vegan Christmas

Vegan Stollen With Marzipan

December 4, 2019 by hannahhossack 3 Comments

Vegan stollen – this vegan version of a traditional German Dresden Stollen is a wonderful treat for Christmas. You can eat it right away or make it in advance and let it mature for a couple of weeks before serving for the best flavour.

One of my absolute favourite Christmas treats (of which I have many…) is stollen; the dense, cakey, fruity, preferably marzipan filled festive German bread.

While it is possible to buy vegan stollen from lots of supermarkets, I was determined to make my own version as homemade is always better.

It took me four attempts to get the perfect texture but the end result is perfect – a dense, moist, flavourful loaf filled with rum soaked fruit and a marzipan centre.

Stollen isn’t a light and fluffy bread, it is designed to have a very high fat content which allows it to be kept for a long time without drying out. This means that the texture is almost dense cake-like rather than bread.

I’m not going to lie, this recipe is a bit of a labour of love but the results are so, so worth it! Because it is such a heavily enriched dough it takes a long time to rise and you will need to make the bread over the course of three days.

Don’t worry though, there is very little active work involved, just a whole lot of leaving the dough alone to rise! The recipe also makes two loaves of stollen so the time spent is doubly worth it.

I did try making a couple of loaves with a shorter rising time but the results were overly heavy and dense so I’m afraid that the long rise is necessary!

How To Make Vegan Stollen:

(For ingredients and full instructions see the recipe card below)

*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.*

You need to make this stollen over the course of three days. On the evening of the first day, mix together raisins, candied mixed peel and rum. Give it a good stir, cover and leave to soak overnight.

The following day, stir some chopped almonds into the fruit mixture.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix together plain flour, instant yeast, sugar, salt, ground cinnamon, allspice, cloves, cardamom and nutmeg.

Add lukewarm unsweetened non-dairy milk (soy is best), vanilla and almond extracts, grated orange and lemon zest and lots of softened vegan block butter. You ideally want to use a block butter/margarine rather than the spreadable kind in a tub for the best texture; I use Naturli Vegan Block.

Give it a good mix until it forms a rough dough then knead with the mixer on a high speed for about 10 minutes until the dough is very smooth and elastic and it comes away from the sides of the bowl cleanly.

You can knead the dough by hand on an unfloured surface if you don’t have a stand mixer.

Add the soaked fruit and nut mixture and knead until it is well distributed.

Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover the bowl and set aside to rise in a warm spot until it has almost doubled in size. This can take 5-8 hours depending on how warm it is.

Once the dough has risen, place the covered bowl in the fridge overnight.

The following day, remove the bowl from the fridge and leave it to come up to room temperature for 2 hours.

Knock the dough back and divide it into two equal pieces (I use a scale for accuracy).

Roll each ball of dough out on a lightly floured surface to a rough rectangle about 1 – 1 1/2 cm thick.

Divide your marzipan in half and roll each half into a log a little shorter than your dough rectangles. Place the marzipan logs just off centre on the dough.

Fold the smaller half of dough over the marzipan then fold the other half over the top and press gently to seal. Make sure that the ends are also sealed.

Place the logs well spaced apart on a greaseproof paper lined baking sheet and loosely cover. Set aside to rise in a warm place for 3-4 hours until they have increased in size by 50%. They will not double. Meanwhile preheat the oven.

Once the logs are puffy, bake them for 40-45 minutes until the internal temperature reaches at least 94°C/201°F on a probe thermometer. If they start to become too dark before they are ready you can loosely cover them with tin foil.

Once the stollen are baked, remove the logs from the oven and let them cool for 10 minutes. Pick off any raisins that are on the surface as they will be burnt and bitter.

Brush the stollen very generously with melted vegan butter and leave it to set.

Once the butter has set, sprinkle them with a thick layer of icing sugar and leave to cool completely before wrapping and storing.

Top Tips:

Stollen is supposed to have a very high fat content – half fat to flour. DO NOT reduce it otherwise the bread will be dry and won’t keep.

I usually use bread flour when baking bread, but because we want a more cake-like texture here, plain (all-purpose) flour is the best choice.

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.

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.

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.

You can eat the stollen right away if you want (let it cool completely first though!) but it will have the best flavour and texture if you wrap it up in baking parchment and tin foil and let it mature in a cool, dry place for one to two weeks before you slice it.

Provided it is well wrapped, the stollen will keep for up to six weeks so it is perfect to give as gifts for Christmas.

