This Christmat holiday was kind of speical. We did't get white Chrismas and the weather is warmer than normal. I felt very relaxing since there was no out of town travelling and no big party. I watched the White Christmas shared by WaterFowl and listen to the songs and musics shared by friends in MYSJ.
Besides that, I have done something I am proud of myself. In the morning of Dec 24, I ran 5K to the GYM and then stayed in the swimming pool for 1 hour. I could not say I swam for 1 hour because I was still learning swimming. After that I took a 45 minutes station-bike group class for . In the afternoon, I made some holiday sweets- Almond cookie and Panettone cake. They might not look that good, but tasted really good.
On the day of Chrismas, the gym was close. In the morning, I ran in our neighborhood. I am not a runner. I only run occationally for 1k, 2k, 3k or 4k, maximum 5k depending of the result of mental fight. This day, since I had time and the weather was not very cold, I decided to see if I was able to run 10k. Guess what? I did it. In the afternoon, I started prepared the Christmas dinner.
Since there was only three of us, I didn't make many dishes. But still I baked a small fresh turkey ( 9lb). This probably the third turkey I baked in the past 20 years. Most time I baked duck , instend of turkey.
Holiday Sweets:
Turkey:
Others:
Thank you for reading! Happy Holiday!
Traditional Panettone Recipe ( Italian Christmas Cake):
Traditional Panettone Recipe (Italian Christmas Cake) - CucinaByElena
The night before baking:
DOUGH STARTER
- ¾ cup (90 g) unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more if needed to feed the starter
- 1/16 teaspoon (just a pinch) of instant yeast
- ? cup (80 g) of cool water
MIX-INS
- ½ tablespoon grated zest of (about 1 lemon)
- 1 tablespoon grated zest of (about 1 orange)
- 2 tablespoon honey
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Baking day
FOR THE DOUGH
- All of the dough starter (above)
- 3 cups (384 g) all-purpose flour, divided
- ½ cup (135 g) of lukewarm water
- 1 tablespoon instant yeast
- ? cup (67 g) granulated sugar
- 1 ¼ teaspoon (8 g) salt
- 5 egg yolks, room temperature
- 8 tablespoons (113 g) butter, softened
MIX-IN (see notes for variations)
- ½ cup (85 g) raisins + 3 tablespoons water
- ½ cup (85 g) candied orange peel, finely chopped
TOPPING
- 1 egg, beaten (egg wash)
- 1 pat of butter for topping
- Pearl sugar
-
INSTRUCTIONS
The night before baking
- Dough Starter: Combine the starter ingredients in a medium-sized mixing bowl, mix with a fork until a shaggy mixture. Cover, and allow it to rest in a warm place for 8-12 hours. This is called your biga- a type of pre-fermentation. You can also use a sourdough starter if you have some and skip this step (use 190 g of the starter if you have it already).
- Prepare Mix-Ins: In a small bowl, combine the honey, vanilla extract, orange peel, and lemon + orange zest. Mix to combine. Cover and set aside. In a separate bowl, combine raisins with water. Cover and set aside. This step makes sure the raisins stay moist during baking. Let them rest overnight.
Baking day
- Dough Part 1 and 1st rise: in a stand mixer with a dough hook, combine the dough starter (biga), half of the flour, and all of the water and yeast. Mix until combined, and knead with the dough hook (or by hand) for about 5 minutes. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 1 hour in a warm place. The dough should triple in size.
- Dough Part 2: After the dough rises for 1 hr, add the rest of the flour and mix to combine. The dough will look shaggy and crumbly. Let rest for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, beat the egg yolks, salt, and sugar in a medium bowl until fluffy and creamy, about 5 minutes. Add the honey, candied orange, and zest mixture to the beaten eggs and stir until combined.
- Slowly add the egg and orange mixture to the dough. Mix with a dough hook until the dough is sticky and uniform; mix with a dough hook (or by hand) for about 5 minutes. The dough will be sticky, and it will take several minutes to come together, about 10 minutes of kneading!
