Sourdough Panettone is one of my favourite Christmas treats! A rich buttery Italian bread, generously studded with dried fruit and mixed peel can easily be mistaken for cake! Using an active sourdough starter in this recipe, it does take a bit of patience to make, but the result is oh-so-good!
Jump to:
- Challenge of the Sourdough Panettone
- Christmas Sourdough ebook
- 3 Tips to Ensure Success
- Panettone Moulds
- Ingredient Notes
- Reader Review
- How to Make a 70% Hydration Starter?
- Step-by-Step Guide: How to Make Sourdough Panettone?
- Recipe FAQs
- Storage and Leftovers
- Other Christmas Bakes and Cakes
- Sourdough Panettone
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Challenge of the Sourdough Panettone
I am not going to sugarcoat it, Sourdough Panettone will require a degree of patience, a good chunk of your time and just a little bit of skill (or reading the recipe twice and following it to a T).
Even made with commercial yeast, this classic Italian dessert is a bit of a labour of love, but if you love baking, you will love making this sourdough version of an amazing Italian Christmas Bread.
Christmas Sourdough ebook
Celebrate the holiday season with a unique twist this year with our 24 Christmas Sourdough recipes! Discover the magic of using active sourdough starter, sourdough discard, and leftover baked sourdough bread to create a memorable and flavoursome Christmas feast.
For more inspiration, head to our Best Italian Christmas Desserts!
3 Tips to Ensure Success
Truth be told, a good Panettone is not easy to achieve and it certainly takes a long time to make! But I strongly believe that it should not be reserved for professional bakers only.
If it is your first time making it, make sure to follow the recipe and read through the three essential tips below:
- Make sure your starter is active! Really, very and truly active! I feed my starter for 3 consecutive days before starting this recipe just to make sure I have natural yeast strong enough to carry this enriched dough through.
- You do need a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment (we love Kenwood). And you have to be patient: run your stand mixer for as long as the recipe states, it will help this rich dough rise and you will get a fluffy and airy bread.
- You will need to find a warm spot in your house (around 25°C) to prove the dough. It is a heavily enriched dough that needs both time and warmth to rise.
Panettone Moulds
To make a panettone, you will need a panettone mold. Whilst you can make it in the round cake tin, you will need to line it fully with sturdy baking parchment, so that it can rise, but the panettone will stick to it, and it may be difficult to peel the parchment off of it when baked. You can also buy non-stick Panettone tins (like this one here), I have to admit that I never used one before, so I cannot recommend it.
What I use, is paper moulds, here (they are 500g each). They are sturdy and brilliant for piercing with skewers that are then used to hang the panettones upside down to stabilise the crumb.
Ingredient Notes
Here's everything you'll need.
- clear honey: runny, not set honey.
- orange zest and lemon zest.
- stiff sourdough starter: at 70% hydration, see notes below for the recipe.
- caster sugar: also known as superfine sugar. It can be replaced with granulated sugar.
- water: ideally, tepid water.
- A LOT of egg yolks.
- unsalted butter: make sure it is very soft. European-style butter will produce superior results.
- strong flour: with gluten content no less than 13.5%
- salt.
- sultanas: or golden raisins.
- candied citrus peel.
You may also choose to top your panettone with pearl sugar, if you wish, to give it a more traditional look.
Reader Review
"Have now cut into my panettone and am delighted with the result. Good flavour, good crumb and enthusiastic reactions from all who have sampled."
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
How to Make a 70% Hydration Starter?
This recipe uses a 70% hydration sourdough starter. It is a stiff sourdough starter known as mother dough, pasta madre or lievito madre.
Mix 20g starter (100% hydration) with 25ml of water and 40g flour. This will make 85g of stiff starter, and you will only need 70g for this recipe, but it's always best to make some more to allow for all the starter that will stick to the sides of the bowl and the spoon.
Note, that this panettone relies solely on natural leavening, so your starter should be mature, healthy and have VERY strong wild yeast colonies and low acidity.
Step-by-Step Guide: How to Make Sourdough Panettone?
Day 1: Starter and First Dough
Late in the morning or early afternoon, prepare stiff sourdough levain (70% hydration). See notes above if unsure how to make it. Leave the levain to at least double in size, which will take 4-6 hours.
Once the starter is active and doubled, mix water and sugar in a bowl of a stand mixer. Add stiff levain and flour and get your stand mixer (we use and love Kenwood) fitted with a dough hook attachment running on slow speed, for about 10 minutes.
Once incorporated, increase it to medium speed. Start adding butter one bit at a time, and carry on kneading until completely incorporated, for about 10 minutes. Then one by one add the egg yolks and knead until well incorporated, again for another 10 minutes.
Scoop the dough into a large container (ideally a narrow, high-rimmed dish) and let the first dough rise until it triples in size, for 8-12 hours (overnight) at room temperature (ideally 22-25°C). Be patient, keep the dough temperature constant and go by the volume more than the time, you really want the dough to give time to rise.
Mix all the ingredients for the honey mix and leave them in the fridge covered overnight to infuse with flavours.
Day 2: Second Dough and Baking
The next morning, mix strong flour and the first dough that should have tripled in size overnight in the mixer bowl. Knead well in a stand mixer for about 10 minutes.
Then add sugar, honey mix, salt and butter and keep on kneading until fully incorporated, for about 10 minutes.
