Pandoro Recipe

Pandoro is a traditional Italian sweet bread, typically enjoyed during the Christmas season. It has a light, fluffy texture and is often shaped like an eight-pointed star. The name “pandoro” translates to “golden bread,” reflecting its golden appearance. It’s dusted with powdered sugar to enhance its sweetness and is commonly served as a festive dessert in Italy.

I’m using 1kg pandoro mold, and providing the exact amount to fill this mold.  If you need more or less dough, just act accordingly.

Biga 

• 250g strong flour 
• 125g water
• 1g dry instant yeast

First dough 

• 60g  strong panettone flour
• 80g sugar 
• 90g  1 egg+ 3yolks
• 100g soft butter
• 1g dry instant yeast

Second dough

• 70g strong panettone flour
• 1g instant dry yeast
• 10g water
• 5g salt
• 40g yolks 
• 70g sugar
• 100g soft butter 
• 15g honey
• 5g Vanilla paste

Directions

Night before

Prepare biga

• Pour water into the bowl, dissolve yeast in it. 
• Add flour. Knead with your hands. Doughs has to remain lumpy.
• Form a ball, do a cross shaped cut on top, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let ferment for 12-14 hours at 72-76F.

Next morning

First dough

• Biga has to become bigger and lighter.
• Using paddle attachment start mixing biga with yolks, yeast, sugar and flour on low speed for 2-5 min, then increase the speed to medium, continue mixing for 7-10 more minutes until all dough will start to wrap around paddle.
• Add soft butter, keep kneading on medium speed for 7-10 min until dough will wrap the paddle, and the bowl will become clean.
• Dough has to become strong. Not sticky.
• Note: important to not overheating the dough. Check the temperature, it has to be under 80F/27C. If it’s getting too warm, put ice packs under the bowl during mixing.

• Transfer the dough to container, cover and let ferment at 28-30C for 3-4 hours. During that time dough has to rise 3 times (3x)
• When dough have risen, transfer it to the fridge for 30 min to chill.
• Meanwhile measure all the ingredients for second dough.

Second dough

• Mix first dough with flour on low speed for 3-5 minutes.
• Add sugar, knead on slow speed for 3-5 minutes. Dough should look strong and shiny.
• Add soft butter, increase the speed to medium, keep kneading 3-5 min, until all butter will be incorporated and dough will start to wrap the paddle.
• Add yolks and yeast, increase the speed to medium, continue kneading for 3-5 minutes, until well incorporated.
• Add honey and salt, keep kneading 5-7 minutes. Dough should look strong and wrap paddle attachment.
• Note: keep monitoring the temperature of the dough. It shouldn’t go higher 80F/27C

Preshaping and shaping 

• Turn the dough onto well buttered surface. 
• Preshape the dough , creating tight ball. Let rest uncovered for 20 min.
• Meanwhile prepare pandoro mold, by spraying it with nonstick oil.
• Note: The amount of this dough should be around 950. Which will be enough to fill 1 pandoro mold ( 1000g )
• Shape the dough by creating a tight ball. Place it into the pandoro mold.
• Let proof for 4-6 hours, until dough will reach 5cm from the top of the mold at 30C.
• Bake at 350F for 30 min, lower temperature to 330F, cover the top of pandoro with foil, continue baking for 25-30 more minutes until internal temperature will reach 99F.
• Remove pandoro from the oven, let rest in mold for 20 min, shake well and flip it upside down. Let cool off completely, sprinkle with powdered sugar and enjoy.

If you feel that you need additional information on how to prepare stiff starter (lievito madre) from scratch with only apples, water and flour, how to properly mix the ingredients, or want to review detailed step by step video instructions on this topic please consider my Pandoro Panettone Course.

Traditional Italian Pandoro

2027kcal

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Prep 1 hour hr

Cook 1 hour hr

Total 1 day d 30 minutes mins

A spectacular, sky-high Italian holiday classic. Named “golden bread” (pan d’oro) for its brilliant yellow interior, this sweet bread features a rich, melt-in-your-mouth brioche texture with a wonderfully cloud-like crumb. Made using a three-stage fermentation process, it is baked in a traditional eight-pointed star mold and finished with a heavy dusting of powdered sugar.

Servings 1 Pandoro

Cuisine Italian (Veronese)

Ingredients

1x2x3x

The Overnight Biga (Stage 1)

• ▢ 250 g Strong bread flour
• ▢ 125 g Water
• ▢ 1 g Dry Instant Yeast

The First Dough (Stage 2)

• ▢ All of the Overnight Biga (from Stage 1)
• ▢ 60 g Strong panettone flour (or high-protein bread flour)
• ▢ 80 g Sugar
• ▢ 90 g Egg blend (Exactly 1 whole egg + 3 large yolks)
• ▢ 1 g Dry Instant Yeast
• ▢ 100 g Unsalted butter (softened to room temperature)

The Second Dough (Stage 3)

• ▢ All of the Chilled First Dough (from Stage 2)
• ▢ 120 g Strong panettone flour (or high-protein bread flour)
• ▢ 10 g Water
• ▢ 40 g Sugar
• ▢ 80 g Unsalted butter (softened to room temperature)
• ▢ 60 g Egg yolks (approx. 3 large yolks)
• ▢ 1 g Dry Instant Yeast
• ▢ 15 g Honey
• ▢ 5 g Salt
• ▢ 1 tsp Vanilla Extract

