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Pan dulce
Pan dulce: tall Argentine Christmas sweet bread with candied fruit, raisins and nuts
ArgentinianNo Argentine Christmas Eve table is complete without a pan dulce, set out at midnight with turrón, nuts and a cold cider for the adults. The bread is the River Plate take on Genoese pandolce and Milanese panettone: a tall, buttery yeast dough scented with orange blossom and lemon, packed with candied fruit, raisins and walnuts. The crumb is closer and moister than panettone, and it keeps for a week wrapped in a cloth. Allow a long day, as the dough has a sponge and two rises. Some bakers soak the fruit in rum or sweet wine; here it is soaked in orange juice, so the bread is alcohol-free. People often add the fruit at the start of kneading, which shreds the gluten and gives a heavy, sunken loaf; work it in only once the dough is silky. Chef's tip: bake it in a tall paper mould or a 16 cm tin lined with a collar of baking paper, and turn it upside down onto a rack for the first 20 minutes of cooling so the top does not sink.
- Total time
- 295 min
- Difficulty
- hard
- Serves
- 12
Ingredients
For the sponge
For the dough
For the fruit
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Method
0/9 doneStep 1: Mix ⅓ oz dried yeast, ½ cup whole milk and about 110 g of the flour (3 ⅞ oz strong white bread flour) in a large bowl. Cover and leave for 30 minutes, until bubbly and risen.
30 minStep 2: Put 4 oz raisins and 5 ½ oz mixed candied fruit in a small bowl with ¼ cup orange juice and leave them to plump while you make the dough.
Step 3: Add 4 oz caster sugar, 3 eggs, 1 tbsp honey, 1 tbsp orange blossom water, 2 tsp orange and lemon zest and 1 tsp salt to the sponge, then the rest of 15 ½ oz strong white bread flour. Knead for 10 minutes by hand or 6 in a mixer, until the dough is smooth but still sticky.
10 minStep 4: Knead in 4 oz unsalted butter a spoonful at a time, then keep kneading until the dough is silky and stretches into a thin sheet without tearing.
8 minStep 5: Drain the fruit well, pat it dry and knead it in with 2 ⅞ oz walnuts on a lightly floured worktop, folding gently until spread evenly.
Step 6: Put the dough in a buttered bowl, cover and leave in a warm place for 1½–2 hours, until doubled.
120 minStep 7: Knock the dough back gently, shape it into a tight ball and drop it into a 16 cm paper mould or lined tall tin. Press 1 oz whole almonds into the top if using. Cover and leave for about 1 hour, until it has risen almost to the rim.
60 minStep 8: Heat the oven to 350°F (325°F fan). Cut a shallow cross in the top and bake for 50–55 minutes, until deep brown and a skewer pushed into the centre comes out clean. Cover loosely with foil if it darkens too fast.
55 minStep 9: Cool upside down on a rack for 20 minutes, then the right way up until completely cold. Slice thinly to serve.
20 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 390 kcal
- Protein
- 8 g
- Carbs
- 60 g
- Fat
- 13 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does pan dulce take?
- About 295 minutes in total: 240 minutes to prepare and 55 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 12 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- What can I use instead of whole milk?
- Semi-skimmed milk with 1 tbsp cream per 240ml (1 cup).
- What can I use instead of strong white bread flour?
- Plain flour, same amount (the dough will be softer and rise a little less).
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