Sweet and seasonally spicy with little chunks of half melted marzipan, these stollen cakes are delicious. They’re perfect for busy people during the festive season, whether that’s Christmas, New Year or Twelfth Night.
When I first saw this spiced stollen traybake over at How to Cook Good Food before Christmas one year, I knew I would have to make this or something similar very soon. I’d had no stollen at all the previous year and it’s one of my favourites.
A spicy stollen full of fruit and marzipan in cake form is an excellent idea. My version is actually quite different to Laura’s, but hers was the inspiration. They’re perfect for bringing in the new year along with a glass of something special or for celebrating today, New Year’s Day.
Stollen Cakes
As it happens, my mother’s birthday is on New Year’s Eve. As we were going to be out and about that year, I needed to take something portable. She’s a bit of a marzipan fan, so stollen cakes fit the bill very nicely. I’d also been sent a surprise Christmas parcel from Dr Oetker which handily contained both marzipan and chocolate chips.
The chocolate chips are entirely optional. Sometimes I add them and sometimes I don’t. For you see, these stollen cakes are so good, I’ve made them many times since. That first time I made them with a mix of half wholemeal and half plain flour, but I use 100% wholemeal spelt flour these days.
I don’t always add mixed peel either. I’m not too keen on the bought variety and CT hates it. So it just depends if I have any of my rather wonderful homemade candied citrus in stock.
A little preparation is needed for soaking the fruit in the rum overnight. This isn’t strictly necessary if you’re in a rush, but the fruit will be lush and plump if you do it this way. Other than that, these little stollen cakes are pretty quick to make. They make excellent festive gifts and will keep well in a sealed container for a few days.
Sour Milk
It’s really easy to make a cheat’s version of sour milk for this recipe. Just add a teaspoon of lemon juice to nearly 3 tablespoons of milk. Stir and leave for five minutes to thicken. If you have naturally occurring sour milk, by all means use that.
Stollen Cakes or Dragon’s Gold?
The house smelt deliciously of nutmeg and coriander whilst the cakes were baking. CT and I couldn’t help ourselves, but had to filch a warm one as they came out of the oven. Ooh, they were so delicious; sweet and seasonally spicy.
We ate another one or two whilst watching The Hobbit (second time for us, birthday treat for my mother). They may not have been as impressive as Smaug’s Hoard, but each bite uncovered buried treasure – rum soaked sultanas, marzipan and chocolate chips or occasionally all three.
The sponge was light and a glorious yellow just like the dragon’s gold. And if CT takes another one without permission, I’ll be breathing fire all over him. Actually he’s unable to fulfil his desire as my mother squirrelled the remainder away and is jealously guarding her hoard.
Other Marzipan Recipes You Might Like
- Almond & lemon surprise Easter egg cupcakes
- Apple & chocolate almond pastries
- Cherry, walnut and chocolate birthday cake
- Chocolate marzipan cheesecake
- Chocolate matcha Battenberg
- Easter brownies
- Fig, lemon & marzipan bundt cake
- Marzipan macaroons (kransekake)
- Simnel cake with homemade marzipan
- Twelfth Night cakes
Keep in Touch
Thanks for visiting Tin and Thyme. If you make my stollen cakes, I’d love to hear about it in the comments below. And do please rate the recipe. Have you any top tips? Do share photos on social media too and use the hashtag #tinandthyme, so I can spot them.
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If you’d like more festive recipes, follow the link and you’ll find I have an awful lot of them. All delicious, of course.
Wishing you a Very Happy New Year. May it bring you plenty of chocotunities.
Choclette x
Stollen Cakes. PIN IT.
Stollen Cakes – The Recipe
Stollen Cakes
Ingredients
- 75 g sultanas
- 25 g mixed peel optional (I used homemade candied citrus)
- 25 g ground almonds for best result, use freshly ground
- 2 tbsp rum
- 150 g unsalted butter softened
- 125 g golden caster sugar (I used cardamom sugar)
- 1 small lemon
- ½ tsp ground coriander for best result use freshly ground coriander seeds
- good grating of nutmeg
- 1 pinch ground cloves
- 2 large eggs
- 160 g wholemeal spelt flour or swap for a mix of wholemeal flour and plain flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
- 3 tbsp sour milk can use buttermilk or kefir instead
- 50 g dark chocolate chips optional
- 100 g marzipan chopped into little chunks
- flaked almonds for scattering over the top
- icing sugar for dusting (I used vanilla sugar)
Instructions
- Place the sultanas and mixed peel, if using, into a bowl together with the ground almonds and rum. Leave to soak overnight.
