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    Home » Recipes » Category » Holiday

    Cranberry Orange Quark Stollen

    Published October 31, 2018 | Updated October 12, 2022 By Roxana Begum | 12 Comments This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Jump To Recipe
    Cranberry orange quark stollen, sliced and served on a serving platter.

    Cranberry Orange Quark Stollen, a much easier and quicker stollen recipe is so scrumptious and moist. It is packed with dried fruits, nuts and infused with a variety of flavors.

    Slices of Cranberry Orange Quark Stollen with dried orange and cranberries

    What is Stollen?

    Stollen is a traditional German cake-like bread, typically made with flour, yeast, sugar, butter, flavors, spices, dried fruits and nuts. It is a sweet rich bread that has earned world wide popularity.

    But outside of Germany few people make stollen at home. And making the yeast based stollen recipe may seem cumbersome in cultures that don't have too many yeast based cake recipes like they have in German cuisine.

    Quark Stollen

    But quark stollen is a much easier and quicker recipe that is not yeast based and does not require the long proofing and waiting time. So with this recipe you can make your own homemade stollen!

    Quark is a soured milk cheese popular in German cuisine and is not easily available everywhere. However, it can be substituted with a combination of ricotta cheese and sour cream.

    Close up shot of Cranberry Orange Quark Stollen

    Cranberry Orange Quark Stollen

    In the recipe here I have used homemade sweetened cranberries and dried oranges, which is not traditionally German, but reflects a popular flavor combination in the US.

    How To Make It: Step By Step

    Make dried sweetened cranberries in the oven (can use ready made). Soak raisins in orange juice.

    Making sweetened cranberries and soaking raisins in orange juice for quark stollen.

    Add all dried fruit and soak in orange juice. Sift flour with baking powder.

    Soaking dried fruit in orange juice and making the dough for cranberry stollen.

    Add remaining dough ingredients into the mixing bowl and knead the dough.

    Kneading the dough in the stand mixer for cranberry quark stollen.

    Add the soaked (but drained) dried fruit to the dough and knead lightly. Roll it out into a rectangle.

    Adding soaked dried fruit to the dough and then rolling it out to make stollen.

    Scatter dried cranberries over the dough and roll it tight. Then form the stollen shape and bake.

    Adding sweetened cranberries to the stollen dough and then shaping the quark stollen.

    Brush the stollen, hot out of the oven, with melted butter and dust with powdered sugar.

    Brushing melted butter and dusting with powdered sugar to make the stollen coating.

    Tips And Tricks

    • The store bought dried cranberries are too sweet and have a lot of refined sugar in them. I make my own and doing that lowers the added and refined sugar significantly.
    • I simply mix some cranberries with honey or maple syrup and bake them for about half hour. Some juices are released around the berries.
    • But I typically leave the baked berries on the baking sheet for a day and then slowly loosen them using a fork. If you use dried cranberries make sure to soak them to soften them.
    • If needed, you may substitute the dried orange segments with store bought candied orange or orange peel.
    • Traditionally the dried fruits are soaked in rum overnight. Since I do not use rum, I have used orange juice instead. Using a combination of orange juice and non-alcoholic rum extract is one possibility.
    • Using metric measures is more accurate for baking. If using cup measures, make sure to unpack the flour and almond meal and spoon it into the measuring cup.
    • Preferably use grass fed butter.
    • The coating on top of the quark stollen keeps this fruit bread moist. Make it ahead and wrap it for at least 2 weeks and up to 4 weeks before serving. The stollen needs to ripen for at least 3 weeks to develop its optimal flavor and texture.
    Cranberry Orange Quark Stollen with slices in a serving platter.

    Nutrition Facts

    Stollen tastes very rich but actually requires less added sugar than most other decadent cake recipes. Much of the sweetness comes from the dried fruits that this delectable sweet bread is packed with.

