Panettone from Christmas to August
Panettone , the Christmas dessert par excellence, is a symbol of Italian pastry in the world.
For many families, it isn't Christmas without panettone, which is strictly served as a dessert after a meal, often with mascarpone creams or spreadable creams. Panettone has often become a real Christmas gift to bring to friends and relatives from the first days of December and during all the Christmas holidays until January 6th. Surely an artisan panettone is a welcome Christmas gift, especially when it comes to quality artisan products.
In recent years we have seen a new trend bring panettone to the fore all year round with a particular emphasis during the summer, accompanying panettone with fresh granitas or ice creams.
The traditional panettone was born in Milan in the fifteenth century and there are many legends that tell of this delicious dessert. Among the most accredited we find a banquet at the court of Ludovico Sforza, Duke of Milan who for the first time tasted the "Pan di Toni" together with his guests, a recipe created especially for the occasion. Despite the wealth of the court, the cake was created with a few simple ingredients, but this did not prevent it from conquering the palates of the diners.
Since then, panettone has come a long way, gradually spreading throughout Italy and then to the rest of the world. Over the years we have seen the birth of regional recipes that differ in shapes and flavors, so from a typical Milanese dessert, panettone has become a typical dessert of Italian pastry.
It was in the 1950s that the industrial panettone was born, a long-life product that can last up to 9 months in the pantry. With the due differences compared to the fresh panettone from the bakery , the widespread distribution of the industrial panettone has the merit of having contributed to the success of this dessert and has fueled its fame by consolidating its place of honor in traditional cuisine.
Today we can witness a trend reversal with the rediscovery of the artisanal panettone made by pastry chefs, and thanks also to fast shipping and special packaging, more and more people are choosing to buy panettone online . So today we can enjoy an artisan panettone everywhere and savor all the variations available with typical local ingredients of first choice. Buying panettone online allows us to taste different varieties of panettone and then order a Sicilian panettone in Milan and vice versa, even when it comes to special or limited production products, with the guarantee of always getting a high quality panettone.
Panettone recipe
The original recipe for panettone was very simple: it contained flour, butter, eggs, citron peel and raisins. Over the centuries, the basic ingredients have not changed much, except for the introduction of yeast at the end of the 19th century. Nowadays, in fact, the Panettone recipes have been enriched with variations with the addition of fruit, chocolate, dried fruit, aromas and spices, enhancing their flavors and aromas.
The traditional artisan panettone delights the palate with a soft dough, made with sourdough, butter, eggs and flour. The use of sourdough, the long leavening and the manufacturing by hand make the panettone light and easily digestible .
Here, next to the classic panettone we find the chocolate panettone , the stuffed panettone , the panettone without candied fruit , the vegan panettone , the summer panettone and many other variations.
The variety is not only in the taste, but in the relationship with the territory and in the use of typical local ingredients which have given rise to very particular panettone with a recognizable flavour. Here the ancient panettone originally from Milan is accompanied by equally delicious regional recipes.
Among the regional panettone, the Sicilian artisan panettone has conquered the taste of consumers with delicious flavours, genuine ingredients and an extraordinary range of variations, such as the Summer Panettone with Modica PGI Chocolate and Sicilian Apricots. Today the artisanal Sicilian panettone, which can be purchased online at bottega27.com, has earned a reputation as a high quality panettone and has entered the tradition of many Italian families.
The shape of the panettone
Even the shape of the panettone has its importance. In the beginning it had a low, round shape with a rounded surface, bearing in mind that it did not contain yeast and the panettone was baked without a mould, so the dough was placed on the pan.
Over time we arrive at higher panettone due to the introduction of sourdough , which naturally makes the dough softer. The tall panettone with the typical cylinder shape arrives in the last century, obtained thanks to the paper mold that favors growth in the oven. Subsequently, with the aid of drying upside down, the panettone is kept high even after cooling.
Today we find all shapes, from low panettone, to medium panettone to high panettone. However, all types contain yeast and are cooked in a mould, therefore the differences in shape are due to the chosen mold which make the panettone different only from an aesthetic point of view.
For example, lately we have returned to the low panettone revisited in a modern key, which allows you to cut smaller slices and gives a more elegant overall appearance, especially when served on special occasions after a meal.
Even in the production of Sicilian and Modican panettone, the low or medium panettone is preferred, which seems to be a prerogative of pastry shops, like a distinctive sign that recalls ancient processing. After all, many Sicilian panettones are handmade and the low or medium shape brings to mind a rustic and artisanal dessert.
Stuffed panettone or panettone to be served with spreadable creams are generally medium or high in order to obtain a more consistent slice. In addition, the tall panettone is perfect for a snack and for breakfast.
However, the shape of the panettone always remains a stylistic choice of the master pastry chef, and the choice by the buyers is a personal taste that makes them prefer a tall or short panettone depending on the case.
Sicilian artisan panettone
Among the most popular traditional Sicilian panettone we find the PGI Modica Chocolate Panettone , made with the famous Modica chocolate, worked at low temperatures and with a typical grainy consistency. Modica PGI chocolate is a Sicilian excellence recognized throughout the world because it is made up of fine ingredients, such as cocoa mass and sugar, without additives, preservatives or sweeteners and without added cocoa butter. The flavor of Modica PGI chocolate, incorporated in the form of drops, is unmistakable and goes perfectly with the soft dough of the panettone.
Another much-loved Sicilian panettone is the three-chocolate panettone . It is ideal for those with a sweet tooth, thanks to the varieties of chocolate present in the dough: white chocolate, dark chocolate and milk chocolate. We at Bottega 27 this year wanted to introduce something new: we also added Modica Chocolate IGP , giving life to the Panettone with four chocolates .
Panettone with pistachio spreadable cream is another typical Sicilian dessert because it combines a tasty and fragrant dough with the taste of pistachio, an exceptional fruit that comes from high quality crops among the first in the world. In our Sicilian panettone we can find nothing but Sicilian pistachio, an excellence of the area, with a balanced taste between sweet and savoury.
Unlike stuffed panettone, panettone with spreadable cream preserves the integrity of the cream and panettone, because the cream is served separately.
Panettone with marsala raisins evokes the flavors of the past, it is a simple panettone because it combines two typical Sicilian products from ancient wine production: raisins and Marsala, a liqueur wine capable of enhancing baked sweets, biscuits and creams, like no other.
These are just a few examples of Sicilian artisan panettone that have entered the traditional Italian pastry by right. Naturally we find many other variations with added ingredients such as candied orange, chopped pistachios, apricots, berries, figs and many other local delicacies.
The imagination in the preparation and the desire for panettone beyond the Christmas period, has given rise to the summer panettone which offers fresher flavors such as fruit combined with Modica PGI chocolate. For example, the Modica PGI Chocolate and Apricot Summer Panettone is considered one of the best artisan panettone of 2021 thanks to the freshness and lightness of its ingredients, the hand-crafted and long leavening that make it light and suitable for summer .
The taste of the summer panettone is enhanced even more when accompanied by granita, almond milk or ice cream. Thus, here is the panettone frees itself from the Christmas setting to which we have always been accustomed, to delight us all year round with new flavors and new sensations.