Mini Panettone 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.

It seems that your Italian 00 or Canadian flour suits this best. For Panettone, it will undergo a lengthy, 2 day fermentation process with a sourdough starter.

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.

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.

While no sourdough baking processes can be considered “simple”, panettone is definitely takes complications to the extreme, with an unusual levain maintenance method (“pasta madre”, or mother dough), two dough builds (the “primo” and “secondo impastos”), and the necessity for exacting temperature and pH control ...

It's important to smell it before you eat it, to get the full flavour profile. Toasted with butter: Some like to take those slices of panettone and toast them lightly, then spread a bit of butter on top.

You SHOULD NOT serve Panettone hot, just slightly warm it up to activate its orangy flavor. The right temperature to serve it is about 25°C-77°F. Slice Panettone using a serrated knife for bread. Serve it with my Panettone Frosting and Italian Prosecco wine in a flute glass!

The Bite/N mixers are perfect for particularly hydrated types of dough that are used to make baguettes, sliced bread, and breadsticks, for example, but also pastries such as croissants, panettone, and brioches.

Artisanal panettone will have higher amounts of yolks and butter without emulsifiers or preservatives. They will contain real vanilla beans and not the cheaper vanillin. The fruit will be high quality candied citrus (not only orange, but often also pricier citron) and not industrial candied citrus with sulfur dioxide.

Why is my panettone dough sticky? ›

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.

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.

Interesting facts and legends about panettone

The etymology of panettone has its roots in the Milanese dialect and in that “pan de ton” used to indicate a luxury cake, a bread enriched with precious ingredients such as honey and sultanas.

The presence of eggs and butter helps to keep the bread soft and prevents it from drying out quickly, allowing it to last longer [2]. Dried fruit and candied peel: Traditional panettone is often filled with dried fruit and candied orange or lemon peel.

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.