Spiced Stollen Plait

4.90 (16)
⏱ 80 mins 🍽 Cuts into 15 slices 🌶 german ✅ A challenge 🏷 Dessert

This festive German bake offers a beautiful twist on the classic stollen. A lightly spiced dough is enriched with honey, citrus zest, and brandy-soaked dried fruit. It is wrapped around marzipan, plaited, and baked until golden. The finished plait is dusted with icing sugar for a traditional finish, perfect for slicing and sharing over the holidays. It yields 15 generous slices.

Spiced Stollen Plait

Ingredients

  • 140g mixed dried fruit (we used raisins, sultanas and dried cherries)
  • 4 tbsp brandy dark rum or orange juice
  • 225ml full-fat milk
  • 3 tbsp clear honey
  • 85g butter cut into cubes
  • 450g strong plain flour plus extra for dusting
  • 7g sachet fast-action dried yeast
  • 1/2 nutmeg finely grated
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp mixed spice
  • 1 large egg beaten, plus 1 to glaze
  • zest 1 lemon
  • zest 1 orange
  • oil for greasing
  • 300g marzipan
  • handful flaked almonds
  • icing sugar for dusting

Method

  1. Combine the dried fruit with your chosen brandy, rum, or orange juice in a bowl. Cover it with cling film and microwave on High for 1 min. Leave this to one side to cool as you prepare the dough.
  2. Warm the milk and honey in a saucepan until they just begin to boil. Take it off the heat, add the butter, and set aside to cool slightly, swirling occasionally to melt the butter. In a separate large bowl, combine the flour, yeast, spices, and ½ tsp salt.
  3. Once the milk mixture has cooled to body temperature, pour it into the bowl with the dry ingredients. Add the beaten egg and the citrus zest. Mix everything with a spoon, then use your hands until it forms a dough. Add a little extra flour if the mixture feels too sticky.
  4. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead it for 10 mins until it becomes smooth and elastic. Place it in a clean, lightly greased bowl, cover with greased cling film, and leave to prove for 2 hrs or until it has doubled in size. You may refrigerate the dough for up to 2 days at this stage. simply bring it back to room temperature before proceeding.
  5. Once the dough has doubled, tip it onto your work surface and knock out the air bubbles. Knead the soaked fruit into the dough.
  6. Roll the dough into a square roughly 40 x 40cm, then slice it into 3 long strips. Divide the marzipan into 3 balls and roll each into a sausage matching the length of the dough strips. Place a marzipan sausage on each dough strip, then pinch the dough sides together to seal it around the marzipan, creating three filled ropes. Flip them so the seams are underneath and pinch the three ends together. Plait the ropes tightly, pinching the end to seal. Transfer the plait to a baking tray lined with parchment, tucking the ends under. Cover loosely with oiled cling film and leave to prove for 30 mins-1 hr or until doubled.
  7. Heat your oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Remove the cling film from the plait, brush it with beaten egg, and scatter over the flaked almonds. Bake on the middle oven shelf for 30 mins until golden brown and cooked through. Move to a wire rack to cool, then dust with icing sugar before serving. It will keep for up to 5 days in a sealed container.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories330 kcal
Fat11 g
Saturates4 g
Carbs47 g
Sugars26 g
Fibre2 g
Protein7 g
Sodium120 mg

Recipe details

Skill levelA challenge
CategoryDessert
Cuisinegerman