    • RECIPE MODIFICATIONS
      • In the recipe here, I prepared sweetened cranberries using fresh berries and honey, which cuts down the added sugar significantly. Plus the berries stay more moist and look marvelous.
      • I have also used dried orange segments, as I like to put my food dehydrator to multiple uses! If you like to dry your own fruit this is a good option.
      • And I tried the recipe by replacing half the butter with light olive oil when making the dough itself. It did not make a significant change in the overall flavor profile.
    • STOLLEN COATING
      • But the final buttery and sugary coating on the top of the quark stollen is critical to its characteristic taste. So there I do use brown butter with some powdered sugar. You may use plain butter if you wish, but I think that brown butter is more flavorful.
      • When you eat a piece of stollen, the first thing to hit your palate is that buttery sugary coating that tricks you into a feeling of eating something that is a lot more sugary and buttery than what the item is as a whole. Because the coating encompasses a dough that uses much less sugar than other rich cakes.
    • HEALTHY CRANBERRIES
      • Cranberries are high in nutrients and antioxidants including  fiber, vitamin C, vitamin K, vitamin E and manganese. They are known for health benefits such as improved immune function, cancer prevention, decreased blood pressure and low risk of urinary tract infections.
    Cranberry Orange Quark Stollen with slices in a serving platter.

    More German Desserts:

    • Apricot Almond Marzipan Stollen
    • Vanilla Crescent Cookies 
    • Fresh Cream Pineapple Cupcakes
    • Light and Delicious German Apple Cake

    ★ DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE? PLEASE COMMENT AND GIVE IT A STAR RATING BELOW!

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    Cranberry orange quark stollen served on a platter.
    5 from 2 votes

    Cranberry Orange Quark Stollen

    Cranberry Orange Quark Stollen, a much easier and quicker stollen recipe is so scrumptious and moist. It is packed with dried fruits, nuts and infused with a variety of flavors.
    Prep Time30 mins
    Cook Time50 mins
    Total Time1 hr 20 mins
    Print
    Save for Later Saved!
    Course :Dessert
    Cuisine :German
    Servings: 16 Slices
    Calories: 236kcal
    Author: Roxana Begum

    Ingredients

    Stollen

    • 1½ cups cranberries fresh, (or ¾ cup dried cranberries)
    • 1 tablespoon honey (for fresh cranberries)
    • ⅓ cup raisins
    • ¼ cup orange juice
    • ⅓ cup dates chopped
    • ¼ cup dried orange segments (or 2 tablespoon candied orange peel)
    • 2 tablespoons candied orange peel
    • 2 cups all purpose flour
    • 2 teaspoons baking powder
    • 1 cup almond flour
    • ⅓ cup sugar
    • 1 pinch salt
    • 2 teaspoons vanilla
    • ⅛ teaspoon almond extract
    • 2 pinches spice blend (mix of ground cloves, cardamom, ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon) see note
    • 1 tablespoon orange zest grated
    • ½ cup Quark cheese (or mix two parts ricotta and 1 part sour cream)
    • ¼ cup olive oil light (or butter)
    • 2 tablespoons butter brown (see note)
    • 1 egg large
    • ⅓ cup pistachios slivered

    Stollen coating

    • 2 tablespoons butter brown (see note)
    • 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
    US Customary - Metric
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    Instructions

    CRANBERRIES

    • Rinse the fresh cranberries and blot them dry with a paper towel. Add the honey and stir well to coat the cranberries.
    • Spread the berries out on a parchment paper lined baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees F for half hour. Ideally let the baked cranberries rest a day and loosen them out using a fork.
      Tip: Can use ready made dried cranberries.

    PREPARE THE DRY FRUITS

    • Soak the raisins in orange juice, preferably overnight or at least several hours.
    • Next, stir in the chopped dates, dried orange, candied peel with the soaked raisins and set aside.
      Tip: Can use ready made candied orange or orange peel instead of dried orange.

    STOLLEN DOUGH

    • Sift the flour with the baking powder into the mixing bowl of a stand mixer.
    • Then add almond meal, sugar, salt, vanilla, almond flavor, spices, orange zest, quark, olive oil, butter, and egg.
    • Using the kneading attachment process the ingredients at a low setting until just combined.
    • Then advance to the higher setting and knead for 5 minutes.
      Tip: Alternatively you may knead the dough by hand for about 5 minutes.
    • Next add the pistachios and the soaked dried fruits and knead it into the dough until just incorporated. 
      Tip: Don't overdo the kneading at this step.

    SHAPE THE STOLLEN AND BAKE

    • Using a rolling pin or your hand, shape the dough into a 8 x 10 inch rectangle. If needed, use little bit of extra flour to aid with dusting the surface while shaping the stollen.
    • Scatter the cranberries evenly over the rolled out stollen dough.
    • Then carefully roll it up into a tight log that is about 10 inches long.
    • Using both hands make a lengthwise depression on either side of the log to create a middle section that is slightly elevated, with the sides tapering off.
    • Transfer the shaped quark stollen dough carefully to a baking sheet that is lined with parchment paper.
    • Bake in an oven that has been first preheated to 400 degrees F. After placing the dough in the oven lower the temperature to 325 degrees F and bake for about 45 to 55 minutes until the stollen is golden brown.