How To Store Vegan Stollen:

Once the loaves of stollen are baked, brush them generously all over with melted vegan butter while they are still warm. Allow the butter to set then sprinkle them with a very thick layer of icing sugar. This butter and sugar coating helps to seal in the moisture and stop them from drying out so don’t skip it!

Once the loaves are completely cold, wrap them first in baking parchment then tin foil and store them in a cool, dark place for up to six weeks.

Can I Freeze Vegan Stollen?:

Yes, the loaves can be frozen for up to three months provided they are well wrapped. Allow to defrost at room temperature.

More Vegan Christmas Recipes:

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Vegan Stollen

Vegan stollen - this vegan version of a traditional German Stollen is a wonderful treat for Christmas. You can eat it right away or make it in advance and let it mature for a couple of weeks before serving for the best flavour.

Course Breakfast, Snack

Cuisine German

Keyword bread

Prep Time 40 minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes

Resting time 1 day 10 hours

Servings 2 loaves

Author Domestic Gothess

Ingredients

Fruit Mixture:

250 g (9 oz) raisins
125 g (4 ½ oz) candied mixed peel
50 ml (3 Tbsp + 1 tsp) rum
50 g (1 ¾ oz) chopped almonds

Stollen Dough:

500 g (4 cups) plain (all-purpose) flour
10 g (2 ½ tsp) instant/fast action yeast
100 g (1/2 cup) caster/granulated sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground allspice
1/2 tsp ground cardamom
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves
200 ml (1/2 + 1/3 cup) lukewarm unsweetened non-dairy milk (soy is best)
1 tsp almond extract
1 tsp vanilla extract
finely grated zest of 1 orange
finely grated zest of 1 lemon
250 g (9 oz) vegan block butter (I use Naturli Vegan Block) softened
300 g (10 ½ oz) marzipan

To Finish:

50 g (1 ¾ oz) vegan block butter melted
icing (powdered) sugar for dusting

Instructions

Day 1:

You need to make this stollen over the course of three days. On the evening of the first day, mix together the raisins, candied mixed peel and rum. Give it a good stir, cover and leave to soak overnight.

Day 2:

The following day, stir the chopped almonds into the fruit mixture.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix together the plain flour, instant yeast, sugar, salt, ground cinnamon, allspice, cloves, cardamom and nutmeg.
Add the lukewarm non-dairy milk, vanilla and almond extracts, grated orange and lemon zest and softened vegan block butter.
Give it a good mix until it forms a rough dough then knead with the mixer on a high speed for about 10 minutes until the dough is very smooth and elastic and it comes away from the sides of the bowl cleanly.
If you don't have a stand mixer you can knead the dough by hand on an unfloured surface for 10-15 minutes until it is smooth, stretchy and no longer sticky.
Add the soaked fruit and nut mixture and knead until it is well distributed.
Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover the bowl and set aside to rise in a warm spot until it has almost doubled in size. This can take 5-8 hours depending on how warm it is.
Once the dough has risen, place the covered bowl in the fridge overnight.

Day 3:

The following day, remove the bowl from the fridge and leave it to come up to room temperature for 2 hours.
Knock the dough back and divide it into two equal pieces (I use a scale for accuracy).
Roll each ball of dough out on a lightly floured surface to a rough rectangle about 1 - 1 ½ cm thick.
Divide the marzipan in half and roll each half into a log a little shorter than your dough rectangles. Place the marzipan logs just off centre on the dough.
Fold the smaller half of dough over the marzipan then fold the other half over the top and press gently to seal. Make sure that the ends are also sealed.
Place the logs well spaced apart on a greaseproof paper lined baking sheet and loosely cover. Set aside to rise in a warm place for 3-4 hours until they have increased in size by 50%. They will not double. Meanwhile preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4.
Once the logs are puffy, bake them for 40-45 minutes until the internal temperature reaches at least 94°C/201°F on a probe thermometer. If they start to become too dark before they are ready you can loosely cover them with tin foil.
Once the stollen are baked, remove the logs from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes. Remove any raisins from the surface as they will be burnt and bitter.
Brush the stollen generously with the melted vegan butter and leave it to set.
Once the butter has set, sprinkle them with a thick layer of sifted icing sugar and leave to cool completely.
Once the stollen are completely cold, wrap them first in a layer of baking parchment then a layer of tin foil and store in a cool, dry place for up to six weeks.