- Cream the butter and sugar until well combined.
- Grate in the lemon zest.
- Add the spices and cream some more until the mixture is very light and fluffy.
- Beat in the eggs, one at a time. If the mixture curdles add a little of the flour.
- Sift the flour, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda through a large gauge sieve. Discard any large pieces of bran left in the seive.
- Stir in alternately with the sour milk until everything is just combined.
- Fold in the fruit and rum mixture, chocolate and marzipan.
- Spoon into 15 lined cupcake moulds then scatter a few flaked almonds over the top of each one.
- Bake at 180℃ (350℉, Gas 4) for 20 minutes or until risen and golden. Then turn out onto a rack to cool.
- Dust with icing sugar or vanilla sugar when cool.
Notes
Nutrition Estimate
Sharing
The beautiful golden yellow sponge was the result of some local free range eggs which I buy whenever I am able. I am thus entering it into this month’s Tea Time Treats where the theme is eggs. This has been chosen by the new co-host Jane of The Hedgecombers. I’m pleased to say that Karen of Lavender and Lovage remains.
With those local eggs in mind where the chickens truly run freely, I am entering this into Shop Local at Elizabeth’s Kitchen Diary.
I’m also submitting this to Jac’s Bookmarked Recipes over at Tinned Tomatoes where you can see last month’s round-up.
Jacqueline Meldrum says
They look wonderful, but I would have to leave out the marzipan as I hate the stuff. Thanks for adding them to Bookmarked Recipes, the roundup is now live.
Elizabeth says
These sound like the perfect cake for a portable birthday celebration! I love it! Thank you for sharing with #ShopLocal!
cityhippyfarmgirl says
stollen individual cakes…I’m so doing that next year. Room for extra marzipan in there as well.
(I made an apple tart once with marzipan in the pastry, divine in taste but lost the recipe and nothing has ever come close to be similar. Marzipan= food of the gods.
Choclette says
Lovely to hear from you Bridie. I’m with you on food of the gods (well and chocolate too of course) Marzipan n pastry? I have to try that.
laura@howtocookgoodfood says
Happy New Year Choclette! I am delighted you mentioned me on this recipe and love the sound of these heavenly spiced little cakes. The Rum soaked fruits is such a good idea and i do think I will be adding more Marzipan to my cakes as I love the almonds chewy texture it brings. Hope your mother enjoyed them on her birthday too!
Choclette says
Thanks Laura – you seem to be my Christmas muse. Last year it was your mincemeat oaty slice – yum! My mother certainly enjoyed them as did a few others.
Joanna @ Zeb Bakes says
I haven’t seen the Hobbit yet but it is on my list of things to see on a rainy day ! Those cakes look scrumptious and very pretty! Happy New Year to you and CT, Choclette!
Choclette says
Thanks you Joanna. The Hobbit is fun – as long as you haven’t read the book in a very long time and have forgotten the story’s details!
Galina Varese says
I love marzipan, and would have been very happy with such a birthday treat. They look very pretty.
Choclette says
Thanks Galina. The world is divided between marzipan lovers and haters it seems – I am, of course, with the former.
Choclette says
Yes me too and I didn’t get any this year. Luckily these cakes made up for it.
Jane Sarchet says
They do look rather tasty Choclette! Wasn’t the Hobbit fab? One of my favourites of the entire series.
Happy new year petal, see ya soon!
Janie x
Choclette says
Thanks Jane. Really enjoyed the film and didn’t in the least bit mind that I was seeing it for the 2nd time. Submitted these to TTT just after you visited!
Keep Calm and Fanny On says
Mmm they sound fab!
Choclette says
Thank you, one of my favourite festive bakes.
Rachel Cotterill says
I always have to taste everything just as soon as it’s cool enough to touch. My husband has cast-iron fingers so he sometimes gets there even faster 😉 And yum, stollen in any form is a wonderful thing.
Choclette says
Thanks Rachel. CT gets his fingers very sharply wrapped if he tries stealing anything of the baking tray before I’ve photographed it. this photography malarkey means our fingers remain relatively unscathed.
Gloria Baker says
Look amazing!! Happy New Year!
Choclette says
Thank you Gloria. Happy New Year
The Caked Crusader says
Happy new year to you!
Choclette says
Thanks CC
Laura Denman says
I’m not surprised you had to filch one of these warm from the oven. I would’ve done the same!
Choclette says
Haha Laura, it was hard to stop at only one – had to remember they were principally for my mother.