Stollen Wreath- Daring Baker's Challenge for December 2010

This month Daring Baker's Challenge is by Penny of Sweet Sadie's Baking.  This challenged us to make this incredible Stollen.  Challenges are tough to face it but when it is a sweet challenge like Daring Baker's Challenge, I'm sure everyone will  love it, I truly enjoy it a lot every month when I check for a Daring Baker Challenge and more than that when I make it.

   Coming to this month challenge, Stollen is a traditional German bread made during Christmas, what an appropriate challenge during this month. Stollen is bread loaded with dry fruits and candied peel, some breads are also filled with marzipan. Just baking a stollen will fill your home with the scent of festive mood,  it smells simply great. Thank you Penny for the lovely challenge you have given this month.

Preparation Time: 30 minutes+ rising time
Cooking Time: 40 minutes
Serves 8 to 10

Ingredients:
All purpose flour- 375 g
Warm milk- 100 ml
Egg- 1
Active dried yeast- 7 g
Melted Butter- 50 g
Brown sugar- 50 g
Mixed dried fruits( raisins, cranberries, currant etc..)- 75 g soaked in orange juice
Cinnamon powder- 1/2 tsp
Grated orange zest- 1/2 tsp
Grated nutmeg- 1/2 tsp
Salt- 1/2 tsp
Melted butter for brushing on top
Icing sugar for dusting on top

Method:
Sift the flour in a large, add salt, yeast, cinnamon, nutmeg, and sugar mix it well. Make a well in the center, add the melted butter and warm milk and orange zest. Mix it with a electric mixer and make it into a smooth elastic dough. Now add the soaked dry fruits and fold inside the dough. Place the dough in a clean oiled bowl, cover with a cling film and allow it to rise for 2 hours or until doubled in size. Take the dough, punch the air back. At this stage keep the dough wrapped up in refrigerator for overnight.

 Next day take the dough and leave it outside for 2 hours to return to room temperature. Then roll the dough into a rectangle, roll it up like a Swiss roll. Join the two ends together. Using kitchen scissors make cuts along outside of the dough to make it look like wreath. Cover loosely with cling film, leave it in a warm place to rise for about 1 hour or until doubled in size.

  Preheat the oven to 190 degree Celsius. Place the wreath in the preheated oven and bake it for 20 minutes, then turn the wreath to 180 degrees and bake it for another  20 minutes.
  Take it out from the oven immediately brush with butter and dust it with Icing sugar. I also made few marzipan decoration.
Enjoy making your own wreath and have fun :)

This festive wreath goes to BBD 35, Yeastspotting, Bake- Off and Suma's Baking event.