Each chef has his own gourmet recipes of the most popular Italian traditional cake for the holiday season
All of them received one or more of the coveted Michelin stars as a reward for their impressive cooking skills. And all of them decide to use these skills to devise unique recipes of the most popular Italian traditional cake for the holiday season, the Panettone. Here are the proposals of three of the best chefs in the Belpaese.
Maximilian Alajmo, three stars at ‘Le Calandre’ (Padua) – “For us, the panettone is an aromatic container. Thus, we always try to experiment with an intriguing content of aromas that reflects the research of the kitchen.” This year, his novelty is called ‘Tosto.’ It is made with plum oil, coffee scent, and black pepper. It is an intriguing panettone with almond glaze and a toasted aroma. But he still offers the ‘Arlecchino’ with extra virgin olive oil and candied orange and citron; the ‘Moro di Venezia’ with butter, marasca cherries and chocolate chips, and a sort of cocoa shortbread; and the Marrakech with hazelnut praline butter, candied cherries, and coffee powder.
Panettone: the proposals of three of the best chefs in the Belpaese
Rocco De Santis, two stars at ‘Santa Elisabetta’ (Florence) – His is a semi-classical panettone, embellished with candied apricots from the Vesuvius area, which are a tribute to his Campania origins. Aside from this, it is a traditional Milanese style panettone, without any glaze, and made only with sourdough and selected raw materials. The pastry chef who prepares it is Francesca Benedettelli.
Alessandro Negrini and Fabio Pisani, two stars at ‘Il Luogo di Aimo e Nadia’ (Milan) – They have been making their own panettone for three years. It is made with the best raw material, few sugars, and a faithful execution to the taste, according to the philosophy of the restaurant. This year, the new version is enriched with saffron and candied orange, which, together with the traditional one, becomes a means of communication. They are testimonials for the Fondazione Ricerca Fibrosi Cistica (foundation for cystic fibrosis research). Alessandro Negrini said: “It is a time when, apart from Covid-19, it is good to remember that many people are waiting for a cure”.
Ilona Catani Scarlett