Recipe 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.
See the post above for step-by-step photos.
Stollen is supposed to have a very high fat content – half fat to flour. DO NOT reduce it otherwise the bread will be dry and won’t keep.
I usually use bread flour when baking bread, but because we want a more cake-like texture here, plain (all-purpose) flour is the best choice.
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.
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.
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.
You can eat the stollen right away if you want (let it cool completely first though!) but it will have the best flavour and texture if you wrap it up in baking parchment and tin foil and let it mature in a cool, dry place for one to two weeks before you slice it.
Provided it is well wrapped, the stollen will keep for around six weeks so it is perfect to give as gifts for Christmas.

Vegan Christmas Pudding

November 14, 2019 by hannahhossack 1 Comment

Vegan Christmas pudding – this vegan version of the classic British steamed Christmas pudding is rich, moist, fruity and boozy but not overly dense or heavy. It is easy to make and can be cooked in advance and matured for up to six months or eaten right away instead.

Christmas pudding is quite divisive, some people love it, some hate it. I am firmly in the ‘love’ camp though I do get why lots of people don’t like it; it does tend to be quite dense and heavy.

This vegan one is a little bit lighter than a lot of recipes, but is still rich and moist. It is packed with juicy rum soaked dried fruit and is lightly spiced and perfectly festive.

It is the perfect way to round off your Christmas dinner and I think that this vegan pudding is just as good as, if not better than, the classic suet and egg laden version.

Christmas pudding may seem tricky to make but it is actually incredibly simple. It does take five hours to steam so you need to make sure that you start making it fairly early in the day; but it is all hands off time while it is cooking.

It can be stored for up to six months before Christmas (see instructions below for how to store it), or made as little as a couple of days in advance. On the day it will take an hour to steam before serving.

How To Make Vegan Christmas Pudding:

(For ingredients and full instructions see the recipe card below)

You need to start making this vegan Christmas pudding the day before you want to steam it as the fruit needs to soak overnight.

Mix together dried raisins, currants and chopped dried dates and apricots (or use a different selection of dried fruits as you like) with the zest and juice of an orange and some rum, brandy or sherry, cover and leave to soak overnight. I give it a stir every now and again to ensure that the fruit is equally coated.

The next day, stir a peeled and grated cooking apple into the fruit mixture; Bramley apple is best but Granny Smith will do if you can’t get hold of them.

Next, stir in self-raising flour, fresh breadcrumbs, light brown soft sugar and mixed spice (pumpkin spice) followed by aquafaba, melted refined coconut oil, non-dairy milk and chopped almonds.

The aquafaba and coconut oil are absolutely the best replacements for the eggs and suet/butter that are usually used in Christmas pudding so I don’t recommend subbing them for anything else. As long as you use refined rather than virgin coconut oil your pudding won’t taste like coconut.

Grease a 1.2 – 1.4 litre pudding basin and place a disc of baking parchment in the bottom to prevent the top of the pudding from sticking.

Spoon the pudding mixture into the greased basin and pack it down firmly then level the top. It is ok if the mixture comes almost all the way up to the top of the basin as it doesn’t rise much but make sure that there is at least a centimetre gap at the top.

Make a fold in the middle of a square of baking parchment and the same again in a square of tin foil. Place the baking parchment on top of the pudding basin with the fold in the middle, followed by the tin foil. Press the foil over the edge of the pudding basin.

Tie a length of string very tightly around the foil – there should be a lip on the pudding basin; tie the string just under that. Tie a length of string across the top of the basin to make a handle. Trim off the excess foil and parchment, leaving at least a centimeter below the string.

Place a saucer upside down in a large saucepan to act as a trivet and place the pudding basin on top. Pour boiling water into the pan so that it comes about halfway up the pudding basin, don’t let it touch the foil.

Place the lid on the pan and place over a low heat. Cook at a gentle simmer for five hours (it will do the pudding no harm to leave it to cook for a little longer however). Check every now and again to see if the water needs topping up but resist the urge to take the lid off the pan too often.

When it is cooked, the pudding should be a deep brown colour and be firm to the touch with a little bit of bounce. A skewer inserted into the centre should come out clean.

Once the pudding is done steaming, remove it from the pan and leave it to cool then remove the baking parchment and tin foil and replace them with fresh ones. Store in a cool, dry place for up to six months, feeding it occasionally with rum or brandy.

On Christmas day, steam the pudding in the same way for one to two hours before serving it.