Stollen
Quick answer
Stollen is a traditional German Christmas bread loaded with mixed dried fruits, almonds, and a generous amount of butter kneaded into a yeasted dough.
What makes this special
- Rum-soaked dried fruits and whole almonds knead into yeasted dough for this dense German Christmas loaf.
- Overnight rum-soaked dried fruit stays moist throughout the dense enriched loaf
- Brushing hot butter then dusting powdered sugar seals in moisture after baking
Key ingredients
Core cooking flow
- 1 The day before, soak 150 g mixed dried raisins in rum or fruit juice, then drain them well.
- 2 Mix 350 g bread flour with the remaining sugar in a bowl, then pour in the activated milk mixture.
- 3 Add 120 g softened unsalted butter in portions and knead for about 10 minutes.
Stollen is a traditional German Christmas bread loaded with mixed dried fruits, almonds, and a generous amount of butter kneaded into a yeasted dough. The loaf is shaped into a distinctive oval, baked until golden, and then brushed with melted butter while still hot to seal in moisture. A thick coating of powdered sugar applied over the butter layer gives the finished bread its signature snow-white appearance. The interior is dense and rich, with pockets of rum-soaked raisins and candied peel appearing at every slice. Soaking the dried fruits overnight in rum or fruit juice before mixing them into the dough ensures they remain plump and soft after baking rather than turning hard and chewy. The bread improves with age - resting for at least a day after baking allows the butter, spice, and fruit flavors to meld and permeate the crumb, which is why many German families bake their stollen weeks before Christmas. Wrapped tightly, it keeps for well over a week without losing quality, making it an ideal gift or make-ahead holiday preparation.
Instructions
Read the steps as a cooking flow: prep, heat, seasoning, doneness control, and finish.
- 1Season
The day before, soak 150 g mixed dried raisins in rum or fruit juice, then drain them well.
Warm 180 ml milk until lukewarm, add the yeast and a little sugar, and let it stand for 10 minutes until foamy.
- 2Season
Mix 350 g bread flour with the remaining sugar in a bowl, then pour in the activated milk mixture.
Stir until no dry flour remains and the dough gathers into a rough mass before adding more handling.
- 3Season
Add 120 g softened unsalted butter in portions and knead for about 10 minutes.
The dough will feel sticky at first, but avoid adding much extra flour; continue until it becomes smoother and elastic.
- 4Control
Spread the drained fruit and 60 g almonds over the dough, then fold them in gently.
Distribute them evenly so they do not clump in one area, cover the dough, and let it rise for 60 minutes.
- 5Heat
Gently press out excess gas, shape the dough into an oval loaf, and place it on the pan.
Bake in a preheated 180C oven for 40-45 minutes, until the outside is deeply golden and set.
- 6Season
As soon as the loaf comes out of the oven, brush the hot surface with melted butter to slow moisture loss.
Coat thickly with 40 g powdered sugar, cool completely, then wrap tightly and rest for one day before slicing.
After the steps
Pick a recipe that fits this dish.
Continue with shared ingredients, meal pairings, or a similar method.
Recipes That Go Well With This
More Baking →Based on shared ingredients and meal pairing
German Butter Cake (Yeasted Sheet Cake with Almond Topping)
Butterkuchen is a traditional German yeasted cake that relies on generous amounts of butter for its character. The dough is a soft, enriched bread base similar to brioche that rises into a pillowy sheet before baking. The surface is dimpled with fingertips and small pieces of cold butter are pressed into each hollow, so that as the cake bakes, the butter melts into caramelized pools that create pockets of salty-sweet richness across the top. Sliced almonds scattered over the surface toast to a golden crunch, adding textural contrast to the soft, open-crumbed interior. The finished cake is tender and buttery without being heavy - each square holds together cleanly when sliced, the almonds staying anchored by the caramelized glaze rather than scattering. The recipe has remained largely unchanged in northern German bakeries and family kitchens for generations, where simplicity of ingredients is the point rather than the limitation. A cup of strong filter coffee alongside a warm slice is the standard pairing, and the combination holds up without improvement.
Panettone
Studded with candied orange peel and raisins, this tall Italian holiday bread rises dramatically in a cylindrical mold to a dome that often extends above the rim. The crumb is open-textured and pulls apart in long, buttery strands, with pockets of dried fruit appearing at every tear. Orange peel contributes a bright, citrus fragrance that cuts through the richness of the egg-and-butter dough, while raisins add concentrated sweetness in scattered bursts. Cooling the baked loaf upside down, suspended by skewers, prevents the heavy dough from collapsing under its own weight and preserves the lofty height. Wrapped tightly, panettone stays moist for three to four days, and many consider it even better on the second day as the flavors meld.
Kasespatzle (German Alpine Cheese Dumpling Noodles)
Kasespatzle is an Alpine comfort dish from southern Germany and Austria, made by boiling a thick batter of flour, eggs, and milk into small dumplings, then tossing them with melted Emmental cheese and caramelized onions. The batter must maintain a thick consistency rather than being runny - this is what gives the spaetzle their characteristic chew when boiled and drained. Sliced onion is slowly cooked in butter over low heat until deeply browned, transforming the raw sharpness into a concentrated sweetness. The cooked spaetzle and grated cheese are combined in a hot pan so the cheese melts and coats every dumpling. Topped with the caramelized onions and black pepper, the dish is served immediately while the cheese is still molten and stretchy.
