Christmas stollen (quick-bread variety)

1 servings

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
2½ cup Flour (all-purpose)
2 teaspoons Baking powder
¾ cup Sugar
½ teaspoon Salt
½ teaspoon Mace
8 xes Cardomon seed pods, seeds
Removed and crushed
¾ cup Almonds, blanched, ground
½ cup Butter, soft
1 cup Cream cheese, softened
1 large Egg
½ teaspoon Vanilla extract
½ teaspoon Almond extract
2 tablespoons Brandy
½ cup Currants
½ cup Golden raisins
⅓ cup Candied lemon peel, chopped
¼ cup Butter, melted
¼ cup Sugar, powdered

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Sift together the flour, baking powder, sugar, salt, mace, and crushed cardamon seeds. Stir in the ground almonds. Cut in the soft butter until the mixture looks something like coarse sand. In a blender, cream the egg with the cream cheese, vanilla, almond extract, and brandy. Pour it into a bowl and stir in the dried fruit. Gradually stir in the flour mixture until everything is is well blended. Work the dough into a ball and turn it out on a lightly floured board. Knead it for a few minutes until it is smooth, then place it in the refrigerator for at least 15 minutes. (You can store the dough in the refrigerator for several days, then take it out to bake when ever you like.) Shape the dough into a flat, oval loaf, about 10 inches long and eight inches wide. With the blunt edge of a knife, crease the loaf about ½ inch off center, down the length of it. Fold the smaller side of the creased loaf over the wider side. Brush the top of the folded loaf with the melted butter.

Place the stollen loaf on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake for about 45 minutes, until it starts to turn brown on the outside.

Remove and allow to cool a little bit. Dust lightly with powdered (i.e., confectioner's) sugar.

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