u/yarko3

I've been attempting a traditional, naturally leavened panettone for years and I've finally been able to get consistent results.

It's really a lot of work but the results are truly better than anything I've purchased. Temperature maintenance is key. I also got a small twin arm mixer to knead.

Pasta madre maintenance:

Cold feed 1:2, 45%

Cold rest at 17C (bound)

Bagnetto at 3g/L for 15 min

Warm feed: 1:1, 40%

Warm rest at 29C

All feeds with panettone flour

Scaled for 3 panettones:

First dough

Water 284g, 30C

Flour 530g

Starter 159g

Sugar 155g

Egg yolk 107g

Butter 228g

Total First Dough: 1463g

Second dough

Flour 203g

First dough (all of it)

Sugar 148g

Honey 52g

Egg yolk 128g

Butter 344g

Salt 13g

Raisins 337g

Candied orange 337g

Orange paste 14g

Lemon paste 14g

Vanilla extract 8g

Water 88g (cold (5-10C)

First dough process:

Add water (remember water temp is 30C), flour, leaven. Mix for 7 min on low and 7 min on faster. Make sure starter is well distributed.

add sugar, two additions. Mix for 4 min on low, 3 min on higher.

Add egg in 3 steps, until fully combined. 3 min on low, 3 min on faster for each addition.

Add butter in 3 additions, mix on low for 3 min and high for 3 min.

Leave to ferment at 26-28C (oven with door open)

Second dough process:

Mix first dough and flour for 15-20 min on low.

Add sugar, honey, and 1/3 egg. Mix for 2 min on low and 5 min on faster.

Add third of egg. Mix on low for 2 min, then 5 on higher.

Add butter in 3 stages. Mix on low for 3 min and higher for 3 min for each.

Add remaining yolks. 2 min then 5 min.

Add water slowly, on low speed (5-7 min). Temp it to be cold.

Add fruit. Mix for 3 min on low.

Transfer to container and let bulk ferment for 45 min at 28C.

Divide and preshape and leave out for 20 min.

Shape and place in molds.

Put to rise for 4 hours, at 30C (oven with wooden spoon)

Glaze. DONT FORGET THE POWDERED SUGAR.

Bake for 55 min at 170C (338F) until internal temp is 93C (199.4F). Do not open door for first 40 min.

Skewer and flip.

Hi bread gurus,

I've been attempting a panettone for years with little success. Most recently, I've been developing a stiff starter for a few weeks. I tried baking a panettone with it last week but the first dough did not rise to triple overnight. This was with daily room temp feedings for a few days and three warm feedings before making the first dough. Instead, it had ~50% rise. However, leaving it to ferment for the rest of the day as an experiment did get it to triple closer to the 24 hour mark (12 hours at 26C and 12 hours at room temp after I gave up).

Since then, I've been doing two feedings per day to strengthen the starter (a warm feed at 27C for 4 hours and a cool feed at 16C for 20 hours bound in plastic wrap).

I have a pH meter to test the acidity and it's in the ballpark of what's expected after a 4 hour warm feed (~4.25).

Is there anything else I should be doing to make the starter more robust? Photos are before/after my cool feed at 16C.

Edit: I use Manitoba flour.

Edit 2: all feeds are 1:1:0.45 ratio (pretty standard stiff starter ratio)

Edit 3: pH of 4.15 after latest 4 hour warm feed. Seems pretty optimal.

I've wanted this one since it's launch and I finally tracked down a brand new one in Japan.

Whole wheat: 50g

Bread flour: 450g

140g starter (whole wheat; fed 1:2:2 a few hours before; fed 1:2:2 at least once before that)

Water: 345g (warm 85-90F)

Salt 11g

Autolyse for 1-3 hours

Mix starter and salt with mixer for 10 min

4 folds. 30 min apart

50-75% rise (2-3 hours)

Preshape, then 20 min rest

Final shape

Fridge for 1 day

Preheat pizza steel 450F

Cover with metal bowl and throw ice cubes in there

Bake for 25min (with fan)

Uncover, bake for 20 min without fan (rotating with pizza peel)

Notes:

May 9, 2026

Preferment made with 1:2:2 and water close to 90F about 4 hours before mixing. Autolyse for 4 hours; water close to 90F. Dough temp after mix was 79F. 4 coil folds, every 30 min. Did 3 hours 20 min bulk ferment before pre shape.