German Poppy Seed Stollen Mohnstollen Food

BEST AUTHENTIC STOLLEN (GERMAN CHRISTMAS BREAD)

Steps:

• Place the raisins, candied citrus peel and almonds in a medium bowl and pour the rum over it. Stir to combine. Set aside and let the fruit mixture soak in the rum while the dough rises.
• Stir the yeast and 2 tablespoons of the sugar into the lukewarm milk and let sit in a warm place for 10-15 minutes until very frothy.
• Place the flour, remaining sugar, egg, egg yolks, butter, vanilla extract, lemon zest, salt, cardamom, mace and cinnamon in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Add the yeast/milk mixture. Use a spoon to stir the mixture until it comes together. Knead the dough on the bread setting for 7-8 minutes. Remove the dough ball, lightly spray the bowl with a little oil, return the dough ball, cover loosely with plastic wrap and place it in a warm place or lightly warmed oven (just barely warm), to rise until nearly doubled in size, at least 1 hour (likely closer to 2 hours depending on the temperature of the environment).
• Punch down the dough and add the soaked fruit/nut mixture to the dough (it should have absorbed all the rum by now but if there is excess liquid, pour it out before adding the mixture to the dough). Using the dough hook, knead the fruit/nut mixture into the dough until combined. If the dough is too wet to handle, add a little bit of flour until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
• Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and cut it in two equal halves. Press or roll each piece into an oval to about 1 inch thickness. Roll each piece of marzipan into a log the length of the oval. Press the marzipan gently into the middle of the dough. Fold the left side of the dough over to cover the marzipan, then fold right side over on top of the left side so that the edge of it sits just left of the middle of the stollen (see pics). In other words, don't fold the right side all the way over to the left edge of the stollen. Pinch and tuck the top and bottom ends of the stollen to cover the marzipan. Use the bottom edge of your hand to press down along the length of the stollen towards the right of the center to create a divot and characteristic hump (see pics). Place the stollen on a lined baking sheet. Cover the stollen loosely with plastic wrap and let them rest in a warm place or lightly warmed oven for 40-60 minutes until puffy. At that point you can pick off any raisins that are sticking out of the dough (they will burn during baking).
• Towards the end of the last rise, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and bake the stollen for 30-40 minutes or until golden. You can use an instant read thermometer to aim for an internal temperature of 190 degrees F. Let the Stollen sit for 5 minutes, then use a toothpick to poke holes all over the stollen (this will allow the butter to seep in), then generously brush the stollen with the melted butter while the stollen are still warm. Immediately sprinkle with a generous amount of powdered sugar, rubbing it into the creases and down the sides. Let the stollen cool completely. You may want to give it another dusting of powdered sugar once cooled.
• The stollen can be sliced and eaten now or wrapped tightly (wrap in plastic wrap then foil) and left to "ripen" in a cool place for 2 weeks. The liquid from the dried fruits will further penetrate the dough for more flavor and moisture. Stollen can also be frozen for longer storage.
• Makes 2 large or 3 medium Stollen.For eating, I like to warm the slices up for a few seconds in the microwave, it makes the crumb nice and soft.

POPPYSEED STOLLEN (MOHN STOLLEN)

Steps:

• First, make the fondant. It needs to be refrigerated overnight before using. To make the fondant, you'll need a marble slab or a baking sheet and an offset spatula to fold the candy. If you're using a baking sheet, rinse it with water, leaving a few drops on the pan.
• Dissolve the cream of tarter in the water in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Add the sugar and bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat. Swirl the pan occasionally to help dissolve the sugar. Do not stir once the sugar syrup begins to boil. Heat to 240 degrees F (115 degrees C), or until a small amount of syrup dropped into cold water forms a soft ball that flattens when removed from the water and placed on a flat surface.
• Immediately pour the candy onto the baking sheet or marble slab and let cool for 10 minutes. Use a spatula to vigorously knead the candy, folding it over itself. Knead until it begins to look cloudy, 5 to 10 minutes; allow it to cool. Transfer the fondant to a heatproof bowl or the top of a double boiler. Refrigerate overnight.
• To make the sponge, dissolve the yeast and 1 teaspoon sugar in 1/4 cup of the room-temperature milk. Pour the remaining 1/2 cup milk into the bowl of a stand mixer. Add 1 cup of flour and the yeast mixture. Mix with a fork to combine. Cover the bowl with a towel and allow to rest until bubbly, 10 to 15 minutes.
• Stir the remaining 3 cups of flour, 1/4 cup sugar, salt, room-temperature eggs, and zest from 1 lemon into the sponge. Use the dough hook to mix the dough on the lowest setting. Mix the dough for about 5 minutes, occasionally scraping the dough off of the hook and down the sides of the bowl.
• Increase the speed to medium-low and add the softened butter 1 tablespoon at a time until fully incorporated. Allow the dough to mix for an additional 5 minutes, scraping the dough down as needed. Add the ground almonds and turn the mixer on for 1 or 2 turns, mixing just until incorporated. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and shape it into a ball. Place the ball in an oiled mixing bowl and cover with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel and let it rise until doubled, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
• While the dough is rising, prepare the filling. Heat the milk in a heavy 4-quart saucepan until it begins to boil; stir in the butter and sugar. Remove the pan from the heat and add the poppyseeds, 1 1/2 teaspoons of lemon zest, and the cinnamon. Let the mixture stand for 30 minutes to soften the poppyseeds. When the mixture is cool, whisk in the egg.
• Punch down the dough and roll it out into a 10 1/2- by 16-inch rectangle. Spread the filling evenly over the dough, leaving a 1-inch margin on all sides. Roll the dough up into a log, starting with the long side, and pinch the edges together to form a seam. Place the loaf, seam-side down, on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Cover it with greased plastic wrap or a well-floured kitchen towel and allow it to rise for an additional 30 to 40 minutes.
• Preheat an oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Bake the stollen until golden brown on the bottom of the loaf, about 40 minutes. Let the bread cool completely before glazing.
• To glaze the bread, add the lemon juice to the fondant. Place the bowl over a pan of simmering water, stirring frequently with a rubber spatula until soft and glossy. Pour the fondant over the stollen and allow it to cool before slicing.

GERMAN POPPY SEED STOLLEN (MOHNSTOLLEN)

Steps:

• Place flour in a large bowl, make a well in the center, and crumble fresh yeast into it. Pour 1 cup lukewarm milk into the well and stir into the yeast. Cover and let rise in a warm place until foamy, about 15 minutes.
• Mix flour from the sides of the bowl into the yeast mixture, a little at a time. Add butter, 6 tablespoons sugar, and salt and knead until a soft, pliable dough forms. Cover with a clean dish towel and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
• Grease a baking sheet with butter. Sprinkle a work surface with flour and roll out dough into a thin rectangle.
• Pour poppy seeds into a bowl and pour 1 cup hot milk on top. Add 3/4 cup sugar, raisins, honey, vanilla sugar, rum, and lemon zest and stir together until filling is well combined. Spread filling over dough rectangle. Roll up rectangle, starting at the longer side, and press seam together with your fingers. Place poppy seed stollen onto the prepared baking sheet with the seam side down. Cover and let stollen rise for 20 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Bake stollen in the preheated oven until baked through, about 40 minutes. Allow to cool for about 1 hour and dust with confectioners' sugar.