Keto Stollen Christmas Cake

Christmas wouldn't be complete without Stollen! Traditional Stollen is a German Christmas cake that's common in many other European countries. It's a popular cake in the Czech Republic where it's often made alongside "Vanocka", a braided Christmas bread that's close to Stollen but less sweet.

There are many ways Germans and Czechs make Stollen. I've always known and loved the one made with yeast but other variations can be prepared with cream cheese, marzipan and most of them include candied fruits. Some types of Stollen are soft and fluffy while others are dense and have to be chilled for 3 to 4 weeks before serving.

I wanted to keep this low-carb recipe fairly simple and ready to serve without compromising on the flavor. Just like my Keto Panettone, this Low-Carb Stollen cake uses yeast for extra flavor as well as fresh lemon zest and sugar-free cranberries soaked in rum.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Recipe Tips

To activate the yeast, you can use an inulin-based sweetener such as yacon syrup or sugar. This ingredient is essential for activating the yeast. Don't panic, no sugar will be left after the fermentation of yeast! Note that although the yacon syrup is included in the nutrition facts, there's likely zero contribution which will drop the carb count of this recipe even more.

Traditional Stollen uses candied fruits and candied citrus peel which are replaced with my homemade Sugar-Free Dried Cranberries soaked in rum for a lower carb option. Apart from lemon zest, you can add more flavor by adding some fine orange zest and/or cinnamon or sugar-free vanilla extract.

This low-carb Stollen is light and fluffy without being overly sweet. I personally skip the sweetener dusting on top although it creates a pretty effect. Powdered Erythritol, Swerve or Allulose are all good options.

If you're not too keen on sweetener dusting, sprinkle with flaked or slivered almonds instead. To do that, add them right after brushing with egg and keep the baking foil or parchment loosely on top the whole time to keep them from burning.

This recipe uses psyllium powder. To make your own psyllium husk powder, place whole psyllium husks in a coffee grinder and process until powdered. If you use ready-made psyllium powder, just make sure it's the right one. (photos for comparison included).

Preparation time

Hands-on:    20 minutes
Overall:     2 hours 45 minutes

Nutritional values (per serving, 1 slice)

Total Carbs	9.3	grams
Fiber	4.4	grams
Net Carbs	4.9	grams

Protein	6.6	grams
Fat	14.5	grams
of which Saturated	4.5	grams

Energy	189	kcal

Magnesium	50	mg (13% RDA)
Potassium	211	mg (11% EMR)

Macronutrient ratio: Calories from carbs (11%), protein (15%), fat (74%)

Ingredients (makes 16 servings)

Cranberries:

¹/₂ cup homemade Sugar-Free Dried Cranberries (115 g/ 4 oz)
¹/₄ cup dark rum (60 ml/ 2 fl oz)

Cake - wet ingredients:

1 cup warm unsweetened almond milk (240 ml/ 8 fl oz)
1 tbsp yacon syrup (15 ml) or honey (won't affect the carb count)
1 cube fresh yeast (50 g/ 1.8 oz) or 1 ¹/₂ tbsp active dry yeast (15 g/ 0.5 oz)
³/₄ stick unsalted butter, melted (85 g/ 3 oz)
4 large egg whites
2 large egg yolks, divided
zest from 1 organic lemon

Cake - dry ingredients:

2 ¹/₂ cups almond flour (250 g/ 8.8 oz)
¹/₃ cup coconut flour (40 g/ 1.4 oz)
¹/₄ cup unflavoured whey protein powder or egg white protein powder (25 g/ 0.9 oz)
4 tbsp psyllium powder (32 g/ 1.1 oz)
¹/₂ cup granulated Allulose, Erythritol or Swerve (100 g/ 3.5 oz)
1 tsp xanthan gum
¹/₂ tsp cream of tartar, lemon juice or apple cider vinegar
¹/₄ tsp baking soda
pinch of sea salt

Instructions

The day before you want to make the cake, make the Sugar-Free Dried Cranberries and then soak them in the rum. Add the rum and gently heat it until just boiling. Spoon into a container and cover and leave to soak overnight until all the cranberry raisins are plump and most of the rum has been absorbed.
Turn the light on in the oven (only the light). The temperature should be about 40 °C/ 100 °F, but no more than 45 °C/ 110 °F. If you don't have this option on your oven, preheat the oven to the lowest setting (mine is 50 °C/ 120 °F).
Pour warm almond into a bowl. Add yacon syrup (or honey) and stir until fully dissolved. (Don't panic, no sugar will be left after the fermentation of yeast!) Crumble fresh yeast into the bowl (or sprinkle in 1 ¹/₂ tbsp/ 15 g of dry active yeast). Open the oven for about 30 seconds to cool down slightly before placing the yeast inside and close the door. The light will be enough to keep the bowl warm. Allow to proof for 10 minutes. When ready, the yeast will be frothy and will grow in volume. Once the yeast has proofed (it will become foamy), remove the bowl from the warm oven. Keep the light in the oven on.
Place all of the remaining dry ingredients in another bowl. Sift in almond flour and coconut flour, add whey (or egg white) protein powder, psyllium powder, Erythritol (or Allulose), xanthan gum, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt. Mix to combine or use a hand mixer to process well. (Instead of cream of tartar, you can use the same amount of lemon juice or apple cider vinegar and add it to the eggs before mixing with the dry ingredients).
Melt the butter. Place all of the egg whites and 1 egg yolk in a bowl. You'll need the remaining egg yolk to brush on top of the bread. Add the egg whites and egg yolk into the bowl with the proofed yeast together with the melted butter.
Use a hand mixer or a stand mixer and process until well combined. Add the dried mixture, about ¹/₂ cup at a time and process well. Gradually add more until you use all of it.
Fold in the fine lemon zest and soaked cranberries (excluding any leftover rum).
Transfer the dough into a tray lined with parchment paper and form into a loaf, about 28 x 15 cm (11 x 6 inch). Place in the oven and let it proof with the oven light on for 60 minutes.
Once the dough has proofed, remove from the oven. Preheat the oven to 160 °C/ 320 °F (fan assisted), or 180 °C/ 355 °F (conventional). The dough will be spread out and flatter. Use one side of the parchment paper and fold it lengthwise. Gently brush the reserved egg yolk mixed with a teaspoon of water on top of the bread without pressing too much (do not deflate the bread).
Bake for 10 minutes and then loosely cover the bread with aluminum foil and bake for 50 to 60 minutes. (The cake will brown faster if you use Allulose so you may need to keep it on the whole time.)
Remove from the oven. Once completely cool.
Optionally, dust with more powdered low-carb sweetener. This step is optional as it makes the cake quite sweet.
Slice and serve with butter on top. Store at room temperature loosely covered with kitchen towel for up to 3 days. To store for longer, freeze in batches of 2 to 4 slices for up to 3 months.