In the 1920's Angelo Motta changed the process of making the a traditional sweet bread by letting it rise 3 times which takes 20 hours. He and rival, Gioacchino Alemagna, industrialized the process. With enough competition, the prices dropped and by the end of WWII, it became one of the most popular sweets in Italy. (Motta & Alemagna's brands were bought by Nestle, and later were bought by Verona-based brand, Bauli.)
I went to the 5th Annual King Panettone, Festival of Milanese Desserts, this weekend. It featured 36 pastry shops offering free tastings. It was filled with women, couples, and families looking to partake in the sampling and purchase their Christmas panettone. All of the panettoni were made without preservatives or emulsifiers (an additive used to keep oil and water mixed together, eg, mayo). After walking around and sampling them all, I decided on 1 kilo of the Star of Vesuvius, made with apricots from the pastry shop of the year in Italy, 2010-2011, Sal de Riso, from Tramonti, Salerno, Campania, near where my great-grandmother was born. Their chef, featured here in a video on the right from the 2010 fesitival, was there serving the slices of panettone. I also sampled the limoncello, mixed berry, and the classic ones. Their panettoni were fresh and soft. Delicious.
And then I bought a half a kilo of the classic panettone from Morandin located in Saint Vincent, Valle d'Aosta (northwestern Italy). The renowned Italian wine and food magazine, il Gambero Rosso (The Red Lobster) has declared Morandin's classic panettone as the best in Italy, and the best in the last 50 years. The Gambero Rosso conferred on them this distinction for their making and using their own natural yeast and candied Sicilian oranges. The gal at their table was very nice; she explained this to me English and told me to visit Valle d'Aosta where you can ski and eat panettone. And they're awaiting my visit! (Vi aspettiamo). :)
Here's a recipe of theirs: il panettone a lievitazione naturale di Rolando Morandin.
Comi Pasticceria's classic panettone had a nice, moist, buttery flavor. And Pasticceria Martesana had a soft, sweet flavor. Budget limitations prohibited me from buying some to bring home to my family for Christmas.
Inspired to celebrate Christmas Italian-style and cook your own? Here are step by step instructions.
This is in Italian.
This one is in English.
Buon Cucina!
Some of my sources:
