German Fruitcake, also known as Weihnachts Stollen

It's a long story how I came to make this... basically I wanted fruitcake but don't have the space for the curing in my fridge, having it out in the kitchen's a bad idea with the fruitflies we can't get rid of... and everyone has been asking if I am making this.

I searched everywhere for a GF recipe that didn't require curing, and the closest I got was Stollen.

So, I modified like 3 or 4 recipes and threw in my own ideas and got this:

3 cups of rice flour (the original called for like 2cups of Brown rice flour and 1cup of regular rice flour)
about a cup of candied fruits (I had to really play with this, so I think mine was more like 1 1/4th)
3/4 cup raisins (it called for currants but I didn't want to open another package)
1/2 cup of nuts (I used almonds... I wasn't in the mood for hazelnut and don't feel like cracking pecans)
2/3 cup almond flour (I'm sure it'd be just as good with hazelnut)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar
3 1/2 tsp guar gum
1 pkg yeast
2 eggs
1 3/4 cup milk (original called for water and dry milk powder.. )
1/4th cup butter (I think I put about 1/2 cup in there to be honest -- the other recipes called for veggie shortening but traditional recipes use butter - so I used butter)
2 tsp rum flavoring
1 tsp cloves
2 tsp cinnamon sugar
1 tsp (or so) of vanilla
powdered sugar to dust on top at the end (as much or as little as you like)


Grease and flour two loaf pans (mine are long, almost the length of baguettes). Preheat the oven to 350°F. These will cook in about 30 minutes and be done. If you do it as most traditional recipes say to... 40-45 minutes.. I think it will be way too dry and crusty.

I mixed everything in together since my breadmaker is too small and I couldn't think to half the recipe (too tired)... I just threw it in a big bowl and used the hand mixer to put it together. I put the wet ingredients and fruit in first, then the rice flour, and at the end I quit mixing with the handmixer and used a spatula to turn in the almond flour. I halved the mix when I was done in the pans, and let it rise about 20 minutes. (probably would do better if the milk were warmer and you let the yeast mix in it.. but I am unsure on that) Then I just cranked up the oven some more and let it cook the rest of the way.


When this came out, it has a light tint to it about like poundcake. The inside will be a yellow cake mix look - and this is a light bread... so when you turn it out, be really careful or it will break in half easily.
As soon as you get it on the papertowels or toweled rack, go ahead and dust it as liberally as you would like with powdered sugar and let it cool about an hour before eating. (uhm yeah.. I ate it within 15 minutes.. I couldn't hold off, it really smelled that good. DH said this was better than he remembered as Pre-GF )

My husband is a fruitcake nut and I've always made him one around this time of year. I like to put dates and figs in mine and lots of pineapple and cherries ( the dried kind not the sugary kind) and then instead of baking a loaf, I would bake muffin size and mini muffin size, just right for him to grab a nibble. Others that hate fruit cake actually liked these. I like to make them right around Thanksgiving to let them set up with a rum wrapped cloth, but usually forget to.

I am wondering how these would be? I used to just use a date nut cake mix and add the other fruits.

Well, I'm actually unsure how that would turn out, but anything is worth trying just to see if it works, to be very honest!

Some things I tried on a whim became keeper recipes, and others I was able to give a little further improvement or just had to send along down the tubes.

There are a few recipes I'm wanting to try and convert to be Gluten Free, but I have to strengthen my cooking utensils first by getting cake pans and the like.
You can't try converting cake recipes when you just have a few bundt pans.. LOL