Panettone
- Lucy Bridge
Published: September 2, 2026 at 11:03 AM
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Serves 8
More effort
Prep: 1 hr
Cook: 50 mins
plus overnight chilling and 3-4 hrs proving
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A fragrant, festive, and genuinely doable panettone at home
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As the test kitchen assistant, I test a lot of recipes. Most are fun little tune-ups: an ingredient swap there, a timing change or a seasoning tweak. And then there are the heavyweights — the ones that need multiple adjustments and must be broken down to their bare bones again. Our panettone recipe sat firmly in that last camp. Before this saga began, I’ll be honest: my panettone knowledge was mostly limited to admiring the pretty boxes in Italian delis. I was more likely to pick up a pandoro.
My first test? Let’s just say it was closer to a dense fruitcake than the light and feathery dome of Christmas joy I had envisioned. A humbling moment. We headed back to the drawing board, not once, but six times in total.
What followed was what I now affectionately call Panettone-Gate: six versions, many Teams messages, a few muttered apologies to my stand mixer and a whole lot of learning. But we got there. And the final version? She’s a beauty: fragrant, festive and genuinely doable at home.
Here’s what I learnt along the way:
1. A poolish (starter dough) is a great starting point.
Traditional panettone uses a biga — a stiff pre-ferment that gives that signature lift and flavour. I wasn’t familiar with it, so I played within pre-ferments I was more familiar with. Biga will come in version seven.
Our solution was a looser pre-dough (a poolish-ish situation) that gives the dough some of that cherished lightness without demanding the monk-like calm I believe is required for a full biga.
2. Butter is both a blessing and a burden
Panettone is enriched. Deeply enriched. And while butter gives the dough that silky, shreddable texture, too much turns the dough into a slump. Finding the sweet spot and the right incorporation method for a home cook took a few rounds — and brought me close to tears.
3. Candied citron + essential oil = magic
The right flavouring is the secret handshake of proper panettone. I didn’t even know what citron was until Lulu introduced me to it. It really transformed the flavour. A mix of candied orange and lemon is great but nowhere near as aromatic. The essential oil, meanwhile, adds that signature perfumed warmth.
4. The flipping debate is… ongoing
Some bakers swear by hanging panettone upside-down like festive bats to prevent collapse. I didn’t see a dramatic difference using this method, but I’m open to being swayed by future evidence (or very passionate panettone people). Verdict: if your panettone is fully baked, it shouldn’t crater in the centre. But if you enjoy the drama, feel free to continue the ritual. You’ll need a hanging skewer or two long skinny skewers.
Ingredients
Nutrition
Units:
MetricUS
-
10g fast-action dried yeast
-
620g strong white bread flour
plus extra for dusting
-
100g golden caster sugar
-
3 tbsp warm milk
-
5 medium eggs
beaten
-
150g butter
softened, plus extra for proving and the tin
-
80g raisins
-
80g sultanas
-
3 tbsp dark rum
-
2 tsp vanilla extract
or 1 tsp aroma panettone essential oil (don’t overdo this, it is strong)
-
1 lemon
zested
-
1 orange
zested
-
100g good-quality candied orange and lemon peel
(if you can find candied citron then sub in a little of that to add perfume)
For the topping
-
30g whole blanched almonds
roughly chopped or flaked almonds
-
1 tbsp golden caster sugar
-
1 tbsp egg white
(easiest from a carton)
-
1 tbsp icing sugar
Keep the screen awake with cook mode on the Good Food app.
Nutrition: per serving
- kcal681
- fat22g
- saturates11g
- carbs98g
- sugars37g
- fibre4g
- protein16g
- salt0.61g
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Method
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step 1
Mix 1 tbsp fast-action yeast with 100g of the flour, 1 tbsp of the caster sugar, the warm milk and 100ml warm water, then leave for 20-30 mins until doubled in size.
-
step 2
Put the yeast and flour mixture in a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment, add the remaining flour to the bowl and start to mix on the lowest speed. Add the eggs slowly to make a dough, then beat in the butter bit by bit. Tip into a buttered bowl with plenty of room for the dough to expand and grow, cover and put in the fridge overnight.
-
step 3
Put the raisins and sultanas in a small pan with the rum and cook over a low heat until the rum is absorbed, about 5 mins. Set aside to cool, then add the vanilla or aroma panettone, grated zest and candied fruit. Mix well.
-
step 4
Butter and line a 20cm cake tin, or line with a panettone paper case. If you don’t have a deep tin, cut baking parchment to line the tin so it stands above the sides to a height of 20 cm.
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step 5
Turn the dough out onto a floured surface. Gently stretch into a rough rectangle, spread half of the fruit and zest mixture over the dough, folding each side on itself to incorporate the fruit, then repeat this process with the other half of the fruit.
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step 6
Shape the dough into a round using your palm to neatly tuck the dough in on itself. Place the dough into the lined cake tin and lightly cover to stop it drying out. Leave in a warm place for 3 hrs or until 1.5 times the size.
-
step 7
Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4, adjust the oven shelf to the lower third of the oven to give the dough space to grow. Mix the almonds, caster sugar and egg white for the topping, then brush this over the top of the panettone.
-
step 8
Bake for 40-50 mins or until a skewer comes out clean. Either leave to cool in the tin for 10 mins before turning out onto a wire rack, or lift the panettone out of the tin and push a hanging skewer through the base, lay the ends of the skewer on two items of the same height (two piles of cookbooks, for example), and leave the panettone to cool upside down. Cool completely before dusting lightly with icing sugar. Cut into slices to serve.
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