Vegan stollen wreath - this impressive wreath is a lighter version of traditional German stollen bread. It is soft, delicious and full of rum soaked fruits and marzipan. The perfect centrepiece for a Christmas brunch! Eggless and dairy-free.
This impressive vegan stollen bread wreath is a lighter, quicker version of my traditional vegan stollen.
It consists of a soft, lightly spiced bread that is filled with rum soaked dried fruits and a marzipan centre. It is twisted into a wreath shape, making it a lovely centrepiece for a festive breakfast or brunch.
I love it as a mid morning or afternoon snack with a cup of tea. It is great to have to hand to nibble on over Christmas!
What Is Stollen?
Stollen is a traditional German Christmas bread/cake. There are various different versions but the most common (outside of Germany at least) is studded with dried fruits and has a log of marzipan in the centre.
Traditionally, stollen is very high in fat - half butter to flour, and is soaked with more melted butter once it is baked. It is then coated in a thick layer of icing sugar, wrapped and stored for 2-6 weeks before it is eaten.
The high fat level keeps it soft, and allowing it to mature before it is eaten lets the flavours develop making it even more delicious!
I have a recipe for a traditional vegan stollen that makes two delicious loaves of stollen that can be eaten right away or stored for a few weeks.
The traditional version is a bit time consuming to make however, so I wanted to make one that is a bit quicker and lower in fat. This vegan stollen wreath is it.
It certainly can't be regarded as a traditional stollen, it has a lighter, more bread-like texture, somewhere between stollen and brioche. And it can't be stored, it should be eaten within a couple of days of being baked; but all the flavours of stollen are there - marzipan, spices and rum soaked dried fruits.
How To Make Vegan Stollen Wreath:
(For ingredients and full instructions see the recipe card below)
Start by mixing together the dried fruits and rum. Ideally this should be done the day before you want to bake the stollen to give the fruit time to soak up the liquid.
To make the dough, mix together bread flour, instant yeast, salt, sugar, cardamom, cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice in a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook.
Add the finely grated zest of one orange and one lemon and some lukewarm non-dairy milk. Mix to form a rough dough then knead either by hand or with the mixer until the dough is smooth.
Gradually knead in the softened butter, a little at a time, until it is all incorporated. Continue to knead the dough until it is smooth and elastic. It should be slightly sticky but if it seems too wet you can add a little more flour.
Place the dough in an oiled bowl, cover and set aside to rise in a warm spot until it is doubled in size, about 1 ½ - 2 hours.
Alternatively, you can prepare the dough in the evening and place it in the fridge to rise overnight then continue with the recipe in the morning.
Once the dough has risen, add the soaked fruits and some chopped almonds. Knead the dough until they are evenly distributed.
Shaping The Stollen Wreath:
Divide the dough into two equal halves. Roll one half out on a lightly floured surface into a narrow rectangle, about 45cm long.
Roll one half of the marzipan out into a sausage just very slightly shorter than the rectangle of dough. Place it on top of the dough then roll the dough up from one of the long sides into a sausage, fully encasing the marzipan.
Use your hands to roll the sausage out until it is about 60cm long then repeat these steps with the other half of the dough and marzipan.
Cross the two ropes of dough in the middle then twist them together. Shape the twist into a wreath and pinch the ends together to seal.
Place the wreath on a parchment lined baking sheet, loosely cover and set aside to rise until it is puffy, about 1 - 1 ½ hours.
Pick off any raisins from the surface of the wreath as they will burn in the oven then bake for 45 minutes. If the top of the stollen starts to get too dark before it is cooked through, loosely cover it with tin foil.
When it is ready a probe thermometer inserted into the centre (but not into the marzipan) should read 94°C/201°F.
Brush the baked stollen liberally with melted butter then carefully slide it onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Dust the top with icing sugar once the butter has set and again just before serving.
Top Tips:
For the best results make sure that you follow the recipe closely. As always, I highly recommend using the gram measurements (with a digital scale), rather than the cup conversions. Cup measurements are simply not accurate enough for baking and I cannot guarantee the best results if you use them.
If you want, you can make this recipe into a traditional stollen shape rather than a wreath. Follow the step-by-step photos in my traditional vegan stollen post to shape it. This recipe will make two loaves.
Ideally you should mix the dried fruits and the rum together the day before you want to bake the stollen to give the fruit plenty of time to soak up the liquid. Store them in an airtight container at room temperature.
Make sure that your yeast hasn’t expired! Out of date yeast can lead to bread that doesn’t rise.
Ideally you should use a block butter/margarine rather than the spreadable kind in a tub for the best texture; I use Naturli Vegan Block.
The rising time of the dough will vary depending on how warm it is; on hot days it will rise much faster than on cold ones.
If it is a really cold day and you want to speed up the rising time of the dough a bit, you can warm up the oven a bit on a low heat, switch it off and open the door for 30 seconds to let out some of the heat then place the (covered) dough in the oven with the door slightly ajar.
You can either make the stollen all in one day, or make the dough in the evening and let it have it's first rise in the fridge overnight then continue with the recipe in the morning.
The best way to tell if bread is baked properly is to check the internal temperature with a probe thermometer. It should reach at least 94°C/201°F. (Make sure the thermometer isn't going into the marzipan though).
What Kind Of Yeast?:
I always use fast action yeast which is also known as instant or easy yeast as it doesn’t need to be activated first, you just add it straight to the flour.
