or go over them with wet hands. Then roll them in the sliced almonds and place on a baking tray with a paper with the seam side down. Let the stollen proof covered for 30-45 minutes in the room-temperature.
6. Heat up the oven to 210°C.
7. After proofing, place the stollen into the lower level of your oven. Turn the temperature down to 190°C as the stollen go in. Bake for 45 minutes.
8. Melt butter in a pan. Mix an amount of sugar with vanilla sugar in a box enough big for the stollen to fit in.
9. Once your stollen and nicely browned and baked, cover them properly with the butter using a brush or by plunging them shortly in the melted butter. Roll the buttered stollen in the sugar mixture and leave them to cool on a baking rack.
10. Cut and enjoy once cooled. Stollen ough to keep good for quite the time, and this really is the Lembas come true. Even the smallest piece fills you up for the day (me and Carlos might be Hobbits, since half a stollen seemed to make just a nice mid-day snack for the two of us…).
Merry not-so-white Christmas (+7°C and raining, yay..)
-Marika
Bread with bubbles 
