For Italians, nothing quite says Christmas like panettone. Baked until golden, deliciously sweet and fragrant with spices, it has all the festive flavours one could wish for.
Our panettone recipe, from Hotel Amigo’s BoCConi Restaurant, is given a wonderfully Flemish twist when served with a delicious speculoos cream. A caramelized, spiced biscuit, speculoos are much-loved seasonal treats, and this combination creates the perfect centrepiece for a Christmas afternoon tea.
Ingredients
For the Panettone:
70g sugar
40 ml water
4 egg yolks
90g butter
90g panettone flour
40g yeast
40g plain flour
Pinch of salt
80g dried grapes
40g candied oranges
For the speculoos cream:
50g gianduja spread
25g speculoos biscuits
Method
Place the panettone flour, salt, 30g sugar, yeast, water and 2 egg yolks in a bowl and mix
Chill for 2 hours
Once chilled, place the mixture in the bowl of a free-standing mixer fitted with a dough hook
Add in the plain flour, remaining sugar, pinch of salt, 2 egg yolks, 60g butter and dried fruits and mix until you reach a dough consistency
Cover and chill for one hour
Place the chilled dough in a paper panettone mould and chill for a further 6 hours, until the dough is risen
Preheat your oven to 175o C. Add a little butter on top of the panettone and bake in the oven for 35 minutes
Once golden and cooked, prick the panettone and allow to cool upside down for 12 hours
Place in the oven for 35 minutes at 175° C (static baking)
To make the speculoos cream, simply blend your Speculoos biscuits with the gianduja until you have a creamy consistency. Serve the panettone with the Speculoos cream on top and enjoy.
Sample BoCConi’s sensational Italian dishes at Hotel Amigo. For reservations please call +32 2 547 47 15 or email ristorantebocconi@roccofortehotels.com.
Paris is always a good idea. Except, perhaps, when it’s hosting the Olympic Summer Games, and the usual tourist throng looks set to multiply almost prohibitively. Of course, the Games are exciting, but if wading through crowds feels like a marathon effort, try a cultural relay around one of these stunning European cities instead.
The name Bernardo Buontalenti might not mean much to those outside of Florence, but it should. A prestigious Florentine architect and artist favoured by the Medici, he is also widely credited with inventing gelato. This frozen delight is now as synonymous with Italy as pizza and is deeply intertwined with Florence’s heritage. Take a tour of the city’s most celebrated gelaterias, curated by the expert concierge team at Hotel Savoy.
As the gentle glow of each ornate chandelier begins to dim, a hush descends upon the audience before an all-consuming world of tragedy and triumph unfolds. Both exhilarating and deeply moving, a night at the opera has the distinct power to evoke emotion, while offering a unique insight into a perhaps unfamiliar city.
Journey through Europe’s symphony of unmissable opera houses, each steeped in history and grandeur.
