DRESDEN CHRISTMAS STOLLEN

1 vanilla bean
7 to 8 cups flour
5 tsp. yeast
1 2/3 cups lukewarm whole milk
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
zest of 1 lemon
1 tsp. salt
1 3/4 cup softened butter
1 1/2 cups flour
2 1/3 cups raisins
3/4 cup chopped blanched almonds
1/4 cup diced candied lemon peel
1/2 cup diced candied orange peel
1 to 3 jiggers rum
1/2 cup plus 2 generous tbsp. butter
vanilla sugar or confectioners' sugar

Cut open vanilla bean and scrape out the pith with the tip of a sharp pointed knife; set aside.

Sift the flour into a bowl. Make a depression in the center, sprinkle in the yeast, and pour in the lukewarm milk. Sprinkle a little flour over the milk yeast mixture and let stand for 20 minutes, covered.

Add the sugar, eggs, vanilla pith, lemon zest, and salt to the fermenting yeast-milk and beat to from a firm dough. Let the dough rise for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, knead together the butter and flour to form a soft dough. Work this into the risen yeast dough. Let the dough rise once more for 15 minutes.

Combine the raisins, almonds, and peels. Pour the rum over them and let soak.

Quickly work the fruit mixture into the yeast dough and let the dough rise again for 15 minutes.

Shape the dough into two balls and roll them into narrow rectangles about 12 inches long. With a rolling pin, flatten the rectangles in the center so as to produce fairly thick raised borders on the long sides. On the short ends, tuck in the dough somewhat to even the edges, then fold lengthwise into the well-known stollen shape (bring one edge just to the bottom of the bulge on the other edge. The two sides do not meet. You are folding one side over approximately 2/3 of the way.)

Line a baking sheet with buttered parchment, place the stollen on it and let rise 30 minutes, covered. They should double in size.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Bake about an hour on the bottom shelf and test with a wooden pick to be sure the dough is baked through.

Melt the butter; brush the still warm stollen on all sides with melted butter and sprinkle on the vanilla sugar or confectioners' sugar to completely seal the stollen in butter and sugar.

Makes 2 Stollens
Source: Richard Young