One by one start adding the egg yolks, mixing to fully incorporate the yolks into the panettone dough before adding another one. Finally, reduce the speed to the minimum and mix in lemon and orange peel as well as raisins/ sultanas.
Insert 2 bamboo skewers (see photos above) into each panettone paper mould (we used 2x500ml moulds). You will use the skewers to hand the panettone upside down to stabilise after baking.
Divide the dough into the prepared paper molds and let the panettone rise for 6-8 hours in a warm spot (around 25-27°C is ideal for a second proof).
It is important to note that it's advisable to go by the size of the panettone. Proof it until it just about doubles in size, so if you are proofing at lower temperatures (20-22°C), it may take 18-24 hours in some instances for it to double in size. Just be patient with it - it will pay off!
Bake at 180°C Fan for 35-40 minutes depending on the size of the panettone. When baked, hang them upside down for about 12 hours to stabilize the crumb. For this purpose, we used a tin that our shop-bought panettone arrived in last year, but a large pot will work just as well.
Recipe FAQs
This is likely due to the gluten in the dough not being developed enough. The reasons for this are twofold: not enough mixing/ kneading (after all, a stand mixer is not equal stand mixer), and too much acidity in your sourdough starter that can significantly slow down the gluten development. Make sure you have a starter that is low in acid and run your stand mixer for a few minutes longer next time! Or try extra strong bread flour with higher gluten content.
Traditionally it is served untoasted with sweet wines, and it is delicious! But if your sourdough panettone is going a little stale and dry, toast it and serve it slathered with a little butter or clotted cream.
I never do. The reason for egg wash is typically to make the top of the bread golden brown, but with the high sugar content in this Sourdough Panettone, it is unnecessary. The top caramelised beautifully as is.
Healthy? No, it has a lot of sugar, butter and egg yolks, but I strongly believe that the bakes that go through the fermentation process are better for digestion than regular cakes and breads.
Sourdough Panettone requires a lot of precision, so you will need kitchen scales if you want a good final product!
Storage and Leftovers
Sourodugh Panettone should be kept at room temperature away from direct sunlight, tightly wrapped in plastic wrap or foil. It should stay fresh for 4-5 days. You may also freeze it. If you want to freeze the whole thing, double wrap it tightly in plastic wrap, then place it in an airtight freezer-friendly bag and store it in the freezer for up to 2 months. You may also freeze individual slices (again, tightly wrapped to protect your sweet bread from freezer burn).
If you have leftovers that are going a little stale, use your Sourodugh PAnettone to make delicious French Toast (it will be delicate, so be very careful when handling soaked bread), or Bread and Butter Pudding!
Other Christmas Bakes and Cakes
For other Christmas baking ideas, have a look at some of our other favourites below:
- Sourdough Stollen (or if you're feeling adventurous - Sourdough Stollen Focaccia and Sourdough Stollen Bites)
- Walnut and Cranberry Sourdough Bread Recipe
- Spiced Oat and Cranberry Cookies
- Sourdough Cinnamon & Raisin Bread
Sourdough Panettone
Equipment
- Kitchen scale
- 2 x 500ml paper moulds for panettone 13cm in diameter/ 9.5cm high (or 11x11cm)
- 4 x long bamboo skewers
Ingredients
Honey Mix:
- 30 g runny honey
- 1 orange zest only
- 1 lemon zest only
First Dough:
- 70 g active 70% hydration starter see notes
- 75 g sugar
- 120 g water
- 55 g egg yolks
- 70 g butter very soft
- 240 g strong flour
Second Dough:
- 60 g strong flour
- 65 g sugar
- 4 g salt
- 95 g egg yolks
- 125 g butter very soft
- 120 g sultanas
- 90 g candied mixed peel
Instructions
Day 1:
- Late in the morning or early afternoon, prepare stiff sourdough levain (70% hydration). See notes if unsure how to make it. Leave the levain to at least double in size, which will take 5-7 hours.
- Once the starter is active and bubbling, mix water and sugar in a bowl of your stand mixer. Add stiff levain and flour and get your mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment running on slow speed, for about 10 minutes.
- Once incorporated, increase the speed. Start adding butter one bit at a time, and carry on kneading until completely incorporated, for about 10 minutes. Then one-by-one add the egg yolks knead until well incorporated, again for 10 minutes.
- Scoop the dough into a bowl (ideally a narrow, high-rimmed dish) and leave it to triple in size, for 8-12 hours (overnight) at room temperature (ideally 22-25°C). Be patient and go by the volume more than the time, you really want the dough to give time to rise.
- Mix all the ingredients for the honey mix and leave them in the fridge covered overnight.
Day 2:
- In the morning, mix strong flour and the first dough that should have tripled in size overnight. Knead well in a stand mixer for about 10 minutes. Then add sugar, honey mix, salt and butter and keep on kneading until fully incorporated, for about 10 minutes. One by one start adding the egg yolks, mixing to fully incorporate the yolks into the dough before adding another one. Finally, reduce the speed to the mininmum and mix in orange and lemon peel as well as raisins.
