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CHOCOLATE PANETTONE

CHOCOLATE PANETTONE - NO MOLD, NO KNEAD

Soft and fluffy Italian Panettone recipe with Chocolate made without mold in a super easy way without a stand mixer and without kneading!
Panettone is the most iconic Italian Christmas recipe, a delicious buttery brioche dough traditionally enriched with candied orange, cedar and raisins, but in this recipe I substitute candied fruit with chocolate: the perfect treat for chocolate lovers!
The traditional Italian Panettone is very difficult and long to prepare, you could need many days since it's made with sourdough, not with yeast, and you usually need a professional stand mixer.
But don't worry, because with this easy recipe made with yeast, without kneading and made in a homemade mold, you'll get a delicious real Panettone with the classic original Italian flavor!
Here you can also find the original Italian Panettone Frosting recipe we use in Italy to serve Panettone, and here the traditional Panettone recipe with candied fruit.
If you can't eat eggs, check out my Eggless Panettone recipe!
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 30 mins
Cook Time 50 mins
Rising Time 8 hrs
Total Time 9 hrs 20 mins
Course Dessert
Cuisine Italian
Servings 12 Servings
Calories 325 kcal

Equipment

  • Parchment paper
  • Stapler
  • Ruler, scissor, pencil
  • 17cm-6,5inch springform cake pan (optional)
  • OR 1 kg traditional Panettone paper mold

Ingredients
  

  • 180 g (3/4 cup) lukewarm water
  • 18 g (1 tbsp) honey
  • 7 g (2 tsp) active dry yeast or instant dry yeast
  • 140 g (2/3 cup) sugar
  • 70 g (4) egg yolks at room temperature, beaten
  • The zest from 1 orange grated
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 420-440 g (4 cups) strong bread flour with 14 g of protein I've used Manitoba flour. If you can't find this type of flour, use a bread flour with high protein amount (13-14 g).
  • 110 g (1/2 cup) unsalted butter softened or melted
  • 180 g (1+1/4 cups) chocolate chunks

Instructions
 

Make the mold

  • Grease a 17cm-6,5inch springform pan* with butter and line the bottom with parchment paper. *If you don't have a 17cm-6,5inch springform pan, you can make the Panettone mold only using parchment paper by following the method I show in this recipe video.
  • Cut a 58x24 cm-23x9,5 inch rectangle with parchment paper.
  • Longwise fold in two: you get a 58x12cm-23x4,7inch rectangle.
  • Press and slide your fingers over the fold: this encourage the rectangle to easily close and shape into a ring.
  • Stick the parchment paper rectangle onto the sides of the springform pan to create a high paper sides; overlapping the rectangle and use a stapler to secure it. You get a 17x12cm-6,7x4,7inch Panettone mold!

Make Panettone

  • In a large bowl, dissolve honey in water, add the yeast and wait 10 minutes to activate the yeast. The waiting time is optional and you can skip it if you use instant yeast or if your active dry yeast doesn't need to be activated.
  • Add sugar, beaten eggs and mix until well combined. Then add vanilla, orange zest and mix until combined.
  • Add flour in 3 times: use a strong bread flour with about 14 g of pretein amount (like Manitoba).
  • Gradually incorporate the melted butter in about 3-4 times: be patient, you should mix with a spatula some minutes beofre the butter is completely incorporated into the dough. You get a very very sticky dough, more similar to a thick batter than a dough: it's ok!
  • Using a spatula, mix the dough for some minutes until become less sticky.
  • Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rise in a warm place for about 1,30 or 2 hours.
  • Place the chocolate chunks onto a lined baking sheet and put in freezer until the dough is ready.
  • After the first dough rising time, the dough is more shiny and a bit less sticky. Invert it onto your work surface (I suggest to use a silicone mat since the dough is still a bit sticky) and, helping with a spatula, you can make some folds to get a more elastic dough.
    If you have a stand mixer, instead of making folds, you can knead it at medium speed until pulls away from the bowl and becomes more shiny and elastic, about 15-20 minutes. This kneading time is OPTIONAL! I didn't make it in the recipe video and, as you saw, my Panettone turned out soft and delicious.
  • Gently form the dough into a large rectangle and place the frozen chocolate chunks on top. Fold the rectangle dough with the chocolate chunks inside and form into a ball.
  • Transfer the dough ball into the prepared mold.
  • Cover with plastic wrap and place in refrigerator to rise overnight (you can leave it in the fridge from 8 to 20 hours). Remember to let it rest at room temperature for at least 2-3 hours before bake it.
    Alternatively you can let it rise quickly in a warm place: it's ready when the dough reaches 1-2cm from the top of the mold.
  • When Panettone rised and it's ready, remove the plastic wrap on top and let the top dry at room temperature for 20-30 minutes.
  • Using a blade, score a cross on top of panettone and place a piece of cold butter on top.
  • Bake in preheated oven (no fan, upper+lower heat) at 160°C-320°F for 50 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.
  • After about 25 minutes that it's baking, cover Panettone on top with a double aluminium foil to prevent burns.
  • Cool down for at least 2 hours before slice it and serve it.
    If you've used a traditional panettone paper mold, you can skewer panettone - immediately when comes out from the oven - at 1cm-0,5 inch from the bottom with two long knitting needles and invert panettone upside down over two paper towel rolls (watch this video to see the technique): in this way your panettone won't become flat on top.
    If you've used a homemade parchment paper mold, you can't cool it down upside down.

Video

Notes

Store at room temperature wrapped in plastic wrap and closed in a plastic bag for 3 days.
If it dries out a bit the days after, you can slice it and heat in a toaster or under the grill of the oven: it will be delicious!