Pandoro

GialloZafferano’s selected pandoro is a tall, star-shaped Italian Christmas cake with a soft crumb and a powdered-sugar finish. Vanilla, lemon and orange flavour an aromatic honey mixture that enriches the dough.

The recipe begins with its own coarse flour, water and fresh-yeast biga. A measured portion joins a first dough with more flour, sugar, fresh yeast and whole eggs; this dough rises and then rests in the refrigerator.

A second mixing adds further flour, sugar and water, followed by separate whole eggs and yolks. Salt, the aromatic acacia honey and soft butter are incorporated in stages until the dough is smooth and elastic.

The dough receives folds on a lightly buttered work surface before entering a separately buttered and floured star mould. A further rise takes it to the mould’s rim, and baking gives the surface its golden colour.

After complete cooling, powdered sugar finishes the cake. The recipe associates pandoro with Verona and festive sharing, and suggests prepared mascarpone cream as a separate accompaniment.