Kerststol is a traditional Dutch oval-shaped fruited Christmas bread loaf.
The pastry is made of yeast-bread dough with dried fruits, raisins and currants, lemon and orange zest, water, milk, butter, sugar, vanilla,
brandy and cinamon. A more luxurious variety may include sometimes chopped walnuts, almonds, or hazelnuts. Ginger powder or grated
crystallized ginger, dried cherries and cranberries, apple, kiwi or cardamom may also be added to this pastry dough. The cake dough, after
resting, is filled with an almond paste (amandelspijs) log which is placed in the middle of the cake. The dough is folded over the almond paste
lengthways and gently pinched to seal it. When ready, the cake is dusted with icing sugar before it is served in thick slices, spread with butter.
In my family it was tradition to eat this after Christmas Eve Church Service.
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