German Stollen Recipe

From: http://www.grouprecipes.com/14186/german-stollen.html

German Stollen Recipe

This is a typical German loaf prepared for Christmas
celebrations. It is quite time consuming but well worth it!
Prep:34m
Cook:45m Servings:2
Lor

Ingredients
1/2 cup Chopped candied citron
1/4 cup Chopped candied angelica
1/2 cup Golden raisins
Boiling water
8 Tbsp. Butter
2 pkgs. Dry yeast
1 cup Milk - warmed
1 tsp. Salt
2 eggs; slightly beaten
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. Mace
1/4 tsp. Ground Cardamom
5-1/2 cups All-purpose flour (approximately)
3/4 cup slivered blanched almonds
3 Tbsp. Confectioners' sugar

Directions
Combine the citron, angelica and raisins in a small bowl,
pour boiling water over to cover, then stir and let stand.
Melt the butter and let cool to lukewarm.
Sprinkle the yeast over the milk in a large bowl, stir, and
let stand a few minutes to dissolve.

Add the salt, eggs, butter, granulated sugar, mace and
cardamom, and mix well.
Add 2 cups of the flour and beat vigorously until smooth.
Add 3 more cups flour, 1 cup at a time, beating well after
each cup.

After adding the last cup, beat until the dough holds
together in a shaggy ball.
Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for a
minute or 2, sprinkling on more flour if necessary to keep
it from being too sticky. Let rest for 10 minutes.

Drain the fruits and raisins in a strainer and press firmly
to remove excess water.
Sprinkle the fruit and nuts over the dough, and resume
kneading until the dough is smooth and elastic.
Add a little more flour as necessary to keep it from being
too sticky.

Place in a greased bowl, and turn the dough about to coat
all surfaces.
Cover and let rise until double in bulk. (This dough is
especially rich, and the first rise might take as long as
3 hours, depending on the temperature of your kitchen.)
Punch the dough down and divide in half.

Shape and pat each piece into an oval about 10 inches long
and 4-1/2 inches at the widest part.
Fold almost in half the long way, bringing the upper edge
only about 2/3 of the way over, so the bottom edge extends
beyond the top.

Place the loaves on a greased baking sheet, leaving several
inches between them.
Cover lightly and let rise for 45 minutes.

Bake in a preheated 350F oven for about 40 - 45 minutes,
until nicely browned.
Remove from the oven and transfer to racks to cool.

Allow the Stollen to cool before dusting with confectioners'
sugar sprinkled through a sieve.