- Insert 2 bamboo skewers (see photos above) into each panettone paper mould (we used 2x500ml moulds). You will use the skewers to hand the panettone upside down to stabilise after baking. Divide the dough into the prepared moulds and let it prove for 10-12 hours in a warm spot (around 25-27°C is ideal for a second proof). It is important to note that it's advisable to go by the size of the panettone. Proof it until it just about doubles in size, so if you are proofing at lower temperatures (20-22°C), it may take 18-24 hours in some instances for it to double in size. Just be patient with it - it will pay off!
End Of Day 2 or Day 3:
- Bake at 180°C for 35-42 minutes ( adjust cooking time based on the size of panettone. When cooked, a skewer inserted into the middle should come out clean. We baked ours for 40 minutes ((2x500ml moulds)). When baked, hang them upside down for about 12 hours to stabilize the crumb (see photos above).
Notes
Nutrition
Aimee Mars says
When the panettone comes out in the stores you know it's the holidays! I've always wanted to make my own though so I can't wait to try your recipe.
Ieva says
Oh yes, a clear sign of Christmas! 😀
Ann says
I love Panetone. After reading this I respect all those who make it. Thanks!
Pri says
I’ve made this for the third time this season, what a great, straightforward recipe, I sub the sultanas for chocolate chips. I’ve had one failed attempt, but that was definitely due to impatience! The smell in the house once baked…is the smell of Christmas!
Ieva Greber says
Pri, thank you so much for your lovely feedback! I love that you’ve turned the recipe into your own with chocolate chips. So thrilled this recipe has become part of your Christmas magic – here’s to more delicious smells and happy bakes! Merry Christmas! 🙂
Iain says
Just working my way through this recipe, looks great! However, one question. Day 2 step 1 says to mix the strong flour with the malt, but I can't see a reference to malt in the ingredients. Am I missing something?
Ieva says
Hi Iain. Thanks for spotting it! I was experimenting with adding malt but in the end decided it doesn't add enough to the dough to justify another ingredient on the list. I will remove malt from instructions, apologies!
Iain says
Thanks very much. Very pleased with my first attempt. Delicious, although I'm sure I still have room for improvement!
Ieva says
Thanks, Iain for giving my recipe a go! I have to admit, my first couple of attempts were a complete disaster: I just wasn't patient enough to wait for the doughs to proof and I also made the first panettones in winter, so the temperature was likely not high enough to lift that heavily enriched dough :D.
Jess says
This is such a great recipe for the holidays. I look forward to my girls helping me make it....fun tradition and memories each year!
Amanda Wren-Grimwood says
I have always wanted to make panettone but was always a bit intimidated. I made this to practise for Christmas and I am pleased to say it came out really well. Will be making it again for Christmas to impress my family!
Ieva says
Amanda, that's so nice to hear! We have just been trying out a recipe for a new marzipan-studded panettone here, at Somebody Feed Seb, and it just immediately puts us in a Christmas mood 🎄 (even if it's still 2 months to go!).
Savita says
The bread looks so moist and delicious. Also, it is a long but an easy to follow recipe. Loved it.
Ieva says
Thanks, Savita! It's definitely a long process, but I hope you find it's worth it 🙂
Tayler says
I made this for Christmas last year and it was perfect! Definitely making it again this year too!
Ieva says
So glad you liked the recipe! We make it every year (sometimes even out of season :))
Toni says
This process is definitely worth it!! My family loved it! Thanks for this easy to follow recipe!
Ieva says
Thanks, Toni! Glad you and your family enjoyed it 🙂
Toni says
This turned out really good!! Thank you so much for the recipe!
Ieva says
You are welcome! Glad you liked it! 🙂
Dannii says
This is a must make at Christmas time and yours looks beautiful.
Wesley says
Do you think this would be possible to do without a stand mixer? Ive made Brioche by hand before so confident in my kneading ability.
Ieva says
Hi Wesley, I cannot say I was ever brave enough to try kneading it by hand. I personally think it's far too sticky.
Kimarie says
Trying this recipe and so far, so good! I have a large family, so I am curious if you've ever made one large loaf out of this recipe. What size mold and what baking changes would be needed? I'm confident enough to wing it a bit but wanted to ask. 😁
Ieva says
I am sorry to say I haven't tried it in a bigger mold. Would be very interested to know your timings if you make one large loaf though 🙂
Anonymous says
Hi Kimarie
I made this in a larger mould for 750g and baked it for a total of 75 minutes. After 30 minutes I put a piece of foil lightly over the top to prevent it burning. I flipped it over when I took it out of the oven.
Good luck Sheena
Tom says
Hi, Making this now, however the instructions around proving in the text of the article are different to the instructions in the recipe at the bottom. Which one is it best to follow?
Ieva says
Hi Tom! It very much depends on the temperature of your kitchen. I always recommend going by size. Panettone triple in volume in uts first proof, and at least double in its second proof. If you are proofing at 20-21C, follow the instructions in the recipe card 🙂
Jacqueline says
That looks absolutely bloody gorgeous! And I am so pleased the instructions are straightforward.
Jamaica says
Hi! I’m excited to make this as a surprise for my sister, who adores panettone and begged me to make her some for Christmas (I demurred). My only question is that it says on day 2 to proof for 18-24 hours. This would put us into day 3 for the baking, right? Also, I’m accustomed to 18-24 hours refrigerated fermenting with sourdough baking, but not countertop fermentation for so long, so I just want to make sure I am understanding correctly! Thank you! (Also after reading all the instructions before the recipe, I see it says 6-8 hours… this is a big difference from 12-18!)
