Dan Lepard's panettone
- Mouse
- Dec 24, 2024
- 2 min read
We've been making Dan Lepard's home made panettone every Christmas since it first appeared in The Guardian in December 2012. The 2024 - 12th anniversary edition pictured below is especially fine.
A quick, soft, home made version of the traditional Italian Christmas and New Year loaf, without the extremely aerated texture and ultra-long life that's so common in shop-bought ones. This is a really good sweet loaf for the afternoon, or even for Sunday breakfast, and it's easy to customise to your own liking. I've kept the flavour intense yet simple, but don't let that hold you back. Try your own flavourings - dried and fresh fruit work perfectly here.
Ingredients
200ml warm water
25g cornflour
25g caster sugar
6 medium egg yolks
7g sachet fast-action yeast
3 tsp each vanilla and orange extract (use the best-quality ones you can afford)
3 tsp glycerine (optional, but it makes the crumb extra-soft)
50g white chocolate
150g chocolate chips
50g unsalted butter
400g 00 flour
1 tsp salt
good glacé fruit or raisins
For the sugar crust
1 tbsp caster sugar
1 tbsp egg white
1 tbsp ground almonds
25g chopped hazelnuts
1 tsp cornflour
12-15 whole unskinned almonds
Method
Whisk the warm water with the cornflour and caster sugar, then beat in the egg yolks and yeast. Stir in the vanilla and orange extracts, and glycerine (if using). In a bowl over hot water, melt the white chocolate and butter, then whisk this into the mix, too.
Add the flour and salt, mix to a soft dough (use a wooden spoon or rubber spatula to do this, rather than your hands – it's much easier), then set aside for five minutes.
Stir in the chocolate chips, glacé fruit or raisins so they are evenly distributed through the mix, then leave for an hour to rise.
Line the base and sides of a deep, round 20cm cake tin with an oversized piece of nonstick paper that extends out at the top by 5cm or so (this is because the loaf will rise considerably during cooking). Scoop out the dough and transfer it to the tin. Cover and leave to rise for two to three hours, or until more than doubled in height.
Heat the oven to 180C (160C fan-assisted)/350F/gas mark 4 and arrange the shelves so the tall tin and its paper crown have plenty of room to fit comfortably inside.
Mix together the ingredients for the sugar crust and dab this all over the top of the panettone with a spoon. Dot with almonds and cut a cross in the middle with a sharp knife. Bake for about 40 minutes, until the panettone is a dark, golden brown on top
