I’ve been baking Janneke’s Christmas stollen for years, it’s not difficult and the result is delicious! For me it is part of the traditions leading up to Christmas. Every time I have to make sure it’s not gone before or on Christmas Day. Why is it so tasty? The proportions are right, the dough is not too heavy or too sweet or salty, the filling with the almonds is delicious and you can make the spice roll as lemony as you want. The bread is not difficult to make, but it takes time, so no rush job! The dough should be kneaded for ten minutes. Furthermore, it is a piece of cake. I have the advantage of having an oven with a ‘Let yeast dough rise’ function – very nice. I follow the recipe closely, because as Janneke rightly says: “Never change a winning Christmas stollen!”
I did use more almond paste this year (I had some leftovers in the freezer from last year; no taste loss). These days I make it about a week in advance. Then it is the best at Christmas: not too sweet, nice and buttery, a hint of rum and with delicious lemony almond paste.
A version of this article also appeared in the January 7, 2023 newspaper