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Authentic Stollen (German Christmas Bread)

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German Stollen have been around for nearly 700 years and are prized throughout the world as one of the most famous and beloved of all Christmas pastries.   Made with homemade candied orange peel and marzipan (both super easy to make) your search for the BEST authentic German Stollen recipe has ended.  Flaky, moist, and divinely flavorful, these homemade German Christmas Stollen are INCREDIBLE!

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Sweet cakes and breads studded with candied fruits and nuts are hallmarks of Christmas baking in many areas of the world.  Examples in the English speaking nations include fruit cake or Figgy Pudding, Scottish Dundee Cake, and then there is Panettone in Italy, keks in Poland, julekake in Norway, bolo-rei in Portugal, Hutzelbrot in Germany, and birnenbrot in Switzerland.  But perhaps none are revered as highly throughout the world as German Stollen. I’m from southern Germany and celebrating the Christmas season without Stollen is simply unthinkable.

What is Stollen?

Christmas stollen, known in Germany as Christstollen or Weihnachtsstollen, is a yeasted fruit bread that is baked with dried fruits, candied citrus peel, nuts and spices. Stollen are baked free form into cake-like loaves that are folded in a sort of lopsided way that is characteristic of them. Stollen is sweet but it contains relatively little added sugar and instead derives its sweetness from the dried fruits and candied citrus peel. Stollen are famously dusted with a thick coat of powdered sugar, reminiscent of the snowy German landscape (like beautiful Ramsau by Berchtesgaden below), and baked with spices conveying the warmth of the Christmas season.

Ramsau Germany in Winter

Where Did It Originate?

The first and most famous variety of stollen is the Dresdner Christstollen.  Some historians date its concept back to 1329, and over the centuries the stollen was refined to become what it is today.  And it has come a long way indeed because originally it was a bland and rather hard pastry as the use of butter and milk was forbidden during Lent by the Catholic church.  Petitions were submitted to the pope, the first one in 1450, for permission to use butter for making the Stollen but it was denied. Fifty years and five popes later, Prince Ernst von Sachsen, at the request of the bakers of Dresden, petitioned the pope again to lift the butter ban.  It was granted this time via the pope’s famous Butterbrief, “butter letter” – but only to members of the Prince’s household. A few select others were also granted permission but only on condition that they paid an annual sum of gold for the building of the Freiberg Minster.

The butter ban was once an for all lifted during the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century. From that point the stollen gradually developed into an enjoyable sweet bread incorporating additional ingredients and it become an important symbol of the region.  King August II in 1730 commissioned the bakers of Dresden to bake a gigantic stollen in celebration of the strength of the Saxon military, an event to which he invited the dignitaries of Europe in the hope of building allies.  The stollen weighed 1.8 tons (that’s 3600 pounds!), was 27 feet long and 18 feet wide and a special oven was designed and built just for this purpose.  It took a convoy of eight horses to transport the stollen to the king’s table and a 26 pound and 5 1/4 foot-long knife was used to cut it.

Germany’s first Christmas market was held in Dresden in 1434.  This market, the Dresdner Striezelmarkt, continues to be held every year.  Also held annually on the Saturday prior to the 2nd Advent is the Dresdner Stollenfest featuring Germany’s largest Christstollen.  So far 2013 holds the record for the largest Stollen weighing nearly 9400 pounds!  Each year a horse-drawn carriage parades the giant stollen through the streets and on to the Christmas market.  Per tradition, a replica of the original 5-foot long knife is used to slice the stollen.  The mayor of the city tastes the first piece and the stollen is then cut into thousands of pieces that are sold with the proceeds going to charity.

Dresdner Strietzelmarkt Germany

The Symbolism Behind Stollen

The word “stollen” refers to a post or boundary stone for a city.  It is also thought it could refer to the entrance of a mine shaft.  Some historians believe that the stollen’s characteristic shape was molded after the shape of a mine tunnel, reflective of the silver and tin mining industries of the time.  But there is also religious symbolism behind the stollen with the loaf, or bread, being symbolic of the body of Christ.  Specifically, being dusted with powdered sugar, it is symbolic of the baby Jesus in swaddling clothes.  Thus it is traditionally called Christstollen, or Christ Stollen.

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Stollen Variations

Other popular variations of Stollen include Mandelstollen (almond stollen), Mohnstollen (poppy seed stollen), Quarkstollen (made with quark), Nuss-Stollen (nut stollen), Butterstollen (high butter content), Dresdner Stollen and Marzipanstollen (marzipan stollen). Mohnstollen is another one of my favorites.

How to Make the BEST Stollen

For anyone who may be feeling a little intimidated at the thought of making Stollen, don’t be.  If you can make a cake or a loaf of bread, you can make Stollen.  But while it’s easy to make, it’s not quick to make.  There’s a waiting game involved both during the baking process and the aging process.  In the baking process the Stollen dough has to rise a couple of times just like in making yeast bread.  Then it has to bake for a while.  And then there’s the waiting process. 

