Panettone Bread & Butter Pudding

Walking into my Nana’s kitchen through the back door on the evening of the second Sunday of December annually would always make my eyes pop. Even though I knew what awaited I would eagerly skip through the side gate running through the flowers, past the heaving plum tree and up the four steps through their back door. Joining my cousins, aunties and uncles in my Nana and Papa’s small kitchen my eyes would fall longingly on the kitchen table covered in every dessert imaginable. Everyone would gather and mingle sharing stories of the year and season’s preparations. We’d all eagerly await the full compliment of family members to arrive before being seated with Uncle Ron’s rousing “howdy folks,” always the final greeting and signal that everyone was in attendance. I suspect he would watch from his front window next door until everyone had arrived before making his cheery entrance seemingly enjoying the groan, jeers and laughter his late would always elicit. Dinner was always a classic traditional roast served on a collection of trestle tables and fold up card tables all dressed in the finest family linens kept only for this annual evening and my Papa’s birthday in December. Plates were passed down the line until everyone was served and the accompanying silence a sign of the enjoyment of nana’s days of labour creating our Christmas feast. While we all munched happily we’d all be preoccupied with that kitchen table. My Nana’s love language was food before love languages were a thing. She’d toil for the week leading up to our celebration ensuring that everyone was served their favourite dessert. There’d always be plum pudding for Papa, a collection of slices for one family, another set of cousins eagerly feasted on loganberry pie and my brother and I would tuck in to apple pie with custard.

This tradition that we all still reminisce about is my strongest Christmas dinner memory and one of the biggest lessons I learnt from her. To make the time to make sure there’d always be everyone’s favourites at the table at the one time of the year where there can never be enough food or delicious desserts on offer.

In the spirit of this tradition I’ve tried to create some of my own favourites that we can look forward to every year. And so I offer you my personal favourite, Panettone Bread and Butter pudding. A smorgasbord of Christmas flavours and comfort food all rolled into one using the traditional Italian Christmas bread and the English method of baking old bread in a custard mixture. It can be made ahead and warmed on the day and can even double as breakfast served with yoghurt….or cream and custard because its Christmas and we’re not going to split dairy hairs.

Dating back to the Middle Ages Pane di Toni (as it was originally named after the young chef who invented the dish) Panettone has evolved through time to become as big a part of Christmas food traditions as Roast Turkey, Plum Pudding, Egg Nog and any other delicious Christmas treat you can imagine. The citrus and fruit flavours reminiscent of the heavier plum pudding or fruit cake options bring a seasonal zing baked in the custard laced with a little hint of spiced rum and tang from a sprinkling of dried cranberries. Inspired by Stephanie Alexander’s Bread and Butter pudding this is my Christmas take on the classic.

1 medium sized traditional panettone – I use this one which weighs in at 700gm

50 gm butter very soft for spreading

3 large eggs

1 ½ cups thickened cream

1/2 cup milk of your choice

¼ c caster sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp spiced rum

1 Tb dried cranberries

1Tb sliced or slivered almonds

1-2 Tb of raw sugar crystals

Preheat oven to 180c.

Prepare a ceramic or glass baking dish greasing well with batter. I used a 24 cm round as pictured.

Combine eggs, cream, milk, vanilla, sugar and rum and whisk well. Allow to sit while you construct the pudding.

Halve your loaf from top to bottom creating two half circle pieces. Slice each piece in thick slices approximately 2cm thick. Spread each slice with softened butter. The block type that you’d bake with not the spreading type from a tub…because it’s Christmas. Lay slices in dish sprinkling cranberries over first layer of slices then top with a second layer of bread.

Pour custard mixture over bread evenly and gently press bread slices with your flat hand to help the bread absorb the custard. Allow to sit for at least 10 minutes while you clean up, or even a couple hours in the fridge, so all the custard has soaked into the panettone. Just before placing in the oven sprinkle over the raw sugar and almonds, bake 45 minutes.

Check the pudding after 20 minutes to check how it’s browning. My oven can be quite warm at the back so I always rotate it half way through so it browns eavenly.

Allow to sit for half an hour before breaking into it to allow it to firm up a little making it easier to serve.

Notes:

Use heavy cream or whipping cream in place of what we call ‘thickened cream’ if you’re reading from the northern hemisphere.

If you’re panettone is little plainer in flavour you can add a tsp of freshy grated orange rind to the custard.

For a richer pudding spread marmalade or a Christmas flavoured jam on half the slices. Cherry or redcurrant jam works well.

If you prefer an alternative to the cranberries halved pitted cherries are delicious dotted through the pudding between bread layers.

Brandy can be used in place of the rum or omitted if you prefer.