Panettone

Panettone (Italian Christmas Bread)

A tall, domed Italian Christmas bread with a soft, airy crumb studded with raisins and candied citrus, leavened with a natural sourdough starter called lievito madre. This is a multi-day project, but the hands-on work is short and the result is the real article.

Prep

90 min

Cook

55 min

Total

145 min

Serves

8 to 10

Difficulty

Hard

Recipe ingredients

• •150 g (5¼ oz) manitoba or strong bread flour (high-gluten, at least 13% protein), do not substitute all-purpose; gluten development is essential
• •75 g (⅓ cup) lukewarm water (30 °C / 86 °F)
• •30 g (2 Tbsp) active lievito madre (sourdough starter) at peak, see intro; if you must use dry yeast, the crumb will be different but workable
• •165 g (1¼ cups) manitoba or strong bread flour
• •40 g (3 Tbsp) caster sugar
• •60 g (¼ cup) lukewarm water
• •1 large egg yolk, plus 1 whole egg (about 75 g), room temperature
• •30 g (2 Tbsp) caster sugar
• •140 g (¾ cup + 1 Tbsp) manitoba or strong bread flour
• •60 g (¼ cup) lukewarm water
• •3 large egg yolks, plus 1 whole egg (about 100 g), room temperature
• •80 g (⅓ cup + 1 Tbsp) caster sugar
• •10 g (2 tsp) fine sea salt
• •20 g (4 tsp) honey
• •10 g (2 tsp) vanilla extract or 1 vanilla bean, scraped
• •zest of 1 orange orange zest
• •zest of 1 lemon lemon zest
• •170 g (6 oz) unsalted butter, very soft, European-style cultured butter if possible
• •150 g (¾ cup + 2 Tbsp) raisins, sultanas or a mix of golden and dark
• •120 g (scant 1 cup) candied orange peel (and citron, if you like), diced small; 5–8 mm
• •60 ml (¼ cup) rum, Marsala, or orange juice, for soaking the fruit
• •30 g (2 Tbsp) unsalted butter, melted, for brushing the top after baking

Steps

1. 1 DAY 1, EVENING — Build the preferment (biga-style). In a bowl, mix 150 g flour, 75 g water, and 30 g active lievito madre into a soft dough. Cover and leave at 24–26 °C / 75–78 °F for 12–14 hours, until tripled and domed.
2. 2 Meanwhile, combine raisins, candied citrus, and rum (or juice) in a small jar. Cover and leave overnight to plump.
3. 3 DAY 2, MORNING — Make the second refresh. In a stand mixer bowl, mix the risen preferment with 165 g flour, 40 g sugar, 60 g water, and 1 yolk plus 1 whole egg. Knead 10 minutes until smooth. Cover and rise 3 hours at 26 °C / 78 °F.
4. 4 Make the final dough. To the refreshed dough add 140 g flour, 60 g water, 3 yolks plus 1 whole egg, 80 g sugar, salt, honey, vanilla, and citrus zests. Knead 15 minutes in a stand mixer with the dough hook, until the dough releases the bowl and is silky and elastic.
5. 5 Add the soft butter in small pieces, waiting for each to be fully absorbed before adding the next (about 10 minutes total). The dough should look glossy, pull away cleanly, and pass the windowpane test: a small piece stretched thin should not tear before you can see light through it.
6. 6 Drain the soaked fruit, pat dry, and fold it into the dough by hand. Cover and let rise 2–3 hours at 26 °C / 78 °F, folding gently every 45 minutes.
7. 7 Prepare the panettone mold: use a paper panettone mold roughly 15 cm / 6 in wide and 12 cm / 4¾ in tall, set inside a tall straight-sided cake pan or a springform ring to keep it upright. Do not grease the paper.
8. 8 Shape the dough into a tight ball and place it in the mold, smooth side up. Cover loosely and proof at 26–28 °C / 78–82 °F for 5–7 hours, until the dough has crowned 1–2 cm / ½–¾ in above the rim of the mold. Do not rush: under-proofed dough bakes into a dense loaf; over-proofed collapses.
9. 9 Heat the oven to 190 °C / 375 °F (conventional, not fan) with a rack in the lower third and an empty sheet pan on the floor of the oven to create a hot base.
10. 10 Using a sharp knife or razor, score a cross on the dome about 5 mm / ¼ in deep. Slide the panettone into the oven and immediately reduce the temperature to 175 °C / 350 °F.
11. 11 Bake 50–60 minutes. Internal temperature at the center should read 92–94 °C / 198–202 °F on an instant-read thermometer; the top will be deep golden brown. If the surface browns too fast, tent loosely with foil after 30 minutes.
12. 12 Remove from the oven and immediately brush the top with the 30 g melted butter. Then thread two long metal skewers through the base of the panettone, turn it upside down, and rest it on two tall jars or the edges of a deep pot so air circulates fully. Cool completely upside down for at least 4 hours, ideally overnight. This step prevents the tall dome from collapsing under its own weight.
13. 13 Once cool, rest the panettone upright in its paper mold, wrap loosely in a clean cotton bag or foil, and let it age 24–48 hours before slicing. The flavor deepens noticeably. Keeps 5–6 days wrapped at room temperature; freezes well for up to 2 months.