Ieva says
Hi there! It very much depends on the temperature of your kitchen (we leave it on countertop for 6-8 hours in the summer and 12-18 hours in winter). The best way to judge when panettone is ready to bake is by by how much it rises. It should tripe in size on the first prove and be just over double in volume on the second. It does take a long time to rise, even in warm environments as the dough is extremely rich with all the butter and yolks.
Thanks for the feedback as well, I will make sure to update the recipe to make the timings/ temperatures a bit clearer.
Jamaica says
I wanted to wait until I had delivered the goods to reply to you: my sister declared them the best panettone she’s ever had. Everyone else agreed, but she’s the real connoisseur. Thank you so much for your recipe and your advice which enabled me to make that little Christmas wish come true for her! They were all raving about how incredible it was. I let mine rise for its second proof overnight in my kitchen which got quite chilly that night but the next day I relit the fire in the wood stove to give it the warm oomph it needed, and it loved it. Overall it proofed for about 24 hours, which was perfect in this cold winter weather. I encountered the same difficulty as George below in figuring out panettone pan size (in the US they use diameter and height rather than mL size), but since I could only get King Arthur baking panettone pans, that’s what I used. I should have only used one but used two instead and so they were half-height loaves. And then my final mistake was flipping the loaves too soon after they came out of the oven. Their tops fell off, which was a big visual disappointment, but the flavor and smell were so amazing that ultimately it didn’t detract. I’m assuming if I’d let them cool five minutes right side up I may have been able to avoid this calamity. Thank you again for this incredible recipe!
Ieva says
Thanks so much for the feedback! So glad your sister enjoyed the panettone - your comment made my day! 💗
George says
Hi, I"m excited to try this recipe. need to buy the molds and don't know what 500ml equates to in dimension? for some reason the links to mold shopping are gone. thank you! George
Ieva says
Hi, mine are 13cm in diameter, and 9.5cm tall (sorry the ones on amazon are no longer available, but they have similar moulds on Bakery Bits online shop if you are in the UK (https://www.bakerybits.co.uk/panettone-alto-ondulato-cases-500g-or-135mm-10-300-pieces?gclid=CjwKCAiAnZCdBhBmEiwA8nDQxSScy6Zv_EfR3V9fLIHCp67MDVOIcvNUBcX7Ci8-uN28p5dqZcc4VhoCFdUQAvD_BwE).
Angelica says
For anyone not able to find store bought molds, here's a link to make your own 🙂. I used non stick parchment paper and non-stick brown baking paper for each mold. (The parchment origame mold on inside & the origame brown baking paper exterior - 2 layer/ molds total for each mold. They were perfect and did not change in structure during final rise nor during baking.
https://youtu.be/sGIj4cGFXY8
Angelica says
Sorry about that George, I meant to send this origame panetonne mold link (it's easier to fololow along and make successfully) 🙂
https://youtu.be/pqUNwB0AQsU
Ieva says
This is brilliant! Cannot wait to try making these 🙂
Anna says
Hi! I would like to clarify, do you use soft butter or cold butter? Thanks
Ieva says
Hi! Soft butter will be needed, so that it incorporates into the dough well without staying in lumps. 🙂
Matej @ CookWeWill says
I've never cooked my own Panettone before so I was worried I would mess it up, but it turned out really great. Thanks for a great recipe!
Angelica says
Happy Holidays 🥳🥂 Thank you for sharing this recipe ❤. After years of wanting to attempt this baking challenge, thanks to your recipe and helpful advice I was able to try making sourdough panetonne. I just unmolded and decorated them. They will be wrapped and I will wait three LONG days 😁 before trying a slice. As it is winter and the kitchen being on the cold spectrum, both the 1st and 2nd doughs rose slowly. Not easily disuaded, I exercised patience and waited 🙂. The smell of baking panetonne is indescribable and worth the endeavour. Nothing quite compares to this. If I were to do anything differently the next time, it would be to bake them at 170c for your suggested baking times. At 180c I checked them after 37 minutes and they were over baked by 4 minutes, my guess. No real harm though, so all is well.
I have one question, what should the expected height of the final baked product be, ideally? Again, thank you for inspiring me to give this a try. Looking forward to making them again.
Ieva says
Happy holidays to you too! 💗 Thanks for trying the recipe and for the feedback regarding the baking temperature.
When we bake our panettones in 500ml moulds (13cm in diameter/ 9.5cm high), I'd estimate they are typically 11-13cm tall when baked, but I am sure they have an even more open crumb and rise even higher if an extra mighty sourdough starter is used 😀
Angelica says
I fully agree. The mightier the sourdough, the mightier the rise! Thank you for the final baked height and dimensions. 🥳🥂❤
Anastasiya Z says
. The dough fell down in the oven and top crumbled when I turned upside down. Total disaster. Tasted sour and burnt butter. waste of time and product.
Ieva says
Sorry to hear you had an issue with the recipe! I am surprised that the panettone tasted of burned butter, as it is only in the oven for 40-45 minutes. The sour taste would be to do with the acid in the starter. I tend to feed mine a couple of days in a row to reduce the amount of acidity before I make anything with enriched dough. I will definitely look into the issue of the top crumbling and update the post when I understand the cause of it and find a potential solution 🙂
Stephanie says
This looks really delicious! I love all the nooks and crannies in it. I can see why you need such an active starter.
