It’s that time of year to start the eating frenzy! And this year we will have the Christmas Special, which I never actually did at the newsstands here. And to start: Panettone!
I’ve made other versions of Panettone (Traditional Panettone and Special Brigadeiro Panettone), but they weren’t on video. And as I asked in Instagram e Facebook if they would like it and the response was beyond positive! Here it is!
The idea of this version is based on the others, but we always try to improve whenever possible. If the others were already good, this one was even better! I really liked the result.
I opted for the more traditional filling with dried fruits. In this case, raisins and apricots. During droughts, I think it’s too strong to be honest.
For those who have never done panettone: do not be afraid. Yes, it’s a long recipe. But it’s easier than it seems. It just requires time because of the fermentations, so it takes a little longer than we are used to.
I think it’s worth the effort, it’s no wonder that I make the recipe every year whenever possible. And for those who don’t like fruit, no problem: Chocolate Panettone.
What gives panettone its traditional flavor?
For me, it’s the mixture of the zest of orange, lemon, tangerine and vanilla! There are variations on how to do this, you can use, in addition to fresh zest, the sweet made from the candied skins of the fruit.
After having made several recipes and studied many others: the ingredients used to give the panettone flavor always revolve around these fruits. Of course, if you want to use the ready-made essence, you can too. But they are different.
Traditional Special Candied Fruit Panettone
Makes: 3 500g units
SPONGE
- 120 g skimmed milk (warm)
- 5 g instant dry yeast
- 150 g wheat flour
- 2 g crystal Sugar
MASSA
- 100 g ovo (about 2 units, by weight is ideal)
- 15 g egg yolk (about 1 unit, by weight is ideal)
- 100 g skimmed milk (warm)
- 20 g liquid glucose (transparent)
- 5 g instant dry yeast
- 415 g wheat flour (+ for kneading if necessary)
- 125 g crystal Sugar
- 100 g butter without salt (ointment point; + 20g for greasing + 30g for baking)
- 10 g refined salt
- 10 g orange zest (pear or lime type; about 2 oranges)
- 5 g lemon zest (about 1 lemon)
- 5 g tangerine zest (about 1 tangerine or tangerine)
- 20 mL vanilla extract
- 1 egg yolk (brushstroke)
- 10 mL water (brushstroke)
FILLING
- 150 g dark raisin
- 150 g white raisin
- 150 g dried damask (chopped)
- 75 g candied orange peel
- 2 oranges (juice, to hydrate)
- 1 tangerine (tangerine juice, to hydrate)
1 cup: 250mL | 1 tablespoon: 15mL.
Mode: SPONGE
- Dissolve the yeast in warm milk (even warm, if it’s hot it will kill the yeast), mix well.
- In a bowl mix the wheat flour with sugar, mix.
- Add the milk with dissolved yeast and mix well. Until a uniform dough forms.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set aside for 60 minutes in a warm place (~30ºC).
Mode: FILLING
- In a bowl mix the dried fruits and candied orange peel, add the orange and tangerine juice. I recommend removing the zest from the skin before juicing. Reserve the zest for the dough.
- Hydrate for 60 minutes, after draining the liquid. Only the fruits will be used.
- Chop the candied orange peel.
Mode: MASS
- Beat the eggs with the yolk. Mix the flour with sugar. Dissolve the liquid glucose and yeast in warm milk, do this moments before using.
- Continue the process with the already fermented sponge.
- Add the milk with yeast dissolved in the sponge, mix well until the entire sponge almost dissolves. Then add beaten eggs, mix well.
- Add the wheat flour and mix well. At the end, knead/beat the dough for 7-10 minutes.
- Add the butter little by little and continue beating the dough until all the butter is incorporated.
- Add the salt and mix well.
- Add the citrus zest and vanilla. Beat for 5 minutes. You may need more flour depending on the eggs.
- Add the drained dried fruit and chopped candied orange peel.
- Mix the dough with the fruits very well, this step is best done manually.
- Cover the bowl with plastic and set aside for 60 minutes.
Mode: SPLIT
- Grease the panettone molds and work surface with melted butter. Buy molds for the 500g size.
- Remove the dough from the bowl, divide the dough by weight: approximately 550g/each. The panettone will be 500g, but when baked it loses weight.
- Roll or fold the dough to form a sphere. Place in the molds and set aside for ~60 minutes.
Mode: BAKE
- Oven heated to 180ºC
- With a new blade/razor cut the dough forming an “X”.
- Brush the entire surface of the dough with the egg yolk and water mixture.
- Place the butter (~10g) in the center of the “X”.
- Bake for 50-60 minutes at 180ºC, it should be golden brown.
- Remove from the oven. Let cool before cutting and packaging.
- Conservation: because there are no actual preservatives in it, panettone will not last like industrialized ones. Store in a plastic bag to prevent it from drying out and in the refrigerator.
