Flour, Flour Everywhere...

Hungry yet?

My panettone, an Italian sweet bread with dried fruit served at Christmas, is rising.  I must admit, I am a little nervous.  The starter was dry this morning, because I left it on the radiator all night.  After I put some water on it, the starter began to bubble, so hopefully my bread will turn out alright.

Christmas has many wonderful traditions and baking special foods is only the beginning.  I remember my great grandmother, who was from southern Italy, made hairy spaghetti, calamari and an assortment of Christmas cookies for Christmas Eve.  The smell of anchovies (it's what makes the spaghetti hairy), fish and sugar, lingered throughout the house.  The blending of the smells was never offensive, with it being just enough to make anyone begin to salivate.

My great grandmother never made panettone, at least not from what I remember.  My father remembers his aunt baking it one year, but the bread  never became a family staple.  Since panettone originated in the northern city of Milan, it wasn't popular in Naples at the turn of the last century.  While I still plan on serving hairy spaghetti for Christmas Eve, I'm hoping panettone will become a new family tradition.

"I will save you from destitution with bread!"~Ughetto

Like many traditional foods, panettone has several legends on how it came into being.  My favorite one is a love story between Ughetto (love the name), a Milan nobleman and poor baker's daughter, Adalgisa.  According to the legend, the bakery was struggling to survive, when Ughetto, pretending to be a mere apprentice to be closer to his love, invented a sweet bread with currents, raisins and dried citrons.  This new bread was a huge success, the bakery survived and Ughetto and Adalgisa married.  Who doesn't like a story like that?

Panettone, however, probably wasn't invented by a single person, but evolved over the ages.  According to the Gourmet Traveler, panettone has its origins in ancient Rome.  Leavened bread was often sweetened with honey during Roman times and this tradition continued in Italy throughout the Middle Ages.  Eventually in 16th century Milan, eggs, butter and dried fruit were added to the sweetened bread.  Since this bread contained expensive fruits, it was made primarily at Christmas to show off a person's wealth.  Yea... I liked the first story better.  It actually sounds more Italian, but I digress...

While panettone was popular in northern Italy, it took two rival bakers, Angelo Motta and Gioacchino Alemagna, to make panettone popular throughout Italy.  In the beginning of the 20th century, both bakers began producing the bread commercially throughout Italy and it became an instant sensation.  Today, panettone is a Christmas staple throughout Italy and where ever Italian immigrants have settled.  If you decide to make it, I recommend King Arthur Flour's recipe.  It has been Americanized, because not many Americans eat dried citron and peels.  Their recipe, however, is easy to follow and all of their recipes have been tested by expert.  In my next post I'll tell you how it turned out.  Wish me luck!