    FINAL STOLLEN COATING

    • As soon as the stollen is taken out of the oven, brush it with melted brown butter and dust with powdered sugar. Repeat the process two to three more times.
    • When it is completely cooled off, wrap the quark stollen twice with baking paper or cling wrap and then in foil and store for at least 2 weeks or more before slicing and serving.

    Notes

    1. Spice Blend: Combine 2 pinches ground cloves, 2 pinches ground cardamom, 1 pinch ground nutmeg, 1 pinch ground ginger, 1 pinch ground cinnamon and use 2 pinches of that spice blend. You can make larger quantities and use as needed.
    2. Readymade ghee is available at Indian grocery stores or online. However it can be easily prepared at home. To make ghee, melt unsalted butter and simmer at a low setting. The milk solids settled at the bottom of the pan must be toasted to a light brown. Strain the liquid ghee from the top. 
    3. For more tips, check out the blog post above.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 0g | Calories: 236kcal | Carbohydrates: 29g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 17mg | Sodium: 38mg | Potassium: 163mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 12g | Vitamin A: 135IU | Vitamin C: 5.4mg | Calcium: 50mg | Iron: 1.4mg
    Tried this recipe?Mention @thedeliciouscrescent or tag #thedeliciouscrescent!
    This post was first published on 21st december, 2017 and has been updated.
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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. prasanna hede

      February 01, 2018 at 6:03 pm

      Loved all the fruits that go in there and the lovely flavors...specially orange juice will give nice flavor!yumm

      Reply
      • Roxana Begum

        February 01, 2018 at 6:16 pm

        Yes, Prasanna the orange flavors work so well with rest of the ingredients.

        Reply
    2. Allison - Celebrating Sweets

      February 01, 2018 at 5:33 pm

      This looks fantastic! I love the step by step photos. Can't wait to try this!

      Reply
      • Roxana Begum

        February 01, 2018 at 6:15 pm

        Thanks Allison. Enjoy!

        Reply
        • Joy

          October 03, 2022 at 11:44 am

          You mention "spice blend" of ground cloves, cardamom, ginger, nutmeg, and cinnamon ... but it's unclear. Is this a bottled spice blend? Otherwise, can you suggest measurements of each spice please?

          Reply
          • Roxana Begum

            October 12, 2022 at 2:04 pm

            Combine 2 pinches ground cloves, 2 pinches ground cardamom, 1 pinch ground nutmeg, 1 pinch ground ginger, 1 pinch ground cinnamon and use 2 pinches of that spice blend. You can make larger quantities and use as needed.

            Reply
    3. Dannii

      February 01, 2018 at 5:32 pm

      I keep meaning to try quark in my baking, as it looks like a good way to save some calories. The flavours in this sound lovely.

      Reply
      • Roxana Begum

        February 01, 2018 at 6:15 pm

        Thanks Dannii. You make a good observation about the nutrition aspects of quark. It definitely is a great option for baking. Gives some moist cakes and it is lower in cals, carbs than other alternatives used in baking.

        Reply
    4. Calleigh K

      February 01, 2018 at 5:03 pm

      I tried to tackle 2 different kinds of stollen before, the traditional quark and butter stollen with lots of dried fruits & fruit peels. Though I tweaked them a bit adding the combination of spices. Thanks for sharing your recipe.
      From: Calleigh

      Reply
      • Roxana Begum

        February 01, 2018 at 6:14 pm

        Thanks Calleigh for sharing your experience making the recipes.

        Reply
    5. Elaine

      February 01, 2018 at 4:27 pm

      How wonderful!! My grandmother who was German, made a lot of German dishes! I remember her stollen! I wonder if she made quark stollen, but I was young and didn't pay much attention! I will be trying your beautiful and delicious recipe real soon!

      Reply
      • Roxana Begum

        February 01, 2018 at 6:13 pm

        Thanks Elaine. Wow, that's an interesting story. Thanks for sharing. You must definitely try quark in your baking. Hope you enjoy trying out recipes of your heritage :)

        Reply

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