Stollen (German Christmas Cake)

Ingredients

Weight/ Volume	Ingredients	Volumetric Measure
500 g	Laucke Sweet Bread & Bun Mix	1 packet
4 g	Yeast sachet (supplied in box)	1 sachet
38 g	Raisins	¼ cup
38 g	Currants	¼ cup
55 g	Candied Pineapple Pieces	1/4 cup
25 g	Chopped Glace Cherries	¼ cup
57 g	Slivered Almonds	½ cup
5 g	Lemon Rind (grated)	1 tsp
40 ml	Rum or Brandy	2 tbsp
125 ml	Milk	½ cup
62.5 ml	Water	¼ cup
57 g	Butter (cut into pieces)	4 tbsp
110 g	Eggs (2 x 55g at room temperature)	2 each
2.5 ml	Almond Extract	½ tsp
250 g	Marzipan	1 cup
	Softened butter and Icing Sugar

Preheat oven to 180°C.
Combine raisins, currants, pineapple, cherries and rum (or brandy) in a medium sized bowl, and let stand for 1 hour.
Combine Laucke Sweet Bread & Bun Mix and yeast, into a large bowl. Heat milk, water, butter and lemon rind until warm. Add to flour mix along with eggs and almond extract to form a dough.
Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 5 to 8 minutes adding pineapple, currants, raisins and almonds towards the end.
Shape into a ball, and place in a greased bowl, turning to grease top. Cover and let rise in warm place (30°C) until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
Punch dough down, cover and let rest 10 minutes. Turn out onto lightly floured surface and divide in half. Pat or roll each half into an oval shape and spread lightly with softened butter. Divide Marzipan in half, and roll out to length of each dough piece, and place in centre of dough.
Fold dough in half lengthwise, bringing upper half not quite to edge of lower half, and press firmly along edge to secure. Place loaves on lightly greased 15x10 inch baking sheet.
Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.
Uncover. Bake in a preheated 180°C oven until loaves are golden, and sound hollow when lightly tapped, 25 to 30 minutes.
Transfer to wire racks and cool completely.
Sprinkle with icing sugar.