Here's one of the Grand Duchess of Stollen

OK guys, here's the photo you've been asking for. It's one of Sonja a day or so ago. She was putting the finishing touches on -- you guessed it -- a delicious Stollen!!! Here, she's concentrating on powdering the still-warm stollen with vanilla sugar and powdered sugar.

So what is a "Stollen" anyway? One of the most famous versions of this German Christmas treat is a Dresdener Stollen. The stollen is in the shape of the mine shafts that were in Saxony, Germany very early in the 19th century. In German, "Stollen" can mean cake, tunnel, or as a specific military term, an underground shelter. As far as we here at the Grand Duchy of Stollen are concerned, Stollen is a spiced bread, akin to fruitcake (but better), that's baked and enjoyed at Christmas time. It's especially good with fresh coffee. In fact, I'm enjoying the two together right at this moment!

Comments

Anonymous said…

DRAT! At first I thought she was working on terrain! ;-)

6:05 PM

Bluebear Jeff said…

So . . . (inquiring minds want to know) . . . what's in a "stollen"?

Does Sonja share recipes?

-- Jeff

7:58 PM

Anonymous said…

That's a mighty fine looking Stollen there.

Seasons greetings to the Grand Duchess.

2:52 AM

Bluebear Jeff said…

Am I mistaken? Or did you change the picture with this article?

It seems to me that there was an earlier photo from a bit of a different angle.

-- Jeff

2:16 AM

WSTKS-FM Worldwide said…

Yes, Sonja didn't particularly like the previous photo and "suggested" that I use another. Aren't wives strange creatures?

Best Regards,

Stokes

11:06 AM

Bluebear Jeff said…

Yes, they are strange creatures . . . but they do so much for us that we put up with their "suggestions".

-- Jeff

12:34 PM

The Eventual Anhalt-Zerbst Regiment. . .

The Anhalt-Zerbst regiment musters in the drill square to sort themselves into platoons and companies during the coming weeks Fall maneuvers if you will. A large dose of real life the last few days with the start of classes next Monday, various preparatory meetings, and finishing up a few other things this week. But, I managed to sort out 60 or so Minden Austrian infantry from the pile and get 'em stuck to temporary painting bases. Must carefully drill out the hands of several NCOs for flagpoles and pole arms this weekend before the usual basecoat. I'm thinking of mixing the usual white gesso with the usual light gray to kill two birds with one stone so to speak. Applying both base- and undercoat in one fell swoop as my grandmother used to say. In the meantime, the recently finished squadron of Saxon cuirassiers has been placed carefully in one of the clear acrylic boxes on my shelves until I have the suitable flag to affix. -- Sto...

And We're Off!!!

Arrrgh! Gotta go back into camera settings on my iPhone to bring all of the frame into focus. Blast! Painting is underway on the 60 or so Minden Austrians, which are slated to become my version of the Anhalt-Zerbst Regiment of AWI renown. More or less indistinguishable from Austrians of the era really, right down to the red facings and turnbacks, but the eventual flags (already in my files) will set them apart. I went ahead and based-coated all of them over a couple of days lthe last week of August, using a mix of light gray and white acrylic gesso, before next applying my usual basic alkyd oil flesh tone to the faces and hands. In a day or two, I'll hit that with Army Painter Flesh Wash to tone things down a bit and bring some definition to the faces and hands. As usual, the plan is to focus on about 20 figures at a time, splitting the regiment roughly into thirds along with the color party and regimental staff. Depending on ...

Presenting the Anspach-Bayreuth Kuirassiere!!!

Here they are, with the rearmost nine figures still drying, three squadrons of the Anspach-Bayreuth Kuirassiere, now in the service of the Grand Duchy of Stollen. And now, it's onto that artillery!

The Grand Duchy of Stollen

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