I’m sharing with you my recipe for Stollen which is thoroughly authentic in its method and ingredients.  It features dried fruits, candied lemon peel, nuts and marzipan (which you can omit if you choose).  I LOVE the addition of marzipan and it’s one of the most popular varieties of Stollen.  Don’t worry about having to go out and buy marzipan, it is unbelievably quick and easy to make your own (seriously, it takes about 5 minutes).  Check out my recipe for easy homemade Marzipan!

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Candied Citrus Peel. Do you hate store-bought candied orange and lemon peel as much as I do? I have to tell you, I absolutely detest store-bought candied citrus peel.  And most people I speak to feel the same.  It has a bizarre chemical flavor no matter the brand.  For that reason I’ve never been a fan of fruitcakes in general.  BUT (and there’s a big but) using your own homemade candied citrus peel is a 100% deal changer. 

While you can use store-bought candied citrus peel if you insist, I VERY, VERY STRONGLY recommend making your own.  Please, trust me on this:  Using homemade candied citrus peel is the difference between night and day when it comes to flavor!  It is vastly superior in every way and will make your Stollen taste incredible!  And the good news is it can be made far, far in advance.  In fact, I freeze mine so it lasts basically forever and I take out what I need as needed.  Check out my recipe for Candied Orange Peel!

candied orange peel recipe

Storage Tips

Typically the Stollen is tightly wrapped and kept in a cool place to age for 2-3 weeks before eating.  This allows the liquid from the rum-soaked dried fruits to soak into the bread creating both flavor and moistness.

Fun trivia:  Fruitcakes that contain a lot of alcohol can remain edible for years.  Yes, years.  For example, the Antarctic Heritage Trust discovered a 106-year-old fruitcake last year and after sampling it (the brave souls) they said it was not only in “excellent condition” for its age but was even “almost” edible!  Another fruitcake baked in 1878 in Michigan was kept as a family heirloom and sampled for the first time in 2003 by Jay Leno on The Tonight Show.  It’s amazing what an incredible preservative alcohol is.  So in other words, as long as you keep your Stollen tightly wrapped and in a cool place, letting it age for 2 weeks is, like, nothing.

Does Stollen have to be aged? No! While letting Stollen age will allow the flavors to fully penetrate the bread, this Stollen is absolutely AMAZING straight out of the oven!  So the question of whether to wait or not to wait I’ll leave up to you.

If you’ve never been a huge fan of store-bought Stollen you’re not alone.  I’ve never cared for them either.  But homemade…that’s an entirely different story. Just check out the hundreds of rave reviews below: Your search for the BEST Stollen recipe has ENDED.

stollen recipe best german christmas bread cake authentic traditional dresdner christstollen

Authentic German Stollen Recipe

Let’s get started!

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.

preparing the dried fruits and nuts

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.

combining ingredients for the dough

Use a spoon to stir the mixture until it comes together.  Knead the dough on the bread setting and once the dough comes together continue to knead for 7 minutes.

kneading the dough

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.

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).

adding dried fruits and nuts to risen 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. Note: I use my Kitchenaid stand mixer because it’s such a workhorse.  You’ll also need a dough hook attachment. There are other pricier options on the market but I’ve been very happy with my Kitchenaid.

Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface.

kneading the dough with fruits

Cut the dough 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.

stollen recipe preparing 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.  In other words, don’t fold the right side all the way over to the left edge of the stollen.

stollen recipe folding dough

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.

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 this point you can pick off any raisins that are sticking out of the dough (they will burn during baking).

stollen recipe best german christmas bread cake authentic traditional dresdner christstollen

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 (I love )to aim for an internal temperature of 190 degrees F.

Let them sit for 5 minutes, then use a toothpick to poke holes all over the stollen.  This will allow the melted butter to seep in.

stollen recipe best german christmas bread cake authentic traditional dresdner christstollen

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.

stollen recipe best german christmas bread cake authentic traditional dresdner christstollen

The stollen can be sliced and eaten now or wrapped tightly (I like to 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.

For eating, I like to warm the slices up for a few seconds in the microwave, it makes the crumb nice and soft.

Enjoy!

stollen recipe best german christmas bread cake authentic traditional dresdner christstollen

How to Make Gluten Free Stollen

I’m often asked “can I make this gluten free?” Yes, you can make gluten free stollen and I’ve had a several readers report back with success following the same method and simply substituting the flour 1:1 with GF flour. Follow all the same steps, including the rising time, though gluten free dough won’t rise to the same extent. It also won’t have the elasticity that regular dough has so be prepared to use a bench scraper as needed to help shape the dough. Be careful to drain the soaked fruits to eliminate as much excess liquid as possible and be prepared to add a little extra flour as needed until the dough is a workable consistency.

stollen recipe best traditional authentic Dresdner German marzipan

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stollen recipe authentic german traditional christmas bread baking dried fruit marzipan dresden

Authentic Stollen (German Christmas Bread)

German Stollen have been around for nearly 700 years and are prized throughout the world as one of the most famous and beloved of all Christmas pastries.  Your search for the best recipe has ended:  Flaky, moist, and divinely flavorful, these homemade German Christmas Stollen are INCREDIBLE!  
5 from 511 votes
Prep Time 3 hours
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 3 hours 40 minutes
Servings 24 servings

Ingredients
 
 

Instructions
 

  • 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.