If you only have active dried yeast then you can still use it, but you will need to mix it with some of the lukewarm milk and a pinch of the sugar first. Let it sit for 10-20 minutes until it has become bubbly then proceed with the rest of the recipe as written.
How Long Will This Vegan Stollen Wreath Keep?
Because this vegan stollen wreath is lower in fat than the traditional version, it will not keep for anywhere near as long.
It is more like a standard enriched bread and will stay soft for about 2 days if stored in an airtight container.
Can I Freeze This Vegan Stollen Wreath?:
Yes this vegan stollen wreath freezes well, either whole or in slices. Ideally it should be frozen on the day it is baked to preserve freshness but make sure that it has cooled completely first.
Wrap it well and freeze for up to three months. Allow to defrost at room temperature. You can pop it in a low oven for a few minutes to refresh it before serving, or give individual slices 10 seconds in the microwave.
More Vegan Christmas Recipes:
Vegan steamed chocolate pudding
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Vegan Stollen Wreath
Ingredients
Soaked Fruit:
- 100 g (3 ½ oz) raisins
- 75 g (2 ½ oz) sultanas
- 75 g (2 ½ oz) dried cranberries
- 3 Tbsp rum
Dough:
- 500 g (4 cups) white bread flour
- 10 g (2 ½ tsp) fast action/instant yeast
- 1 tsp salt
- 70 g (⅓ cup) caster (superfine) sugar
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground cardamom
- ½ tsp ground nutmeg
- ½ tsp ground allspice
- 300 ml (1 ¼ cups) lukewarm non-dairy milk (soy is best)
- finely grated zest of 1 orange and 1 lemon
- 120 g (½ cup) softened non-dairy butter (I use Naturli Vegan Block)
To Fill And Finish:
- 50 g (1 ¾ oz) chopped blanched almonds
- 300 g (10 ½ oz) marzipan
- 25 g (2 Tbsp) non-dairy butter melted
- icing sugar for dusting
Instructions
- Mix together the raisins, sultanas, cranberries and rum. Cover and set aside to soak. Ideally you should do this the day before you want to bake the stollen.
- To make the dough, mix together the bread flour, instant yeast, salt, sugar, cardamom, cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice in a large bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook.
- Add the finely grated orange and lemon zest and the lukewarm non-dairy milk. Mix to form a rough dough then knead either by hand or with the mixer until the dough is smooth.
- Gradually knead in the softened butter, a little at a time, until it is all incorporated. Continue to knead the dough until it is smooth and elastic. It should be slightly sticky but if it seems too wet you can add a little more flour.
- Place the dough in an oiled bowl, cover and set aside to rise in a warm spot until it is doubled in size, about 1 ½ – 2 hours. Alternatively, you can prepare the dough in the evening and place it in the fridge to rise overnight then continue with the recipe in the morning.
- Once the dough has risen, add the soaked fruits and the chopped almonds. Knead the dough until they are evenly distributed.
- Divide the dough into two equal halves (I use a scale for accuracy). Roll one half out on a lightly floured surface into a narrow rectangle, about 45cm / 18in long.
- Roll one half of the marzipan out into a sausage just very slightly shorter than the rectangle of dough. Place it on top of the dough then roll the dough up from one of the long sides into a sausage, fully encasing the marzipan.
- Use your hands to roll the sausage out until it is about 60cm / 24in long then repeat these steps with the other half of the dough and marzipan.
- Cross the two ropes of dough in the middle then twist them together. Shape the twist into a wreath and pinch the ends together to seal.
- Place the wreath on a baking parchment lined baking sheet, loosely cover and set aside to rise until it is puffy, about 1 – 1 ½ hours.
- When the wreath is nearly ready, preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/350°F/gas mark 4.
- Pick off any fruit from the surface of the wreath as they will burn in the oven, then bake for 45 minutes. If the top of the stollen starts to get too dark before it is cooked through, loosely cover it with tin foil.
- When it is ready a probe thermometer inserted into the centre (but not into the marzipan) should read 94°C/201°F.
- Brush the baked stollen liberally with melted butter then carefully slide it onto a wire rack to cool completely. Dust the top with icing sugar once the butter has set and again just before serving.
Notes
- For the best results make sure that you follow the recipe closely. As always, I highly recommend using the gram measurements (with a digital scale), rather than the cup conversions. Cup measurements are simply not accurate enough for baking and I cannot guarantee the best results if you use them.
- If you want, you can make this recipe into a traditional stollen shape rather than a wreath. Follow the step-by-step photos in my traditional vegan stollen post to shape it. This recipe will make two loaves.
- You can either make the stollen all in one day, or make the dough in the evening and let it have it’s first rise in the fridge overnight then continue with the recipe in the morning.
Pia
Have you tried with Gluten Free Mix?
hannahhossack
Hi Pia, no I haven't tried but I don't think that it would work very well.
Albertina
This stollen wreath is fabulous and it is very soft and delicious. Thank you for sharing.
Gráinne O' Connor
I got very confused reading this recipe and ended up mixing up what to do if baking it in one day and thinking I had to do it in 2 days. As a result, I let my first rise happen early yesterday, knocked it back and ended up thinking I had to refrigerate it overnight. Have I messed up or could it still taste fine?
hannahhossack
Hi Gráinne, it's quite hard for me to tell without being able to see the dough myself but it might still be ok. Some bread recipes do call for three rises rather than two so you should be able to get away with it!
Gráinne
Thank you. I will give it a go anyway hopefully it isn't a total waste