A typical Italian Food – Classic Christmas Panettone – recipe of Neapolitan patissier Gennaro Benincasa

 

220 gr Flour 00
200 gr of Flour Manitoba
80 gr of Potato Starch
180 gr of Sugar
160 gr of soft Butter for panettone and 10 gr for the cooking
4 big eggs
3 eggs yolks
130 gr of Raisin
100 gr of Candied Black cherries
90 gr of Candied Fruits ( DOP it is better if they are from Amalfi Coast)
5 gr of salt
5 gr of brewer’s yeast dehydrated
Skin scratched of a Sorrento’s lemon
1 bean of vanilla
1 teaspoon of honey
60 ml of lukewarm milk
100 – 150 ml of Rhum
1 paper mould of 1 kg for panettone  

 

Advices:
Have patient because for this recipe (rise included) it occur about 8 hours.
The day before the preparation (2 days before is better) in a bowl put the raisin with the rhum for make raisin soft.
 

Procedure
Phase 1. In this phase we must prepare the base of panettone, the little brewer’s yeast or in Milanese “biga” dissolving 2 grams of brewer’s yeast dehydrated and a teaspoon of honey in a little lukewarm milk. Pour it in a bowl and slowly add 100 gr of Flour Manitoba, kneading by hand till to obtain a composed not sticky. Then, make a ball and put it in the same ball, cover with the kitchen film and let it rise for 1 and ½ hour in a lukewarm place, if you put it in the oven whit the light on it is better. After this time, bring out from the oven and let it repose in fridge for all the night.
Phase 2. In the morning bring out the “biga” from the fridge and let it repose to ambient temperature for almost 2 hours. After this time, put in a robot kitchen with the hook and add the salt, 2 eggs, 150 gr of flour 00 and 100 gr of Manitoba, 3 gr of brewer’s yeast dissolved in short lukewarm water and the sugar. When the composed is compact and homogeneous add 60 gr of soft butter a pieces for time. When all is compact, make a ball and put it in a bowl with the kitchen film to cover it. Put to rise for 2 hours in the oven with the light on.
Phase 3. After 2 hours put the mixture into the robot kitchen and mix with the Sorrento’s lemon’s skin, the vanilla, 2 eggs and 3 eggs yolks, the rest of the flour, 30 gr of potato starch and 20 ml of rhum. When the mixture is homogeneous, add the rest of the sugar. When the sugar is absorb add a piece for time the pieces of soft butter.
Phase 4. Add now, always in the robot kitchen, the candied fruits slice in pieces, the drip raisin and flour it in a other 50 gr of potato starch and the black berries. Turn on the robot kitchen for 10 minutes. Then, make a new ball, put it in the same bawl covered with the kitchen film and let it make for almost 3 hours in the oven again with the light on.
Phase 5. Transfer the mixture into the paper mould of panettone of  kg and let it rise (always in the oven with the light on) till when it arrive to the border (about 2 hours). After 2 hours, bring out from the oven and after other 15 minutes make on the top a crosswise incision with a knife.
Phase 6. Turn on the oven at 200° and in the shorter shelf put a bowl full of water. When the oven arrive at the temperature put the panettone in the oven delicately.   
After 15 minutes reduce the temperature at 180° and let it cook for a total time of 50 minutes controlling that it is not colored too much. If it will happen reduce again the temperature. When the panettone is cooked, turn off the oven and let it repose with the lightly open oven door for 10 – 15 minutes.
Take the panettone out the oven, turn it upside down and insert 2 woolen instruments in form of crosswise in the bottom of the panettone (your top when you have turn it upside down) and let it repose in this position, over the woolen instruments, for almost 6 – 8 hours.
 
Wait your panettone on a beautiful plate of Ceramica Vietrese and you see that the panettone is better if it is accompany with the colors of Amalfi Coast.