Topping

• ▢ Confectioners’ sugar (for dusting)

Equipment

• ▢
  1kg Star-Shaped Pandoro Mold Traditional 8-pointed tall metal baking mold
• ▢
  Stand Mixer with paddle attachment
• ▢
  Digital Instant-Read Thermometer Crucial for monitoring internal dough temp
• ▢
  Ice Packs Used underneath the mixer bowl to prevent overheating
• ▢
  Kitchen Scale

Method

Prevent Sleep ModePrevent Sleep Mode

Step 1 – The Biga

1. Mix & Cut: In a small bowl, dissolve 1g of yeast into the water. Stir in the 250g of strong flour and mix with your hands. The dough should remain slightly lumpy. Form it into a ball, cut a clean cross shape on the top surface, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and let ferment for 12–14 hours at 72–76°F (22–24°C).

Step 2 – The First Dough

1. Knead: Next morning, check that the biga is light and expanded. Transfer the biga to your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the eggs/yolks, yeast, sugar, and flour. Mix on low speed for 2–5 minutes, then increase to medium and knead for 7–10 minutes until the dough strengthens and wraps completely around the paddle.
2. Add Butter: Add the 100g of soft butter chunks. Continue mixing on medium speed for 7–10 minutes until the fat is fully emulsified, the bowl is completely clean, and the dough is strong and non-sticky. (Keep internal dough temperature below 80°F / 27°C).
3. Warm & Cold Proof: Move the dough to a container. Cover and let ferment at 82–86°F (28–30°C) for 3–4 hours until it triples (3x) in volume. Once risen, move the container to the refrigerator for 30 minutes to chill before the final mix.

Step 3 – The Second Dough

1. Flour Mix: Place your chilled first dough into the mixer bowl. Add the 120g of flour and mix on low speed for 3–5 minutes to integrate.
2. Sugar Mix: Add the 40g of sugar and knead on low speed for 3–5 minutes until the dough looks glossy and elastic.
3. Butter Emulsion: Add the 80g of softened butter, turn the mixer to medium speed, and knead for 3–5 minutes until the butter incorporates and the dough starts to wrap around the paddle.
4. Yolks & Aromatics: Add the egg yolks and 1g of yeast. Knead on medium speed for 3–5 minutes. Finally, stream in the water, honey, salt, and vanilla extract, kneading for 5–7 more minutes until the strong dough cleans the bowl and firmly holds the paddle.

Step 4 – Shaping & Baking

1. Rest: Turn the dough out onto a well-buttered surface. Preshape it into a smooth, tight round ball. Let it rest uncovered on the counter for 20 minutes. Generously spray your 1kg Pandoro mold with non-stick baking oil.
2. Mold Proof: Re-roll the rested dough into a very tight, smooth ball (total weight should be around 950g). Place it smooth-side down into the greased star mold. Let it proof at 86°F (30°C) for 4–6 hours until the highest dome of the dough rises to exactly 5cm (2 inches) below the top rim of the mold.
3. Bake Staged: Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Bake the pandoro for 30 minutes. Gently tent the top of the mold with aluminum foil, lower the oven temperature to 330°F (165°C), and continue baking for 25–30 minutes until a digital probe thermometer registers an internal core temperature of 210°F (99°C).
4. Invert: Cool inside the metal mold for 20 minutes. Give the pan a firm shake to loosen the sides, flip it upside down onto a wire rack, and slide the mold off. Let cool completely before applying a thick blanket of confectioners’ sugar.

Nutrition

Calories2027kcalCarbohydrates136gProtein15gFat163gSaturated Fat98gPolyunsaturated Fat8gMonounsaturated Fat45gTrans Fat6gCholesterol1043mgSodium411mgPotassium226mgFiber1gSugar133gVitamin A5370IUVitamin C0.3mgCalcium136mgIron2mg

Notes

• Crucial Dough Temperature Control: High-fat holiday doughs are very sensitive to friction heat generated by stand mixers. If the dough passes 80°F (27°C), the butter will break its emulsion and melt out, ruining the structure. Always use cold or room-temperature ingredients, and pack the bottom of your mixer bowl with ice packs or frozen gel wraps during the long medium-speed kneading phases to keep things cool.
• Using Fresh/Live Yeast: If you prefer using traditional fresh cake yeast instead of commercial dry instant yeast, you can easily substitute it. Increase the weight from 1g of instant yeast to 4g of live fresh yeast for each of the three stages, dissolving it completely into your liquid components before adding flours.
• Flour Requirements: To support the structural weight of the massive amount of butter, sugar, and egg yolks in this recipe, you must use high-strength flour. Look for specialized Italian Panettone flour (Tipo 00 with a W rating of 340–380) or a premium domestic bread flour boasting a high protein content of at least 13% to 14%.
• The Traditional Serving Ritual: Because of its high butter content, Pandoro is best enjoyed slightly warm. Before slicing and serving, place the sugar-dusted star loaf (or individual star wedges) near a warm oven or radiator for 15 minutes. This softens the internal fats, creating an unbelievably pillowy, melt-in-your-mouth texture.

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