Christmas Panettone Recipe

First, soak the raisins for about 30 minutes in 50 ml of hot water to soften them. Meanwhile, mix the yeast with the remaining 100 ml of hot water before adding the sugar, vanilla, and citrus zest - it's best to do this in the bowl of a mixer with a dough hook.

Add the bread flour and knead on low speed with the dough hook until all the ingredients begin to combine. Crack the eggs and the yolks and continue mixing on low speed. Slowly add the butter to the dough gradually, making sure the previous butter has been fully incorporated before adding the next.

Increase the speed to medium and knead for 15 minutes before adding the salt, soaked raisins, and candied fruits. Knead until a smooth and elastic dough is obtained. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and let it rest for 20 minutes.

Fold the four corners of the dough to the center before proceeding with the traditional technique: with hands lightly greased with butter, slide the edges of the dough in a circular motion so that the ball of dough begins to swirl. Do this once or twice until the round ball of dough appears twisted, before transferring it to a greased bowl.

Cover with a greased plastic wrap and let it rest in a warm place, like an turned-off oven with the light on, for about 2 hours, or until its volume doubles. Transfer the risen dough to a lightly floured work surface. Tuck the edges in to create a smooth ball and place it in the greased 20 cm round pot, seam side down. Cover again and let it rise in a warm place until it reaches 2 cm from the top of the pot – this will take 1 to 2 hours depending on the temperature.

Meanwhile, in a bowl, add the egg white with the ground almonds, cornstarch, and granulated sugar, and mix well with a whisk. Preheat the oven to 180°C (Gas mark 5) and fan oven to 160°C. Gently brush the egg and almond mixture onto the panettone, being careful not to touch the baking dish as this will prevent your panettone from rising and make it difficult to release once baked. Sprinkle with granulated sugar, powdered sugar, and almonds.

Place the pot in the preheated oven for 45-50 minutes, checking with a skewer to ensure it is fully cooked before removing it from the oven. Allow it to cool in the pot before carefully removing it from the pot - you can first run a knife around the edge to ensure it releases cleanly.

To conclude, Chef's Tips: Raisins or currants or a mix of the three can easily replace sultanas. If you don't like dried fruits, you can also use chocolate chips in the same amount - just make sure to skip the soaking step! Pirlatura involves rounding the dough to shape it into a ball and incorporating air into it. When you spiral the dough using the "pirlatura" technique, do not flour the surface too much as you need some resistance from the dough to allow the twisting to occur. If you find this technique a bit tricky, simply tuck in the rough edges and create a smooth ball of dough, then move on to the next step.