Panettone 2 – The Yeasted Version

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Panettone, simili, sisters, sorelle, yeast

This is a version of my recipe for naturally leavened Panettone, adapted to use brewer’s yeast instead of a sourdough starter. Unlike that recipe, which requires several days in the making, this one can be made in a day. I would suggest you pick a day when you know you will be around to intervene at the various stages of the bake. I also suggest that you start early. It should only take about 8-10 hours from start to finish, but a numbers of factors could cause this to vary.

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Panettone 1 – Naturally Leavened

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Aroma Panettone, King of the Sourdough, Panettone, Peel, sorelle, Sweet

Panettone is a wonderful thing, and any keen amateur baker is likely to want to try making it at some point. But before they dive in, they might like to consider the response of a famous baker, when he was asked to recommend a recipe for Panettone. “Leave it to the experts”, he said. I can understand where he was coming from; Panettone is neither quick nor easy to make and there is no guarantee that the end result will be superior to something you might buy.

All that is even more true when you make a naturally leavened version, using a sourdough starter. My first attempt at this took nearly 3 days from start to finish and ended up a little on the sour side. The second version took a little less time but was perfectly sweet – someone declared it was the best Panettone they had ever eaten… It also won the prize at Hobbs House Bakery’s King of the Sourdough competition. (See bottom of this post.)

So why make Panettone? Well, if, like me, you relish a baking challenge, you enjoy the processes of baking as much as the end results, and find it rewarding to know that you have produced something impressive and delicious, why not give it a go? All you have to lose is 60 hours or so of your life!

Panettone Teacakes

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Aroma Panettone, Panettone

I  love Panettone and intend to make it some time – I’ve even bought the cases already – but I get the impression it takes an age, is quite complicated, and is prone to failure (sometimes collapsing after you’ve proudly extracted it from the oven). Not that that will deter me. In the meantime, these buns are far simpler and still have the authentic texture, aroma and flavour, just in a smaller package. Not that they’re that small. In fact one would make quite a mouthful for just one person.