Big Sur Bakery Cookbook - Michelle Wojtowicz [80]
Stuffed with rum raisins, candied fruit, and almond paste and dipped in butter and sugar, stollen takes a lot of work. Michelle makes the quince paste in the fall, and then right before the Bakery’s annual winter closing (the week after Thanksgiving), she pours rum over the raisins and/or currants so that they can soak for a month. She makes a big batch of vanilla sugar and orders all her spices fresh. And then, as soon as she gets back from “vacation,” she starts candying kumquats and Buddha hand (a large, oddly shaped citrus fruit), clarifying huge amounts of butter, and grinding the spices.
If you don’t want to make the ingredients from scratch, you can use any store-bought candied fruit and zests, or use the candied zest recipe on backmatter to prepare coins of kumquats or chunks of Buddha hand. If you’re looking for a distraction from holiday chaos—or for that matter, for an unusual homemade gift—stollen might make for a great new family tradition.
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INGREDIENTS
FOR THE CURRANTS:
2 cups currants, golden raisins, or raisins
3 cups dark rum
FOR THE SPONGE:
¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons milk, heated to lukewarm
1 cup bread flour
1 tablespoon instant yeast
Unsalted butter, softened, for coating the bowl
FOR THE STOLLEN:
1 ¼ cups unsalted butter, softened, plus extra for coating the bowl
¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
¼ teaspoon ground allspice
2 teaspoons ground cinnamom
½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
½ cup sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 vanilla bean
2 egg yolks, beaten
2 teaspoons almond extract
1 ¼ cups candied fruits or candied zest (preferably homemade)
½ cup unblanched almonds
3 cups bread flour, plus extra for dusting
10 ounces almond paste (or marzipan)
24 quince paste squares
FOR FINISHING:
1 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 cup granulated sugar
1 ½ cups powdered sugar
Serves 8
At least one day ahead (or as much as a month ahead), combine the currants and the rum in a bowl, and set it aside.
On baking day, start with the sponge: In an electric mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, combine the lukewarm milk, bread flour, and yeast. Beat on low speed until a dough is formed, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer the dough to a buttered bowl that is big enough for the sponge to double in size. Cover it with plastic wrap, place it in a warm part of the kitchen, and let it rise until it doubles in size, 30 to 60 minutes.
Meanwhile, start the stollen mixture: In the electric mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, cream the butter, all the spices, sugar, and salt together until light and fluffy. Split the vanilla bean lengthwise with a paring knife, scrape out the pulp with the back of the knife, and add the pulp to the butter mixture. Add the egg yolks and almond extract, and mix to combine.
Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
Drain the currants, reserving the rum. Drain the candied fruit from the syrup (if homemade). Scatter the almonds on a cookie sheet and toast them in the oven until very light brown, about 10 minutes. Cut an almond in half to check the color. Let them cool completely, and then roughly chop them. Toss the currants, candied fruit, and toasted almonds together in a bowl, and reserve.
In the electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the sponge, the bread flour, and the butter mixture. Mix on medium speed until the dough is shiny and pulls away from the sides of the bowl, 15 to 20 minutes.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Flatten it slightly and then roll it out to form a ½-inch-thick rectangle. Add two thirds of the currant mixture, and fold the dough over it. Add the remaining currant mixture and roll the dough into a ball, making sure to keep a smooth skin of dough around the currant mixture so that none leaks out. Place the dough in a buttered bowl that is large enough to let it double in size,