Panettone Loaf Cake
We’re 10 days into December, and I’m right on track, holiday-wise: I’ve decorated my tiny tree from Tiger, I’ve watched Home Alone, I’m fully enjoying my Baratti&Milano chocolate advent calendar, and, best of all: I’ve planned P&B’s Christmas recipes, a tradition in itself (there’s nothing I love more than a good recipe brainstorm). I knew exactly what I wanted to bake and cook for the blog in the month leading up to my favorite day of the year. And then: a culinary curveball from someone I’ve done quite a bit of baking for these past few months — Why don’t you make a panettone for Christmas? To which I replied: Don’t be silly, panettone is way too complicated.
Per the definition of La Cucina Italiana, panettone is “…the ultimate Christmas dessert from Milan…it is a cloud of finely textured, uniform dough with a bright yellow color, filled with raisins and candied fruits, with a soft, moist, fluffy crumb. It is the result of days of work for the experienced pastry chef…the dough, leavened with yeast, is allowed to rise for two days and then baked, then turned upside down to cool so it doesn’t collapse.” I’m all for a project recipe, but panettone — with its hours of work and required technique — didn’t seem like the most approachable recipe, especially during the busy lead up to Christmas. So: no proper panettone. But the suggestion to make a panettone got me thinking nonetheless: What about baking something panettone inspired?!
After some (additional) brainstorming — panettone cookies? a panettone pie, per my sister’s suggestion?! — I landed on a cake, figuring it was the surest way to replicate the fluffiness of a panettone. I made sure to incorporate the key ingredients of a good panettone, too: butter, orange zest, candied fruit, raisins, and vanilla bean. After some tiral and error (thank you, taste testing friends and neighbors) I landed on a delightful panettone-cake cross, one that is soft and cloud-like and unapologetically buttery, because panettone is nothing without its butter, after all. It’s incredibly fragrant, thanks to lots of orange zest and vanilla, and dotted with plump raisins and sweet bits of candied fruit. With a little snow shower of powdered sugar over the top, it’s particularly pretty. It’s a cake that gives you all the flavor of a panettone without all the work — especially nice if you’re living outside of Italy and have a tough time getting your panettone fix. Having said this: it is also a chic, festive little cake in its own right, one that confidently makes a statement even sans layers, frosting, or glaze.
Other reasons to make this Panettone Loaf Cake include, but are not limited to: it makes a great homemade gift, a nice change of pace from the usual cookie tin. It’s a wonderful holiday breakfast, because who doesn’t love cake for breakfast? It is lovely paired with coffee, tea, or even hot chocolate. It makes your house smell like Christmas. You may just love it as much as you do an Italian Christmas panettone. I’m sure you’ll find your own reasons, once you bake it yourself.
P.S: if you’re following me on Instagram: I’ve got a nice little 12 days of Cookies going on, as well, in case you needed to get into the holiday spirit.
A couple of notes: I baked this in a 5x10 inch loaf pan, but you could also bake it in a bundt pan. Feel free to up the amount of raisins or candied orange/fruits to your liking here. Panettoni tend to use vanilla beans, so I followed suit, but I have also tested this with vanilla extract (2 teaspoons) which worked great, is more convenient, and cheaper. If you do opt for a vanilla bean, know you can stretch your use of it by adding the remaining bean to your sugar, thus making vanilla sugar, which is lovely in your baked goods. It’s not traditional in panettone, but additions like: almonds, cinnamon or a bit of lemon zest would go well here, too. Feel free to steep your raisins in a little rum instead of hot water, if you have it. If you can’t find candied orange, you can sub other chopped dried fruits (dates, apricots, etc). This cake tastes even better the day or two after its made, when the flavors really set in in and the cake becomes even softer. Finally! If you’re in the U.S and want a good Italian panettone delivered, I’ve got you covered: your answer is Olivieri 1882.
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PANETTONE LOAF CAKE
Serves 8 - 10.
Ingredients for the cake:
1 3/4 cups (225 grams) flour, plus a little extra for the raisins and candied fruit
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon (3 grams) salt
12 tablespoons (170 grams) softened unsalted butter
3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons (170 grams) sugar
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons honey
Seeds of 2 vanilla beans (see notes)
2/3 cup (150mL) whole milk
Grated zest of 3 large oranges
3 tablespoons orange juice
3/4 cup (112 grams) raisins
1/3 cup, about 6 tablespoons (eyeball it — I forgot to weigh this!) chopped candied orange peel, or more to taste
Powdered sugar, for dusting
Directions:
1. Heat the oven to 175 C (350 F). Butter and flour a 10x5 inch (25x12cm) loaf pan. Put the raisins in a small bowl and cover with hot water. Set aside. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl, and set aside as well.
2. Beat together the butter and sugar in a large bowl until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, and then the vanilla of your choosing. Add the honey. Add the milk to the butter mixture, and beat on low speed.
3. On low speed, add the dry ingredients to the mixture. Beat until just combined (do not overbeat!) Add the orange juice and the zest.
4. Drain the raisins and pat them dry. Toss the raisins and the candied orange with a little flour (this will prevent them from sinking) Stir them in to the batter.
5. Transfer the cake mixture to the prepared loaf pan, then bake 50-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the loaf comes out clean, with only moist crumbs attached. Let the cake cool completely, unmold, and dust with powdered sugar.
