Panettone Bread Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the secret of panettone? ›

Panettone is famous for its tangy flavor and yellow, soft and gooey dough that is unlike no other. The secret behind it is an Italian yeast called lievito madre, or mother yeast. But it's not an easy yeast to work with: you need time and patience to master it.

The proofing process alone takes several days, giving the cake its distinctive fluffy characteristics. It contains candied orange, citron, and lemon zest, as well as raisins, which are added dry and not soaked. Many other variations are available such as plain or with chocolate.

Bread flour, high in gluten, is ideal for panettone. Its high protein content gives the bread its signature fluffy and airy texture.

Making an artisan panettone takes days of careful work. Here's why it's worth it. It's been called the Mount Everest of holiday baking, considered by bakers to be the most difficult baked good to perfect. Most bakers don't even try, unless they're driven by personal obsession or family destiny.

It has a texture akin to sandwich bread, in that when you compress it between your fingers it can be molded into Play-Doh-esque forms. It's porous and slightly sour, a flavor it derives from the intense fermenting process it undergoes before it hits the oven. It is labor-intensive and prohibitively difficult to bake.

Panettone tends to be a little more expensive than most other baked goods, mainly due to the amount of time that goes into making each one. A traditional panettone is usually a lengthy procedure, however, a cheap mass-produced alternative will take shortcuts in the baking process which will be reflected in its taste.

With a drink: In Italy, it's not uncommon to enjoy a slice of panettone alongside a cup of coffee or tea, or a sweet wine like Vin Santo. The idea is to tear a piece of the panettone and dip it into the drink, allowing the bread to soak up some of the liquid.

The dimensions should be around 13,5 cm / 5.3 inch diameter and a height of 9.5 cm / 3.7 inch. Panetonne needs to cool upside down after baking, because the delicate and fluffy bread would collapse if you leave it standing up after baking.

Fat also keeps bread from staling too quickly—the fattier the bread, the slower its decay. Breads like focaccia, brioche, or panettone, made with large amounts of oil and butter, tend to have a longer shelf life.

Do you put butter on panettone? ›

Slice panettone into thick or thin wedges; it's entirely up to you. If you baked it in a paper mold, just slice right through it. Panettone is more bread than cake—it's only slightly sweet. Feel free to eat it plain, or slather with butter.

Traditional panettone classico Milanese is enriched with plump raisins and canditi — orange, lemon peel and Sicilian citron that are candied — the purist preference.

Your dough can become sticky when you add too much water or the flour isn't suitable for the type of dough you are making. Over proofing or fermenting the dough can also result in the gluten structure weakening causing sticky dough.

Nowadays, panettone is sold in many varieties, with chocolate, apricot, candied lemon, citron or pistachios substituting for the raisins and candied orange peel. There are varieties of panettone that are sold covered with chocolate, marzipan and more.

A good panettone must come out of the cup and form a completely rounded dome – if it is flat it means that there was a cooking or leavening problem. 5- Alveolation: that is the cavities produced by the natural leavening of the panettone, which can be observed once cut.

High sugar content: Panettone bread contains a high amount of sugar, which acts as a natural preservative. Sugar helps to inhibit the growth of bacteria and mold, extending the shelf life of the bread [1].

1 – Scent: an intense and harmonious scent tells a lot about the choice of ingredients. In detail, the elements that participate in giving more than others a beautiful fragrance to the panettone are butter, vanilla beans and candied orange.

It's common to serve it with a sweet wine and an accompaniment of something rich and creamy, perhaps based on mascarpone (with egg yolks, as used in tiramisu), plus dried or candied fruits. Ice cream, jelly, custard, hot or cold sauces and some fruits make panettone a delicious pudding.