Saturday, December 17, 2011

Bread Baking Babes: Stollen for Christmas

   For the last time this year we managed to get around the table with Susan steering us towards a true Christmas Stollen! A stollen with a twist, because this one is made with an overnight preferment and loads of butter.

Of course there should be butter in your stollen but this one called quite some and then some more!

The dried fruit got it’s overnight soak in a little rum, smelling lovely in the morning. (I’m allowed to sniff a whiff although it’s early morning right?). IMG_3909 Then my predicament began… the dough with all the spices smelled so good, the preferment was incorporated well and nice, the dough spinning it’s circles in the mixer, getting stronger and pliable at the same time. So far so good.
Our Susan is an excellent recipe writer, taking you by the hand and leading the way, she specifically mentioned that this dough needs a long time to knead (around 20 minutes depending on your mixer)  but I overlooked the fact that it doesn’t rise much in it’s first stage.IMG_3913 I was waiting and waiting, willed it to show some progress. Worried I put it in the steamer oven on the rise setting, get it to move! By the time it did, it was late at night. Too late to bake. I felt horrible but deflated it (poor thing, did all it could only to get deflated!) and put it in the fridge. The next morning I had a pathetic cookie like dough. Waited a couple of hours but decided this wasn’t going to work. All my fault!IMG_3915 Today I baked stollen. Not Susan’s but my own recipe because I wanted to show and tell and had no time to set the preferment yesterday. Please head to Susan’s for her recipe, do as she tells you to do and I am sure you’ll have a wonderful Stollen with extra depth from the preferment and the spices! Go on and make your family some great Stollen and become our Bread Baking Buddy!IMG_3920

Above is mine… those marbles you see peeking out? They are marzipan balls coated in cocao. Left over from our Sinterklaas celebration and although Susan didn’t call for any almond paste/marzipan in her recipe I know I’m in trouble with my family when there’s no “pot o’ gold” inside. I made three Stollen, one with traditional almond paste and two with the marzipan balls inside.

They’re all baked and sitting out on the counter all nice and golden but this is no time to make pictures. Will post tomorrow with final pics and the recipe.

Oh and please? Do make your own candied citrus peel…. it is so darn good!!

Thanks Susan for having us, especially today, hope you had a great day!

6 comments:

  1. I really must make a Stollen with the almond paste ... your marzipan balls look like pearls in an oyster shell. Really gleam like a pot of gold ;-)
    I'm really torn with the orange peel: give it away - such a beautiful gift - and save myself from eating it all OR just eat it all myself and make another batch ... best to give it all away and then make another batch, you think?
    Candied orange peel = Christmas crack
    we all need some addition don't we!
    Oh that oven looks so very grand.

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  2. You are a wonder! Quick stollen and with such cute marzipan balls, too. Looking forward to the photos of golden goodness.

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  3. Lovely Stollen you made Karen! Love those marzipan pearls too! *hugs*

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  4. Aye me. I did notice that Susan said it took 20 minutes to knead the bread using a mixer and should have made an afternoon of it with my hand-kneading. I didn't notice about the major workout if one was kneading by hand. Nor did I notice that she said there wasn't much rising action.

    Those marzipan marbles look so amazing, Karen. Beautiful!

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  5. Have a monster loaf of stollen in the oven right now - thanks for the inspiration!

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  6. Wonderful stollen Karen! I made two huge ones (over 1700 g a piece!) without ferment on thursday, packed with fruits and almond paste... delicious! I'm so jealous of an oven that has a 'laten rijzen' option!
    Great idea to use those marsepeinaardappeltjes that way.

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