Hannah Chan says
Hi Ieva, I really want to try this. May I ask how to make 100% hydration sour dough? Without this I can't make the 40% sour dough to start. I am an inexperienced in baking. I have a Thermomix machine now, if you have heard or seen this machine. It has a lot of bread making recipes but not panettone and it knead the bread fast. I love panettone bread. I will definitely try it when the weather is warmer. Can I learn how to make 100% hydration sour dough please.
Ieva says
Hi Hannah! We love Panettone too, so I completely understand how keen you are to make it.
I have heard of Thermomix, but haven't used it so cannot advise on how suitable it would be for making this recipe.
To make your own sourdough starter, you can follow the instructions here -> https://somebodyfeedseb.com/sourdough-starter/
We recommend using a mature active starter in any enriched dough recipes (and panettone is very heavily enriched with butter and eggs), so I would wait at least 3 months from when you start feeding your starter, to make sure it has strong yeast colonies to help the bread rise. Or if you don't want to wait that long, you can buy mature starters online or ask for a small amount of it from a local bakery (if they bake with sourdough).
We also have a Free "Sourdough Starter Guide for Beginners" if you want to have a look 🙂
Welcome to the sourdough world! You are going to love it 💗
lia says
thank you for sharing delicous sourdough recipe
was so good in taste n the texture I like it
Ieva says
Thanks, Lia! So glad you enjoyed it 🙂
Mia says
Does the first dough need to be mixed until reaching windowpane effect? Do we cover this dough during the first bulk with something like a cloth or plate?
Ieva Greber says
Yes, mix the first dough until it passes the windowpane test - underdeveloped gluten is the main reason why the top of the panettone falls off once baked and flipped upside down.
Keep the dough covered with a damp cloth, a plate or plastic wrap (cling film) during bulk fermentation to prevent the skin from forming on the surface, especially if you're in a dry environment. Hope this helps 🙂 Best of luck, and I hope it turns out beautifully! 🙂
Igor says
Everything went fine until backing. The dough didn't rise in the oven, was not possible to turn it up side down. Taste like to much eggs and acid. Will not give onother try..
Ieva Greber says
I am sorry that it didn't work out for you, especially because it's one of our and our readers' favourite sourdough recipes.
The only reason the bread would taste acidic is if your starter was too acidic, so I always recommend feeding it more often before making enriched dough that requires longer proofing time. But the fact that the dough rose fine in its first and second proof, and only failed to rise in the oven, would indicate that the yeast colonies were strong enough in your starter, but the panettone was possibly overproofed at the last stage.
I truly hope you will get your panettone just perfect in time for the holiday season 🙂
Kitti says
Hi! I can't wait to try this recipe this Christmas! My only question is what type of flour did you use? Any strong bread flour will do or it need special flour like Manitoba or something else? Many thanks in advance. 😊
Ieva Greber says
Hi, Kitti. I personally use strong white flour with 13.5% protein content, but I do mix and knead the dough for a very long time to help the gluten develop. Some of my readers noted though that it worked better with 15% strong flour (a.k.a. extra strong flour or Canadian bread flour). I believe Manitoba is 14-15%, so it would be great for panettone! Happy baking - hope you like it 🙂
Anonymous says
Hello,
I have tried your recipe and it's delicious!!! I've doubled the original recipe and i didn't use a machine because I don't have one. It was harder without it since the dough was wet and sticky. It's almost winter here, so it's colder outside. it took my first dough 18h atleast to triple. After that, i mixed my second dough and it took nearly 24h to prove. My baking time was 1:20 mins and had to turn the temp down to 168c i think my oven was too hot (my cake cracked at the top ). Cakes resting for 9h now but i had to cut one of them to try. It's delicious and worth the wait and all the effort and patience. I bake sourdough bread from home so I accepted the challenge for this one. Thank you and i will definitely make it again.
Kamille
Ieva Greber says
Thank you so much for the comment, Kamille, it makes me so happy when readers share their suceess with us 🙂 My panettones crack on top often, but I don't mind the look. And I agree, it really pays off to wait for the dough to rise properly - makes all the difference for the texture!
Ian says
Followed this recipe to the letter. Worked fine until released from standard panettone tin but salvaged by a bit of careful wrapping. Haven’t tasted yet (was advised to leave it 3 days before doing so!) but I’m very optimistic/hopeful. The crumb is very light! My panettone was very difficult to suspend inverted, but easier after cooling for ~1 hr. Baked panettone (1kg) in panettone tin (rather than dividing into 2 x 500gm and it took much longer to complete (based on internal temperature and a clean skewer). Overall success, I believe, was down to my very vigorous and non-acidic starter. Both first and second doughs expanded to 3+ times their initial size within 4-5 hours at ~24C. Clearly the quality of the starter is key to the whole recipe. Thanks to Ieva and Somebody Feed Seb!
Ian says
Have now cut into my panettone and am delighted with the result. Good flavour, good crumb and enthusiastic reactions from all who have sampled. Will try with paper moulds next time. Only change I would make is to increase the quantity and variety of fruit. Would also like to include some alcohol (e.g soaking the raisins in brandy) although some have suggested this might impair the proving. Feedback anyone?