Nutrition

Serving: 1sliceCalories: 324kcalCarbohydrates: 41gProtein: 5gFat: 15gSaturated Fat: 6gSodium: 120mgPotassium: 198mgFiber: 2gSugar: 14g
Course Dessert
Cuisine German
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Originally published on The Daring Gourmet November 20, 2018

kimberly killebrew the daring gourmet

Hi, I’m Kimberly Killebrew and welcome to Daring Gourmet where you'll find delicious originals, revitalized classics, and simply downright good eats from around the world! Originally from Germany, later raised in England, world-traveled, and now living in the U.S., from my globally-influenced kitchen I invite you to tour the world through your taste buds!

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Recipe Rating




5 from 511 votes (199 ratings without comment)

1,068 Comments

  1. Hi Kimberly, we love this recipe and make it every year. This year, with little ones wanting to get in on the sweets, is there a passable substitution for the rum? Maybe apple juice or something?

  2. Made this twice yesterday using the metric measurements but the amount of flour was significantly less than was needed to get the dough to form a ball at the first stage (so not related to liquid from adding the fruit). I wondered if anyone else had the same issue?

    Overall, It turned out well as very well and tastes great but I think the weight of flour needs adjusting. Will definitely make again and calculate how much additional flour is used.

  3. I am making your recipe for stollen today. It gives x1 x2 x3 options and I want x1 option. Does that make one or 2 stollen because it says to cut the dough in half.

      1. I made this yesterday and I would like to give some feedback in case it helps anyone. The dough turned out great, but not sweet on its own. I omitted the rum and only used half the fruits, and the whole thing turned out not sweet enough. I also made homemade candied orange peels – these also turned out not that sweet. I prefer less fruits and no rum and so next time I will add more sugar to the dough!

        1. Thanks for the feedback, Dee. That is correct, Stollen is more of a bread, not a cake, and as such it relies on the added ingredients for sweetness. So if you only used half of the dried fruits, the Stollen will only be half as sweet as it’s supposed to be. The other component that adds sweetness is the thick coating of powdered sugar on the outside. That said, if you like your Stollen sweeter you can certainly add some sugar to the dough.

  4. Hi Kimberly

    This will be the 4th year I’m baking your amazing Stollen here in South Africa.
    Something I’ve missed before re the candied peel is the tossing in a bowl of fine granulated sugar – Could I use castor sugar for this?

    Thank you for your brilliant recipes – Yours is my “go-to” website whenever I need a German recipe!

  5. I have been making stollen the last three years using only this recipe and I have been told by my friend who is from Germany that this is the most authentic stollen she has had since she lived there! Thank you for sharing and helping me continue my husbands family tradition alive.

  6. Made this stollen last year … It was the seasons hit !!
    Nearly that time again .
    BTW – What variety stollen is this ?
    Thanks, Mike

      1. Interesting- My Mom was born in Dresden Germany .
        BTW ……It’s nearly time to bake up a few stollen by Kimberly !

  7. I made this last year and wrapped it in cling wrap and then foil to rest for two weeks. Do you think putting it in a vacuum seal bag would work well?

  8. Hi, I’ve been making Stollen by hand for over 20 years. This recipe is very close to the one I use, except start off with a much larger game plan.Orginal recipe is 8 cups of flour..i make it 12 cups of flour.. My sons now 40& 42 suggested to add some cranberries to the stollen. Okay why not. They are going to be presently surprised. I have never used marzipan. You have no idea how many pple hope that they are on my list. ENJOY. 😁

  9. Hello,
    Just wondering if you can make smaller Stollen with this recipe. At Christmas time here, in Australia, we can buy bite sized Stollen. Would that be possible with this recipe? or even smaller loaves?

  10. Well it isn’t Christmas but I made the Stollen along with the candied peels and marzipan. Mother’s day is next weekend and I wanted something special. I think the only thing I didn’t do right was I made the loaves longer and not as wide. That seemed to work out well though as it makes the marzipan close to every bite. Delicious outcome, can’t wait to age some now for a week or two and see what that adds. Thanks for the history lesson as well, I was given a decorative tin of this last Christmas and found your site when I Googled just what it was. The Dresdner brand Stollen inside was not real impressive but this recipe has made me a believer.

  11. Thank you for this wonderful recipe and for the history and beautiful photos. I subsituted w/w pastry flour for one cup of the flour. It adds flavor to me. I made my candied lemon and orange peels. I made my marzipan and sprouted the almonds first (soaked them all day) for more nutrients and digestibility. I was surprised these were so big! Mine don’t look as fruity as yours, theough I used 3 oz each of the citrus, and 9 oz raisins. I did cut them up (with scissors) very small though. I did it all in stages. One day would have been too much. :-) I’m sending one loaf cross-country to a friend, who’ll get it right around Valentine’s Day. <3

  12. Hello, sounds perfect. I had a thought, if you have any Butterstollen left over, you could use it when making Granatsplitter.

    Happy New Year.

    Margot