{"id":140056,"date":"2018-01-01T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2017-09-16T00:58:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/origin-www.tasteofhome.com\/recipes\/traditional-stollen\/"},"modified":"2025-04-08T09:43:42","modified_gmt":"2025-04-08T14:43:42","slug":"traditional-stollen","status":"publish","type":"recipe","link":"https:\/\/www.tasteofhome.com\/recipes\/traditional-stollen\/","title":{"rendered":"Stollen"},"content":{"rendered":"

The holiday season means enjoying our favorite festive foods; for many, stollen tops that list. While it may resemble fruit cake<\/a>, this German recipe<\/a> produces a lighter, soft-textured bread. Studded with fruits and nuts, stollen is an incredibly flavorful treat.<\/p>\n

Stollen is a yeasted bread that gets its flavor from a touch of sugar, lemon zest, dried fruits and nuts. Like most enriched doughs\u2014those made with egg, butter and milk\u2014a stollen bread recipe needs a longer rise time, but the result is a soft and pillowy bread. Once baked, the longer the cakelike loaves sit, the better they get, as the fruits soften the bread’s texture.<\/p>\n

This Christmas stollen recipe uses simple ingredients to produce a holiday bread<\/a> perfect for baking at home with family members or making loaves to give to friends.<\/p>\n

What is stollen?<\/h2>\n

Filled with dried fruits and nuts, and sometimes a strip of marzipan running through the middle, this fruit-filled bread is one of the most traditional breads served during the holidays. It is said to have originated in Dresden, Germany, between the 1300s and 1400s. With its signature fold and confectioners’ sugar coating, most believe it represents the baby Jesus wrapped in swaddling garments, which is why it’s a Christmas staple. Like panettone<\/a>, you can eat it for breakfast, an afternoon snack or dessert.<\/p>\n

Initially, the Catholic church didn’t allow milk or butter during Advent, so the German stollen recipe wasn’t as delicious as it is today. However, that changed in the mid-17th century, and the enriched dough recipe is now enjoyed worldwide year after year.<\/p>\n

Ingredients for Stollen<\/h2>\n