Ieva Greber says
Hi, Ian! So nice to come back after a short Christmas break and find your comment! I'm pleased it turned out ok, and you got some great feedback from your taste-testers 🙂 I always wondered whether I should invest in a proper panettone mould myself, but it sounds like it may too difficult to take it out when it's freshly baked?
I'd be careful intruducing too much sugar (in the form of fruit/ candied peel or alcohol) into the panettone dough, so you may need to play around with other ingredient quantities if you do... Adding a little more sugar for the yeast to feed on may speed up fermentation process, so it's easier to overproof the dough. But too much sugar will impede gluten development, so you may end up with a very crumbly panettone that is impossible to invert.
Angelica says
Hello 🙂 I am planning to make your panettone this weekend but wanted to check something with you first. My starter is 100% hydration, but is it made from whole wheat flour, not white AP or white bread flour. Will this matter much? I presume it won’t be much of an issue, as long as I use white bread flour for the recipe itself. But would you have any extra advice? Also, I already had pannetone moulds on hand, but they are 750g capacity (15.5cm in diameter, 10.5cm high). How would you suggest I tweak your recipe? Multiply everything by 1.5? Or just wing it and follow what you’ve listed despite the slightly larger moulds? Thanks in advance! I am so excited to make this for my Italian, bread loving husband.
Ieva Greber says
Hi, Angelica!
A whole wheat starter will work perfectly, as long as it’s regularly fed and kept low in acidity. I’d suggest multiplying the recipe by 1.5 (or by 0.75 for a single mould); otherwise, your panettone will be spread in the moulds more thinly so will cook through more quickly and if you;re not careful, might dry out.
One more tip: increase the kneading time by a few minutes to build strong gluten networks—this will help prevent your panettone from breaking when inverted at the end. A larger batch will also need a slightly longer bulk fermentation and second rise, but I’d judge by volume increase rather than time.
Best of luck, lots of patience, and do let me know how it turns out! 😊
Ned Adams says
This tasted incredible! Seriously can't wait to make it again! Thank you for this awesome recipe!
francois noel says
Hello,
This recipe seems delicious! I am wondering about the 40% starter - in my book that would be 40g water to 100g flour, however reading the recipe I count 35g water to 50g flour, which would be 70% starter!? Can you help me figure this out?
Many thanks
Ieva Greber says
You are absolutely right! What an embarassing oversight... Yes, we make a 70% hydration stiff starter using the quantities in the recipe. Thank you for spotting it and letting us know 🙂
Sarah says
Absolutely delicious. I don't have a stand mixer so used the pizza dough programme on my breadmaker which has two 10 minute kneads which was ideal for adding butter and egg yolks. My kitchen is cold at night, so it took 4 days in total but was worth the wait. They were soft and delicious. I made a double batch which used 13 egg yolks in total, in case anyone is wondering..
Ieva Greber says
Thank you so much Sarah for taking the time to leave such lovely feedback! This is a brilliant tip for everyone with no stand mixer. Forgive my curiosity, but I am super intrigued by what you are going to do with all the leftover egg whites? 🙂
Casey says
I love panettone but haven't ever had a sourdough version. This looks amazing. Thanks for sharing!
Marisa says
Hi Leva! I made your recipe, mistakes were made, but the panettone turned out so good for my first try. Thank you for this recipe, it was easy to follow and I appreciate the added instructions to make the stiff levain. I accidentally used all the levain but there was no turning back. Looking back it didn't affect the end result but next time I will make it with the 70g. First dough tripled in 12hrs. For the second dough, I used leftover fruit/nut mix soaked in alcohol from a Kerala plum cake I made in December and added more orange peel (60g orange peel and 150g fruit/nut mix) to ensure that panettone flavor. I tried to dry the fruit/nut mix right before mixing in and should have done this the night before because I think it made my dough too sticky with extra liquid that was left on it. I wasn't sure how second dough should feel/look and went off how the first dough looked. I got nervous about it being too sticky and added a little more bread flour. I did not measure the bread flour when doing this but guess I added 20-30g? I had 635g of dough for each mold and I think my molds were slightly bigger than the ones you used. If I calculated correctly, I should have used about 825g. I let them rise uncovered in the oven with the light on but that seemed to get very hot. Oven thermometer was reading 90f but they were rising well. I transferred them to the microwave part way through. I let them rise until 1" to the top of the mold which took 11hr. I should have let it go the full 12 to get closer to the top (next time I'll do that) because they did not mushroom up over the top of the mold when baked. I scored the top and added a pad of butter. When I cooked them, the top browned pretty quickly and they were done in about 35min. I used metal skewers after baking to hang upside down over night. We ate it the next morning for breakfast and it was so good! I froze one to bring to my parents and can't wait for them to try it.
I have a few questions for next time:
1) Was I supposed to cover the dough for the second rise? The top skin of dough seemed to get a little dry. 2) Were my yolks supposed to be room temp. They were for the first dough but were a little cold for the second. 3) Can I bake the panettone at a higher temp and then turn it down if it starts to brown?
Thanks again for the recipe. I will make it again with chocolate for my kids.
Ieva Greber says
Hi, Marisa! Thanks for giving our recipe a try! Glad you liked, and it sounds like you're an experienced baker and navigated the problems you encountered along the way brilliantly!
