Along with the carols, twinkling lights, and ornaments hung lovingly on the tree, it’s the presence of specific food and drink that really says “holidays” to us. Writer Sherry Spitsnaugle visited Dresden, Germany recently and found out, first hand, just how beloved stollen bread (also called Christstollen) is in Germany and also around the world.
Today, there are many variations of Stollen, but the most popular is the Dresdner Stollen, which is made with raisins, candied fruit, and marzipan. The Stollen is typically dusted with powdered sugar and served during the Christmas season, often accompanied by hot mulled wine.
Traditions of Christmas Stollen
“Traditions vary within family to family and person to person about when to enjoy stollen,” explained Wolfgang Gärtner, with Saxony Tourism. “Some people wait to have their first bite of stollen on Christmas morning (and not a day before) and others eat the cake throughout the season.”
One trend everyone seems to agree on is the ritual of mid-to-late afternoon coffee or tea with pastry. This tradition is common year-round in Germany; during the holidays, that sweet is often stollen.
“Locals have their favorite bakery where they like to buy stollen,” Gärtner explained. “Or they like their mother’s or grandmother’s the best.”
Gärtner advised that when buying stollen – either to enjoy on the spot or take home – it’s best to buy the generous size rather than the small loaf. And always, buy the official Dresden stollen.
Do’s and Don’ts of Enjoying Stollen
Gärtner also gave me tips for eating stollen that I would not have known without advice from a local:
- Stollen is finger food; there’s no need to use a fork
- Slice the loaf of stollen in the middle – not at the end
- When you talk about stollen, remember: It’s a slice of stollen, not a piece of stollen
- Cut stollen on a board, preferably with a special stollen knife!
Stollen has a past as juicy as this moist bread-cake which is replete with raisins and rich with butter. Today, the dessert is flavor-packed, but in the beginning, the Church decreed that because Advent was the time for fasting and penitence, people could not use butter or sugar. The result was a cake that tasted bland.
Prince Ernst of Saxony came to the rescue when he appealed to Pope Nicholas V for an exception.
Four Popes ignored the request, but in 1490, Pope Innocent VIII sent a reply. Still known today as the “Butter Letter,” the dispatch, at last, granted the use of butter in baked goods. Often called ChristStollen, people in early times said that the cake-like bread symbolized the swaddled baby Jesus.
Today, the divine dessert practically emanates butter. Orange and lemon zest, dried fruits, raisins, and sugar give it sweetness. Bakers make loaves well before Christmas so the bread can mature. A sugary glaze keeps it moist, and shops ship loaves of stollen around the globe.
Authentic German Christmas Stollen – Moist & Tender Stollen Bites
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