Christmas Stollen

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of butter
• 3 eggs
• 1 pkg. rapid yeast
• 2 teaspoon salt
• ½ cup of sugar
• 4 ½ cups of flour
• 1 large orange rind
• 1 ¼ cups lukewarm milk

• Frosting:
• 6 tablespoon butter
• ¼ cup light cream
• 1 lb package confectioners sugar
• 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla
• 
  Nut filling:
• 10 oz jar of maraschino cherries
• 1 cup of butter
• 1-10 oz pkg. of pecan
• ¾ cup of sugar

Preparation:

In a mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, salt, and dissolved yeast. In a saucepan, heat butter, orange rind, and milk. Make sure the mixture is warm, not hot; heat kills yeast! Add to dry mixture. Mix on slow and add eggs (one at a time). When mixed, form it into a bowl and throw it onto a floured board. Knead for 5-7 minutes. Let rest for 10 minutes. Roll out onto large oblong. Melt 4 T butter, pour on the dough, and spread with nut filling. Fold in half and form into a rectangle with your hand's pinch edges. Let rise for 3 hours. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes until brown all over. Frost and decorate with cherries and nuts.

For frosting: 
Mix cream, butter, and sugar and beat in cream and vanilla. Gradually add the remaining sugar and add more cream until it comes like frosting.

For nut filling:
Grind cherries (without liquid). Add pecans and mix with melted butter and sugar. Add more orange rind if you like.