To answer your questions:
1. If you live in a dry climate, covering the dough is a smart idea. If you're proofing your dough in the oven, you can place a bowl of hot/warm water to create a little steam to prevent that skin from forming. That way you don't risk the dough rising so high that it touches whatever you covered it with, but, of course, you need to monitor the temperature, and don't let it get too high (I made that mistake, and all the butter leaked out...).
2. I typically use cold egg yolks, and never had an issue with incorporating them into the dough. Plus, with all the mixing, cold egg yolks don't make much difference to the tempearture of the dough at the end.
3. I would be reluctant to bake panettone at higher temperature, since it may dry out on the edges whist not cooking through in the middle. But I'll admit, I have not tried baking it at higher temperature myself.
Would you be so kind and let me know if thawed panettone that you froze for your parents retained its texture and flavour? Did you freeze the whole panettone?
Thanks in advance 🙂
Marisa says
thank you for replying so quickly, Ieva! It's humid where I live but my guess is it was a little too hot in the oven because the molds looked a little greasy and I didn't know why. But now I think I may have been headed for the butter melting out too if I didn't put it in microwave to proof for a bit. I'll try the steam next time and keep eye on temp.
Good to know about the eggs!
I apologize, let me clarify about the higher temp. The higher temp would be 350F and wondering if I can lower the temp to 325F once it starts to brown on top? would that stop it from browning too much?
I froze it whole and we will eat it this weekend, so I'll be in touch soon! Fingers crossed!
@Ian who commented about fruit soaked in alcohol. Most of my fruit was soaked in rum/brandy and it didn't seem to mess with the proofing. Drain as much liquid as possible before adding to dough.
Marisa says
Hi, wanted to let you know the frozen panettone tasted great after it defrosted! Flavor was even better than the one we ate the day after it was baked. My mom loved the taste and texture so much she didn't want to use it for french toast like we usually do with this bread.
Ieva Greber says
Thanks for letting me know! I will try and freeze the whole loaf next time too 🙂
Tara says
I can see why this is a favorite Christmas treat! That texture looks absolutely fantastic. Such a delicious use for sourdough.
Chenee says
This looks so good! I've never worked with sourdough before but the instructions seem detailed enough!
Phil says
Hi….can’t I just make 70% hydrated starter right away instead of first making 100% hydrated starter and then converting it to the 70%?
Ieva Greber says
Hi Phil,
If you currently maintain your sourdough starter at 70% hydration, you can simply use that. Alternatively, you can create a new sourdough starter from scratch at 70% hydration. However, for highly enriched doughs like Panettone, you will need a strong, mature starter that has been well-maintained for at least three months, as this recipe doesn't use any commercial yeast.
Like most sourdough bakers, I keep my starter at 100% hydration because it’s more versatile and works in most recipes without adjustments. When needed, I convert my 100% hydration starter to a 70% hydration starter.
Hope this helps! 🙂
Oli says
Did a small testing batch of two, they came out fine, BUT, I strongly suspect that the kneading times were for manual kneading originally and have not been adapted to machine kneading. We're looking at 50-60 minutes of machine kneading in total, which is absolute overkill. That's equivalent to about 4 hours of manual kneading which will obliterate any dough structure. It doesn't matter that much because we have lots of egg yolk to give some stability, but I bet the oven spring would be way better if the kneading times were reduced to 1/4.
I'll do another batch with reduced kneading times in the next days and report back.
Other than that it's great! 🙂
Ieva Greber says
Thank you, Oli, you certainly gave me food for thought! The kneading times provided in the recipe are indeed for a stand mixer, not for manual kneading. From my testing, as well as feedback from other readers, reducing the kneading time often results in the panettone top collapsing after inversion. This is likely due to the nature of the dough ingredients: sugar, butter, and egg yolks significantly slow gluten development, so that extended kneading time really helps create the necessary structure.
I do agree that overkneading can be an issue in some recipes, but in this case, the long relaxation periods after kneading seem to mitigate any risk of toughness or density. That said, I think you may be right about the oven spring potentially benefiting from less kneading—it's an intriguing idea!
I'm very curious to hear how your next batch turns out with reduced kneading times. If it works well, it would make the process both quicker and easier, which I’d love to explore further. Please keep me posted!
Oli says
Hello again!
Re-reading my last comment, it sounded a bit harsh. Apologies for that, definitely wasn't meant that way!
So I just finished my second batch, now with reduced kneading time, and whilst still okay, the structure is actually worse. I already thought it was underdeveloped when I decided to turn off the mixer, but I wanted to go through with it.
So it very much looks like the kneading times in the recipe are correct!
Which confuses me, but maybe it has to do with the additional ingredients. After some reading it seems like "over-kneading" might more be an issue of heating up the dough too much, which is less of an issue with high hydration doughs like panettone.
Actually, I think I'll do a third batch and work it by hand!
Ieva Greber says
Not at all, Oli. I didn’t take your previous comment as harsh at all — I truly appreciate when readers share their opinions and experiences and open up debates. It's the only way we all become better bakers.
I’m really impressed with your commitment to experimenting, especially with hand kneading—panettone dough is no easy task given how sticky it is! I’ll be very curious to hear how it goes 🙂
Best of luck with your next batch!
Franc Simari says
I was impressed, and I am trying it again. The first time, I wasn't so careful about following the recipe: I mixed all the ingredients for the first dough at once and just let the mixer do the job. The results? Simply incredible! I also used a cake pan lined with parchment—the panettone slipped right out. I let the crumb stabilize with the panettone sitting on its side.
