Surprise Panettone Bread in a Coffee Can

If this sort of holiday bread sounds daunting, then you will surely be surprised with this Panettone Bread recipe! You don’t have to have a special pan or anything to make this delicious holiday bread recipe.

Panettone Holiday Bread

Make the holidays extra special homemade panettone. This Italian Christmas bread can include rum-soak dried fruit, citrus, almonds or even chocolate chips. The trick to making it the most simple is by letting it rise overnight in the refrigerator.

If you don’t have access to an actual Panettone mold, you can use an old-style coffee can like the old folgers kind. Don’t remove the bottom and line the cans with parchment paper. This will make it much easier to remove panettone from the can. You may need to cut the paper to make it fit so it doesn’t create indents in the bread.

Panettone Bread in a Coffee Can

Ingredients

STARTER

• 3/4 cup All-Purpose Flour
• 1/16 teaspoon (just a pinch) instant yeast
• 1/3 cup cool water

DOUGH

• All of the starter (above)
• 2 1/4 cups All-Purpose Flour 1/4 cup lukewarm water
• 2 large eggs
• 4 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 1/4 teaspoons SAF Gold instant yeast or 1 tablespoon instant yeast
• 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup golden raisins -OR – 1 cup mini chocolate chips
• 2 tablespoons grated orange (zest)

Instructions

1. To make the starter: Combine the starter ingredients in a medi- um-sized mixing bowl, cover, and allow them to rest overnight (8 to 12 hours).
2. To make the dough: Combine all of the dough ingredients ex- cept the fruit/chips and zest, and mix and knead them together — by hand, mixer or bread machine — until you’ve made a soft, smooth dough.
3. Allow the dough to rise, covered, for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, or until it’s puffy (though not necessarily doubled in bulk).
4. Gently deflate the dough, and knead in the fruits and zest.
5. Shape the dough into a ball and place it in a panettone pan or other straight-sided, tall 1 1/2- to 2-quart pan. Cover the pan and let the dough rise until it’s just crested over the rim of the pan, about 1 hour.
6. Bake the bread in a preheated 400°F oven for 10 minutes; re- duce the oven heat to 375°F and bake an additional 10 minutes; then reduce the heat to 350°F and bake for 25 to 35 minutes, tenting with aluminum foil if the crust appears to be browning too quickly.
7. Panettone should be a deep brown when done, should sound hollow when tapped, and will read 190°F at the center using a digital thermometer. (It’s easy to underbake, since it browns so quickly!)
8. Remove the panettone from the oven and cool completely. Store at room temperature, well-wrapped, for up to a week; freeze for longer storage.
9. Panettone can be made in a coffee can by removing the top with a can opener and disposing of coffee. Clean can. Line the bottom with a circle of parchment paper and line the sides with a rectangle cut out of parchment paper. This recipe will make 2 loaves in the coffee can. Divide the dough into 2 balls and bake as directed.