Polar Sledge Stollen

It's up to you.

17 detailed steps from preparation to service.

1. Rehydrate raisins and prepare fruit

   Pour the 150 g of raisins into a bowl and cover them with warm water for 20 minutes. Cut the 80 g of candied citrus peels into small 5 mm dice. Prepare 1 teaspoon of cinnamon and keep the 150 g of marzipan apart: it will form a whole heart and will not be mixed with the paste.

2. Prepare the two quantities of butter

   Cut the 140 g of soft butter for the dough into small dice. Weigh the 30 g of finishing butter in another container and keep them for the oven outlet; they are not added to the kneading. Measure the 150 ml of milk and warm it up to 30 ° C, checking that it is not hot.

3. Break the egg and prepare the yeast

   Break the egg into a small bowl, remove any pieces of shell and beat it quickly with a fork. Read the package leaflet for 7 g of dry yeast: if it requires rehydration, use part of the milk measured and follow the time indicated. Prepare 400 g of flour, 80 g of sugar and 4 g of salt separately.

4. Form the starting paste

   Put the flour and sugar in the vat of the robot with the hook, or in a large bowl. Add the beaten egg, the milk and the yeast prepared according to its instructions, then the salt on the side before mixing. Work at a small speed or with a spoon until you get a coarse paste; scrape the bottom to incorporate all the flour.

5. Knead and add the soft butter

   Knead the dough about 8 minutes before adding the butter. Incorporate the 140 g of butter into three portions, until each is absorbed before the next, then knead again about 8 minutes with the robot. By hand, fold and push the dough with the palm, allowing more time; it must become supple and relatively smooth, without massive addition of flour.

6. Drain and incorporate fruit

   Drain the raisins and dry their surface with absorbent paper or a clean cloth. Add them to the dough with the 80 g of candied peel and the teaspoon of cinnamon. Mix at low speed or fold the dough by hand until evenly distributed; do not pour the soaking water into the bowl.

7. Let rise the dough rich in fruit

   Gather the dough into a ball and cover the bowl to keep the surface supple. Let rise for 1 h 30 to 2 hours in a temperate room, away from a draft. This dough rich in butter and fruit can rise less quickly than a light brioche: wait until it swells sharply, rather than relying only on time.

8. Prepare the heart in marzipan

   Place the 150 g of marzipan between your hands and then roll them on a clean plane to form a 24 cm pudding. Maintains a regular thickness, without stretching the ends into spikes. Prepare a baking sheet covered with baking paper and place another sheet on the worktop to spread the dough without additional flour.

9. Spread and enclose the almond heart

   Gently press on the raised dough to drive out some of the air, then roll it into an oval of about 28 x 20 cm. Place the almond pudding slightly off-center in the direction of the length, leaving dough at both ends. Fold the large side over and press the joint to enclose the almond, retaining the characteristic asymmetrical bump of the stollen.

10. Leave for the second rise

    Transfers the stollen onto the plate by supporting it with both hands or using the paper. Cover it slightly and let it rise for 45 minutes; it should soften and swell again. Preheat the oven to 170 °C in conventional oven setting (no fan) towards the end of rest, with an oven rack in the bottom third of the oven.

11. Cook to the heart

    Bake for 40 to 45 minutes. If the surface colors too fast, place a sheet of baking paper on top at the end of cooking, without touching the heating elements. Check with a skewer in an area of dough next to the almond heart: it should come out without glued raw paste; the underside should be well golden.

12. Brush with the finishing butter

    Gently melt the reserved 30 g of butter in a small saucepan or bowl in a bain-marie. Take the stollen out of the oven and place it on an oven rack over a sheet of paper. With a brush, spread the 30 g of butter on top and still warm sides, in two passes; do not add any new amount of butter.

13. Cooling before sugar and packaging

    Let the stollen cool completely on the grill, at least 1 hour, more if its center is still warm. The paper underneath picks up the butter drops. Do not pack it hot, as the steam would soften the surface; for a sharper cut and developed aromas, ideally plan to serve it the next day.

14. Powder and then prepare the sled drawing

    Powder the cold stollen with the 40 g of icing sugar through a strainer, then place it on its serving dish. On a sheet of baking paper, draw two 26 x 1 cm skids and two 6 x 1 cm ties, with rounded ends. Turn the sheet over so that the chocolate is on the face without pencil and place it on a flat board.

15. Forming the four pieces of chocolate

    Chop the 80 g of dark chocolate and put them in a small, perfectly dry bowl. Pour 2 cm of water into a saucepan, heat until it simmers and then lower the heat. Set the bowl over the pan without letting it touch the water. Stir with a spatula and remove as soon as the last pieces melt. Wipe the bottom of the bowl: no drop of water should fall into the chocolate. Pour it into a wide-open cornet or use a small spoon to fill the four contours. Aim at least 3 mm thick and rounded edges, spreading 80 g; if the first layer is too thin, add the rest before taking.

16. Take off the parts without folding them

    Let the chocolate take at least 30 minutes in a cool room. Take off the two long skids by folding the paper under them, while supporting them with a long spatula; do not lift them at one end. Handles the ties in the same way and keeps all parts flat until assembly.

17. Allow to be taken and served

    Lay both skates flat on the flat, next to the powdered stollen, then the two ties flat on its top. The cake rests directly on the dish: the pieces of chocolate evoke sledge without carrying its weight. To serve, cut slices with a bread knife and also share the four chocolate elements.