Easy Panettone Recipe - Taste of Artisan (2024)

by Victor @ Taste of Artisan 3 Comments

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Back in the day, every time I would consider making panettone I would be very quickly put off by a number of challenges associated with making this sweet bread. The first one is the special molds which I never keep on hand. Getting them takes time and my enthusiasm would disappear because of that. They are also quite expensive at most places. The second turn off for me is the use of candied fruits peels. Likewise, I don't keep them on hand and, frankly, I don't like them. Finally, a few panettones that I tried were quite rich and eggy, while I prefer lighter breads.

Easy Panettone Recipe - Taste of Artisan (1)

If you are experiencing the same challenges, let me offer you this simplified panettone recipe. It's less rich, it doesn't include candied orange peels, and you can make it without panettone molds. This recipe makes two loaves of outstanding panettone that everyone whom I served it to loved it. The crumb is moist, subtly sweet, airy, soft, slightly chewy and delicate. It's very enjoyable. Even addictive.

The best part - this panettone can be made in about three hours, which is quite a bit faster than any panettone recipes I've come across.

Easy Panettone Recipe - Taste of Artisan (2)

Panettone molds

Panettone dough is soft, silky-smooth and tacky, so you need to use some sort of a liner. Greasing works, to a point, but you may still experience sticking.

Panettone mold substitutes are abundant. You can use used unlined tin cans, about 4-5 inches in diameter and 5-7 inches in height. If you use cans, do not remove the bottoms, otherwise the dough will proof and bake out from both ends. You can also use 6-inch cheesecake pans, which I use most of the time.

To prevent sticking, line the pans or cans with parchment paper. This will make it much easier to remove panettones from the cans.

Easy Panettone Recipe - Taste of Artisan (3)

Easy Panettone Recipe

Panettone recipe that makes light, less eggy panettone bread with the ingredients you have on hand.

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Course: Bread

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: panettone, sweet bread

Prep Time: 25 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 35 minutes minutes

Resting time: 2 hours hours

Servings: 16 servings

Calories: 234kcal

Author: Victor

Ingredients

  • 4 cups bread flour 610 g; if using cups, used the 'scoop and sweep' method
  • 2 Tbsp instant yeast 18 g; also known as Quick Rise or Rapid Rise yeast
  • 1 cup warm water 240 g; 105F to 115F
  • 10 Tbsp powdered sugar 85 g; or 7 Tbsp granulated white sugar
  • 3 egg yolks
  • 1/2 Tbsp kosher salt level
  • Grated zest of 1 lemon
  • 1/2 Tbsp orange flower water 15 g; substitute for plain water if you do't have it
  • 8 Tbsp unsalted butter 112.5 g; at room temperature
  • 1/2 cup golden raisins 85g; or black raisins; see notes
  • 2/3 cup candied orange peel 60 g; diced; optional; if not using, substitute for an equal amount of rasins

Egg wash

  • 1 egg yolk
  • 1 tsp heavy cream or milk

Instructions

  • Add the egg yolks and the powdered sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer and beat by hand for a few seconds using a whisk.

  • Add the salt, yeast, lemon zest, warm water, orange flower water, and all but a handful of the flour. Add the softened butter and, using the dough hook, knead for 5 minutes on low speed (2-3 on Kitchen Aid mixer). Adjust by adding the remaining flour, if necessary, to make a smooth, elastic dough. The dough should be very soft and tacky, but you should be able to lift the dogh and shape it into a ball without it sticking to your hands.

    Easy Panettone Recipe - Taste of Artisan (4)

  • Cover the bowl, place into a cold oven with the light on, and let rise until the dough has doubled in volume, about 1 hour to 1.5 hours.

  • Knead the raisins and candied orange peel into the dough by hand. Another way to incorporate dried fruit is to divide the dough, stretch it, evenly top with dried fruit then roll up and shape into a ball.

  • Line the inside of panettone molds/cans/cheesecake pans with parchment paper.

  • Split the dough into 2 equal pieces and shape each one into a round ball. Place the loaves in the pans, seam side down. Let rise in a warm place until the dough just rises above the rim of the pans, about 30 minutes.

    Easy Panettone Recipe - Taste of Artisan (5)

  • Whisk the egg yolk with one teaspoon of cream in a small bowl. Brush egg wash over the tops of the loaves.

