Stollen Recipe

I made four stollen yesterday for Norman to take to his Model Engineering christmas party. I went to photograph them for my blog and there were only 3 on the cooling tray! Anyway this is my version of stollen. I am not sure where I got the recipe it was so very long ago and I just make it up as I go along now. It's the quickest and easiest thing in the world to make and tastes just wonderful! I used to buy a pack of ready made flaky pastry and rolled it out myself, however, I asked Norman to bring some back the other day and he brought me ready rolled pastry. You get two pieces in a box - how easy it that?

Ingredients

Ready rolled rough puff pastry (flaky pastry) or roll your own
Marzipan (1 packet was enough for 2 stollen)
Mixed fruit (You can use a pack of mixed fruit or use what you have in your cupboard - raisins, sultanas etc )
Pine nuts (optional)
1 large cooking apple
Icing (confectioners) sugar
Lemon juice
1 beaten egg
Ground cinnamon (or mixed spice)

Roll your pastry into a rectangle
Roll the marizpan into a rectangle slightly smaller than the pastry
Brush the pastry with a little water and lay the marzipan on top
Sprinkle the centre of the rectangle with a handful of mixed fruit
Core, peel and chop the apple into small pieces and lay on top of the mixed fruit
Sprinkle some more mixed fruit on top of the chopped apple
Add a little lemon juice
Sprinkle with cinnamon or mixed spice

Brush all around the edge of the pastry/marzipan with cold water and fold each of the long ends to the centre overlapping the edges.

Press the edges closed and brush with beaten egg.
Cut a couple of little slits in the top to let the steam out
Bake at 180 degrees for 35 minutes or until golden brown.
Dust with icing sugar

If, like me, you don't like marzipan just leave it out. You will know how much of the fruit etc to add because if it's too much the pastry won't fold!

I checked around the kitchen and found the 4th stollen. DH couldn't resist the smell and had eaten half of it! You can see in the picture I have rolled up some of the extra marzipan. I am going to make them into small sweets - Norman loves marzipan.

He wouldn't take 3 to the club he kept another one back for himself - I guess that's testament to how much he loves my stollen!
Those of you who have followed the nightmare I had earlier this year with the kicthen remodel may like to see the finished result! I love it.

Here's the other side of the kitchen - not quite as tidy! I love the glass fronted cabinets with the lights inside. You can just see in the hallway my Wilcox and Gibbs antique sewing machine.