Stollen from Koglin Royal Hams in Grand Central Market

I love those weekends that come together perfectly, with less to do than normal, where I can wake up at my leisure and stroll around my neighborhood, wandering in and out of random stores… a near-perfect day, so I say.

This past Sunday, I actually woke up at 9 am, knowing I had a lot of stuff I wanted to do at a leisurely pace. I am thrilled to report that I managed to check off all 12 items on my To Do list, and still spend time with my boyfriend (and my dog, who, as you can see, wasn’t too thrilled that I was trying to sit on my armchair).

First order of business: try the stollen that Susan, from the PR team for Grand Central Market (which I’ve talked about extensively before), had sent over from Koglin Royal Hams – one of the many lovely shops inside Grand Central Market.

For those too lazy to click over to the link, stollen is a traditional German bread eaten mostly during this holiday season. It’s a dense treat, studded with lots of raisins, occasionally marzipan as well, and glazed with sugar.

Traditionally, it weighs about 4.4 lbs. I can’t say for sure, but this one was pretty darn heavy compared to how small it was. I was really amazed by just how heavy it felt.

Cutting into it, I immediately saw tons of raisins and some marzipan (almond paste) running down the center. I was intrigued; this clearly is not for a person who doesn’t like raisins as it would be impossible to take a bite without a raisin in it. Luckily, I like raisins.

I made myself a cappucino, put a piece of stollen on a plate, and carried it over to my armchair by the window, ready to curl up with my book.

Of course, as soon as I took a bite…

Look who showed up to crash the party. (She knew better than to get too close to my food, but it was hard to get the shot…)

The conclusion? Stollen is excellent nibblies for a chilly Sunday morning, with a hot cup of coffee and a good book. It would also make an excellent end to a meal with friends, a small piece nibbled on with coffee… yum! It’s very dense, though, so I don’t recommend eating large slices in one go – which explains how German families open it in mid-December and eat it through February! I shared some with FeistyMom, who loved it with her coffee, and my sister, who hasn’t had time to try it, but is keen on trying it since hearing my mom rave about it – my mother especially loved the abundance of raisins!

If you’re interested in getting some, head over to Koglin Royal Hams in Grand Central Market in Grand Central Terminal to get your own – prices are 3 Christ Stollen $20, 3 Marzipan Stollen $26, and 3 Mixed Stollen $25. They make great gifts, especially if you have any German-national friends who may feel a little homesick!

By the way, while you’re there, if you’re anything like me, you should definitely head over to Murray’s Salami and pick up some guanciale to make this carbonara… and prosciutto with some ciabatta from Zaro’s for delicious sandwiches… and some fresh produce at the greengrocer’s… and if they have a full dish, Valrhona chocolate pudding from Dishes……. ah drool… I must get myself over there to get some of these very soon. I’ll probably pick up some more stollen to bring to a few of the parties I’m attending as well 🙂

recommended

Edit: I have just received word that each customer who buys 3 stollen will also receive, free of charge, a wood oven baked organic bread from Germany – it comes par-baked & frozen, so you finish it up in your own oven, similar to sourdough, and it comes in your choice of multigrain or with walnuts.

AND!!! there’s more! there’s a Christmas raffle currently going on, raffle tickets are free, there are 4 grand prizes of $200 gift cards. I will be heading over there tonight to pick mine up 🙂

Good luck and HAPPY EATING!!!

Disclaimer: I was not paid by anyone to write this post. However, I did receive the above pictured stollen at no cost to myself, with no strings attached – I was not asked to write this post, either. I am under no obligation to post about this product, and had I hated it, I would either have declined to post about it, or I would have posted with my usual honest opinion about not liking something and why.