This sourdough panettone is incredibly airy and light, with a perfect balance of sweetness from the dough and slight bitterness from the chocolate chips.
The hint of orange zest adds a delightful aroma. Despite being a sourdough, this panettone isn’t sour, thanks to frequent starter feedings. It’s a great treat for the Christmas and New Year season.
Original Inspiration
This recipe is adapted from Matteo’s recipe at Ca Mia Breadlab, with some alterations like switching candied fruits for chocolate and adjusting quantities. F
or more amazing sourdough recipes, check out Matteo’s blog and Maurizio’s blog, The Perfect Loaf, where I learned to make my starter.
Tips
- Little Molds: Use small molds for leftover dough. These make great gifts!
- Variations: You can make half with chocolate and half with traditional raisins and candied fruits by dividing the dough before adding mix-ins.
- Molds and Skewers: I use 5.25-inch and 2.75-inch round panettone molds from Sur La Table and 16-inch non-stick barbecue skewers from Crate & Barrel for cooling.
Ingredients
| Component | Ingredients |
|---|---|
| Starter Feedings | 33g starter, 33g flour, 15g water (for each of the 3 feedings) |
| First Dough | 290g bread flour, 82g yolks (5 large egg yolks, room temperature), 82g sugar, 88g unsalted butter (softened), 145g water, 80g starter |
| Second Dough | 88g bread flour, 88g yolks (5-6 large egg yolks, room temperature), 88g sugar, 4.7g salt, 250g chocolate chips (semi-sweet) |
| Aromatic Butter | 175g unsalted butter (softened), 20g honey, Zest from 1 small orange (or half of a large one), Zest from 1 small lemon (or half of a large one) |
Instructions
Day 1: Starter Feedings
- Feed the starter three times: at 8:30 am, 1:00 pm, and 5:00 pm. Keep it at 80-83°F (27-28°C). By 9:00 pm, it will be ready for the first dough.
Day 1: First Dough (9:00 pm)
- Mix water, sugar, yolks, starter, and flour (except butter) in a stand mixer on speed 2, then increase to speed 4.
- Reduce to speed 2, add butter in chunks, one at a time.
- Knead for 15 minutes on speed 2 or 4. Perform the Window Pane Test to check gluten development.
- Butter the counter, form the dough into a ball, place in a buttered bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let it ferment overnight to triple in size at around 80°F (27°C).
Day 2: Aromatic Butter (9:30 am)
- Mix softened butter, honey, and zests in a bowl.
Day 2: Second Dough (10:00 am)
- Check if the first dough has tripled in size, then refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Weigh flour and salt in one bowl, and whisk yolks and sugar in another (strain yolks to avoid eggy smells).
- Add chilled first dough to the mixer, mix in flour and salt on low speed, then switch to the dough hook.
- Gradually add the yolk-sugar mixture, knead for 15 minutes on speed 4 (or 2 if too heavy).
- Perform the Window Pane Test again, add aromatic butter in chunks, and knead until smooth and elastic.
- Mix in chocolate chips by spreading dough on a buttered counter, pressing in chips, and folding.
- Shape into a ball, place in a buttered bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let it rest for 30 minutes.
- Fold the dough a few more times, shape into a ball, and let it rise in a turned-off oven until doubled (3.5-4.5 hours).
Day 2: Shaping the Dough (3:00 pm)
- Cool the oven by turning off heat sources 30 minutes before shaping.
- Divide the dough using a scraper and scale (480g for 5.25 x 3.5 inch molds).
- Shape into balls, place in molds (filling 1/3 to 1/2), and proof in a turned-off oven until nearly full (5 hours).
Day 2: Scoring, Topping, and Baking (9:00 pm)
- Preheat the oven to 340°F (170°C).
- Score a cross on each panettone, optionally adding a butter piece in the middle.
- Sprinkle with pearl sugar, place on double-stacked baking sheets, and bake for 40-50 minutes (25-35 minutes for small molds).
Day 2: Cooling (9:50 pm)
- Prepare the cooling setup with two boxes and metal skewers.
- Skewer each panettone through the mold’s bottom and hang upside down between the boxes to cool for at least 4 hours, up to overnight.