Soft Pretzel
Yeasted dough is shaped into the classic pretzel twist, briefly dipped in a boiling baking-soda bath, and baked at high heat. The alkaline solution triggers an accelerated Maillard reaction on the surface, producing the deep mahogany crust and slightly bitter, complex flavor that separates a true pretzel from ordinary bread rolls. Beneath that thin, chewy shell, the interior stays soft, airy, and faintly sweet. Coarse salt crystals pressed into the surface before baking deliver sharp, salty bursts that contrast with the mellow dough. The dip in the alkaline bath must be brief - thirty seconds at most - or the exterior turns slimy and the texture suffers. Mustard is the traditional accompaniment, its acidity and heat cutting through the bread's richness, though warm cheese sauce has become an equally popular pairing.
Serve with this
Gaeseong Juak (Honey Fried Rice Cake)
Gaeseong juak is a traditional Korean confection made from a dough of glutinous rice flour and wheat flour, fried slowly in oil at a deliberately controlled temperature to cook the interior evenly before the exterior develops color. The two-stage frying process begins at 150 degrees Celsius to set the inside through without burning the outside, then the temperature rises to 170 degrees to develop a light golden crust on the surface. Separating the temperature stages solves a specific frying problem: high heat from the start produces a darkened exterior while the chewy glutinous core remains underdone, while insufficient heat makes the exterior soft and oily. The result is a thin crisp shell surrounding a genuinely chewy, sticky interior. After frying, each piece is rolled through a warm syrup made from honey and rice syrup heated together over low heat, which leaves a glossy, fragrant sweetness coating the surface. A finishing dusting of ground cinnamon and chopped pine nuts adds aromatic spice and contrasting crunch. Historical records trace the confection to the Gaeseong region of the Goryeo dynasty, and it remains a standard presence on Korean ceremonial and holiday tables to this day.
Korean Fish Cake Soup (Clear Anchovy Radish Broth)
Eomuk-tang is a Korean fish cake soup in which skewered fish cakes and thick radish slices simmer in a clear broth built from dried anchovies and kelp. The kelp must be removed the moment the water begins to boil, otherwise it releases a slimy texture that clouds the broth. Cutting the radish thick allows it to slowly release natural sweetness over the long simmer. Rinsing the fish cakes in hot water before adding them washes away surface oil and keeps the broth clear and clean. Soup soy sauce adjusts the seasoning, and green onion and black pepper finish the pot. Adding the radish before the fish cakes ensures it has enough time to fully soften and sweeten the broth, since it takes longer than the eomuk to cook through.
Fruit Salad (Fresh Seasonal Fruit in Yogurt)
Fruit salad dices apple, banana, kiwi, strawberries, and blueberries into uniform bite-sized pieces and folds them gently into a light dressing of plain yogurt, honey, and lemon juice. Cutting everything to a similar size ensures an even mix of crisp, soft, and juicy textures in every spoonful. The lemon juice serves two purposes - it adds a bright acidity that ties the different fruits together and slows the oxidation that turns apple flesh brown. Banana should be added last to prevent it from turning mushy under the weight of the other ingredients. Using unsweetened yogurt lets the natural sweetness of the fruit stand out more clearly, and chilling the finished salad for about ten minutes allows the fruit juices to merge with the dressing for a more cohesive flavor.
Similar recipes
Doenjang Maple Pull-Apart Bread
Enriched yeast dough is rolled thin, spread with a mixture of doenjang and maple syrup, then stacked and packed into a loaf pan so that each layer bakes into a tearable, fluffy sheet loaded with flavor. The doenjang contributes a fermented saltiness that deepens the bread's own yeast character, while the maple syrup caramelizes during baking and pools at the bottom of the pan, forming a sticky glaze that coats the loaf when inverted. Butter in the dough provides a rich, tender crumb that pulls apart in long, soft strands. The interplay between salty fermented paste and sweet caramel sits in a zone that is neither strictly dessert nor savory bread, making it versatile enough to accompany a meal or stand on its own as an afternoon snack. Eating it warm, when the layers separate most easily, is the best way to experience the full range of textures.
Pork Schnitzel
Pork Schnitzel is a definitive cutlet dish from Germany and Austria, made by pounding pork loin thin and even with a mallet, then coating it in flour, beaten egg, and breadcrumbs before frying in oil. The meat must be pounded to five millimeters or thinner so it cooks through quickly without the breading burning, and the hallmark of a proper schnitzel is a crust that puffs away from the meat rather than clinging flat. Achieving this requires generous oil - enough to submerge the cutlet halfway - and gently shaking the pan so oil flows beneath the breading to lift it. Fine breadcrumbs produce a delicate, even crust, and they should be pressed on lightly rather than compacted to maintain crispness over time. Paprika mixed into the flour adds a faint smoky warmth, and a fresh squeeze of lemon over the finished schnitzel cuts through the richness with bright acidity.
Currywurst (Sliced Sausage in Curry Ketchup)
Currywurst is a German street food built around a homemade curry-tomato sauce ladled over sliced bratwurst. Finely chopped onion is sautéed until translucent, then tomato paste is cooked for one minute to mellow its raw acidity. Ketchup, curry powder, paprika, sugar, Worcestershire sauce, and apple cider vinegar are stirred in and simmered for eight minutes until the sauce thickens and the spices meld. Bratwurst is browned separately in a pan, rolled to crisp all sides, then sliced into bite-size rounds. A final dusting of curry powder over the sauced sausage intensifies the spice aroma, and the sauce improves noticeably after resting overnight.