I wish I could upload a picture or two.
Good job, and thank you for sharing.
Ieva Greber says
Thank you so much for your lovely comment! I’m delighted to hear your panettone turned out well. And I love your idea to stabilise the crumb with panettone on its side.
I’d absolutely love to see your photos, so please do feel free to email them to me at ieva@somebodyfeedseb.com
Thanks again for giving the recipe a go!
NigeB says
What a great recipe. The only change I made was to add 5gr of Panettone oil at 2nd dough stage. Leaving it overnight the dough was slightly over-proved but, no matter, it baked quite well. Next time I'll lower the overnight temperature to retard the rise a little (26C was just too much).
Panettone is the 'big challenge' for us home bakers and this one works beautifully; in fact, it worked so well I've ordered some 80gr Panettoncino cases so I can make another batch and give them away as gifts to neighbours.
Thanks for the guidance.
Ieva Greber says
Thank you so much for taking the time to leave this lovely comment! I’m thrilled it worked well for you — panettone is famously tricky, and I still find it one of the most challenging bakes to get just right in my own kitchen. A little tinkering with temperatures and timings is almost always part of the process, so you’re definitely not alone there!
Your these as gifts is absolutely brilliant — your neighbours are in for a treat. Thanks again for baking along and sharing your experience! ❤️
Cathie says
I've enjoyed making this recipe, and my family has enjoyed eating the test results. If this assists someone else, they have been "done" when their internal temperature is 201F.
I've one question - if I hang my panettone upside down immediately on removing them from the oven, the tops fall off. I've been able to hang them upside down if I wait around 5 minutes for them to "set" after removing from the over, but by then they have already lost some height. What have I got wrong?
Ieva Greber says
Thank you so much for sharing this — I love that your family has been happily eating the test results 😊 And you’re absolutely right about the internal temperature; around 200–202°F is a great indicator of doneness, so that’s really helpful for others reading along.
What you’re describing with the tops collapsing when hung straight away is usually a gluten strength issue. In short, the structure just isn’t quite strong enough yet to support its own weight when inverted.
There are two common reasons for this:
Gluten development — panettone dough really needs thorough mixing. Different stand mixers behave very differently. I find "overmixing" is better than undermixing.
Starter acidity — if the sourdough starter is a little too acidic, it can slow down gluten development significantly. A strong, low-acid starter is paramount for panettone.
For your next bake, I’d suggest mixing a bit longer, making sure your starter is nice and sweet rather than tangy, and — if you want extra insurance—using an extra-strong bread flour (around 13–15% protein).
A little more gluten strength should let you hang them immediately with no dramatic panettone decapitation involved 😉
Thanks again for such a thoughtful comment!
Amy says
Would love to clarify the size of the moulds used - in the recipe I can see reference to you using 2 x 800ml moulds - but reading the comments you mention you use 500ml moulds that are approx 13cm diameter and 9 high which is what I've managed to find on Amazon. Would be great to understand how far the moulds should be filled when you first add the dough - assuming if it needs to double in size before baking, then this should be half - or maybe a bit less? Thank you (currently enjoying nibbling on your stollen recipe which turned out so great I've got the confidence to try the panettone 🙂
Ieva Greber says
Thank you so much for this — and I’m sorry for the confusion, you’re absolutely right to question it. I’ve now updated the recipe to reflect the correct mould size, so thank you for flagging the inconsistency.
For this recipe, 13 × 9 cm moulds (or 11 × 11 cm) work beautifully. When you first add the dough, it should sit at around half way up the mould, or a little less. After proofing, it should roughly double, and then it will puff up even more in the oven.
I’m planning to bake another couple of panettone in the coming week for Christmas and will use that as an opportunity to add a few more missing details to the recipe too — so this was genuinely helpful. And I’m so glad to hear the stollen turned out well enough to give you the confidence to tackle panettone… 😊 The most important tip I'd give you is to mix the dough for a long while, and then a little longer 🙂 Proper gluten development ensures that the tops don't fall off when you invert them after baking!
Thank you again for taking the time to comment (and happy nibbling!).
Amy says
Thanks so much for your prompt reply - just in time. They are in the oven and the house smells amazing. I realised I'd made a mistake as I was about to start the 2nd dough stage that I had used 120g butter in the first round instead of 80gm as the recipe suggested - so I only added 80g in the 2nd stage to balance it out - hoping this wont have had too much of a negative effect.. Pretty sure I'll be making these again before Christmas so we have the fresh for the day..and I think I need to reduce oven temp slightly as the tops have browned a little too much.. might have to sprinkle with icing sugar to disguise before sharing. Do you have any other suggestions for toppings to add (after baking ideally)? Thanks again xx
Ieva Greber says
Don’t worry too much about the butter mix-up. Balancing it out in the second stage was exactly the right instinct, and panettone is surprisingly forgiving once the gluten is well developed 😉
A little extra browning is very common (ovens love to show their personality at Christmas).
You could brush the tops lightly with melted butter, then dust generously with icing sugar — very stollen-style.
Or, once fully cooled, dip the tops in melted white chocolate, then scatter over a little extra candied citrus peel or flaked almonds and let it set. It looks festive and tastes amazing.
I love that you’re already planning another batch before Christmas! Thank you again for the update, and enjoy every last slice xx