  • Bake at 375F for about 35 minutes or until baked through. The loaves are done when they have a light brown crust all over. You can gently lift one loaf out of the pan to check for doneness.

  • Take the breads out of the oven, remove from the pans and let cool on a rack. If they are left in the baking forms, the loaves will become soggy from condensation.

Notes

I like to soak raisins in sweet cold water for a few hours or overnight, which makes them incredibly juicy. If you soak them, make sure to blot them with paper towels before adding to the dough. Soaked raising will be a little harder to knead into the dough, but well worth the effort. The best way to add them is to stretch the dough as much as you can, spread the raisins on top and roll up before shaping into a ball. Easy as that.

Nutrition

Calories: 234kcal | Carbohydrates: 37g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 65mg | Sodium: 229mg | Potassium: 77mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 247IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 16mg | Iron: 1mg

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  1. Liana

    Easy Panettone Recipe - Taste of Artisan (13)
    Hello! I made the panettone last night to replace the traditional New year's cake my family always made on New year's Eve. It came out great (for my taste). I used raisins and pieces of orange. The orange came from what we call in Greece "spoon sweets". It is actually fruit boiled and preserved in syrup. I rinsed the orange from the syrup and added it to the panettone. I also beat one whole egg with the powdered sugar instead of three yolks. I suppose the dough would have a different, much better consistency if I followed the recipe but for health reasons, I prefer to avoid using too many eggs -and I had already used some for another dish. All on all, the recipe is simple and the bread is delicious. Thank you!

    Reply

    • Victor @ Taste of Artisan

      Glad you liked it. Enjoy! I love this bread.

      Reply

  2. Ron

    Easy Panettone Recipe - Taste of Artisan (14)
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Easy Panettone Recipe - Taste of Artisan (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.

What is the best flour for panettone? ›

This recipe works best with high gluten flour or normal bread flour modified with added vital wheat gluten. It is available on some stores and online too. But, I used King Arthur bread flour (12.7% gluten) and added some Fairhavan Mill 00 pizza flour. 00 Pizza flour has a very fine granule and high gluten percentage.

Why is my panettone dough not rising? ›

If you've controlled temperature and you've controlled leavening, you should be on a proper course. The only other thing you want to think about is the ambient temperature of the room. If it's cold in your house, your dough will be sluggish, so you'll want to find a warm spot for it to rise.

What is the flavoring in panettone? ›

Fiori di Sicilia essence. I bought this from King Arthur Flour as well, and it's an essence of citrus and vanilla {a little different than an extract}. This definitely gives your panettone the traditional flavor.

Why do you turn panettone upside down? ›

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.

Why is panettone so difficult? ›

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 ...

What is the difference between cheap and expensive panettone? ›

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.

What is the best mixer for panettone? ›

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.

Why is some panettone so expensive? ›

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.

Why is my panettone dough so 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.

How do you know when panettone is done? ›

Bake the panettone in a preheated 375F oven until an internal temperature reaches between 190F and 195F when an instant thermometer is inserted deeply into the top center, 60 to 90 minutes.

What to do if dough doesn't rise enough? ›

To fix dough that won't rise, try placing the dough on the lowest rack in your oven along with a baking pan filled with boiling water. Close the oven door and let the dough rise. Increasing the temperature and moisture can help activate the yeast in the dough so it rises. You can also try adding more yeast.

What is the classic panettone flavor? ›

It has a slightly light and airy texture but a rich and buttery taste, and is not very sweet. Filled with dried fruits and candied peels, spongy panettone needs care and attention, but making it is not as difficult as it might seem, as our straightforward recipe shows.

Do you put butter on panettone? ›

Panettone can be eaten in a variety of ways. It's commonly sliced and enjoyed as is, but it can also be toasted, buttered, used in desserts like bread pudding, or even paired with savoury dishes.

How long will homemade panettone last? ›

Storing and Freezing Panettone

The panettone should last up to five days, though it tends to be a bit drier after a day or two. I have never seen a scrap left after the first day. You can also wrap it in plastic and then foil, and freeze it for up to two months.

What is an interesting fact about panettone? ›

Panettone is Hung Upside Down After Baking

Once traditional panettone is finished baking, it is flipped upside down until it's completely cool. This eye-catching technique prevents the bread from falling in on itself and keeps the soft and fluffy texture.

What makes panettone last so long? ›

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.

Why does panettone taste weird? ›

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.

What gives panettone its smell? ›

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.

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