Krista’s Modern Christmas Stollen

For people only

Christmas Stollen is a German bread traditionally baked for the holiday. Krista has updated this bread with dried fruit in place of the typical candied fruit. She bakes it for the holidays every year.

1½ cups dried apricots

1¼ cups dried cherries

½ cup rum

¼ cup lukewarm water

2 packs of fast-rising instant yeast

¾ cup sugar + pinch of sugar

5½ cups all-purpose flour

1 cup milk

½ teaspoon salt

2 eggs (room temperature)

1 cup unsalted butter, softened and cut into ¼-inch pieces

6–8 tablespoons melted unsalted butter

confectioners’ sugar

Chop the apricots and cherries with a knife (do not use a food processor) and place in a bowl. Pour the rum over them and let sit for 1 hour.

Pour the lukewarm water in a 2-cup or larger bowl. Sprinkle with the yeast and a pinch of sugar. Stir to help dissolve. Set aside (Krista puts it in a cold oven) for 10–15 minutes. It should have doubled in size.

Pour the rum from the fruit into a bowl and set aside. Lay paper towels out, and spread with the fruit. Dab with additional paper towels to dry. Pour the fruit into a dry bowl and sprinkle with 2 tablespoons of flour. Turn several times to coat. Set aside.

Combine milk, ½ cup sugar, and salt in a heavy-bottomed pot and heat until the sugar dissolves and a thermometer registers 110°F. Remove from heat. Stir in the rum and the yeast mixture.

Fit dough hook into mixer. (This may be made by hand, but a heavy-duty mixer like a KitchenAid is a big help.) Measure 4 cups of flour into a mixing bowl. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the milk mixture. Whisk the 2 eggs well, then add to the dough, and continue mixing. Slowly add as much of the remaining 1½ cups flour as needed. Mix in the softened 1 cup butter. The dough should begin to shape into a ball.

Dust your hands and kneading area with flour. Remove the dough from the bowl and knead 10–15 minutes until the dough is smooth and pliable. Incorporate the fruit by pressing it into the dough a bit at a time. Flour your hands as necessary and continue to add the fruit and turn the dough.

Grease a deep bowl with butter, place the dough in the bowl, flip it once to coat with butter, cover with a kitchen towel, and place in a warm area away from any drafts for 2 hours or until doubled in size. (A cool oven will work.)

Punch the dough down and divide into 2 pieces. Allow to rest for 10 minutes. Working with one at a time, roll each ball of dough out into a rectangle roughly 12 inches long and 8 inches wide. Brush each with 1 tablespoon of melted butter and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of sugar.

Fold one side (of the 8-inch width) over about ⅔ of the way. Fold the other side over so that it overlaps the top of the first side by about 1 inch. Press the top seam gently. Shape it into an oval with floured hands as necessary, patting it so that it is approximately 4 inches across.

Prepare a very large cookie sheet or lipped baking pan by covering with parchment paper. Transfer the dough to the parchment paper, leaving at least 3–4 inches between the two loaves. Brush each with 1 tablespoon of melted butter. Place in a warm location away from drafts and allow to rise for 1 hour or until doubled in size.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Slide the baking sheet into the oven and bake 25–30 minutes or until they are golden brown and crusty.

When cool and before serving, dust generously with confectioners’ sugar.