{"id":32052,"date":"2021-12-05T18:19:31","date_gmt":"2021-12-05T17:19:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tortelliniandco.com\/?p=32052"},"modified":"2025-12-20T15:18:38","modified_gmt":"2025-12-20T14:18:38","slug":"panone-cake-recipe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tortelliniandco.com\/en\/panone-cake-recipe\/","title":{"rendered":"Panone cake. The Christmas cake of Bologna from cucina povera"},"content":{"rendered":"

Panone and Certosino are traditional Christmas cakes from Bologna.<\/span><\/p>\n

Similar yet different.<\/span><\/p>\n

Panone was the sweet of the Bolognese countryside, while Certosino was from the city.<\/span><\/p>\n

Both recipes are ancient and belong to the Northern European tradition of cakes made with dried and candied fruit, honey, and wine. They have a rich, slightly old-fashioned flavor, but, contrary to what you might imagine, they also have a contemporary taste.<\/span><\/p>\n

You won’t find eggs or butter in these recipes. If you replace the honey with maple syrup, you’ll have a vegan dessert. Finally, the taste is not sugary but, on the contrary, rich in aromas and spices.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

The traditional Panone of Bologna<\/strong><\/h4>\n

The name Panone means big bread. <\/span>It was the cake that, once a year, even farmers could afford, and it was large in size to satisfy large families.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

While Certosino originated within the walls of the Certosa Abbey in Bologna, where the monks had access to precious ingredients such as candied fruit and spices, Panone is a peasant recipe.<\/span><\/p>\n

It is no coincidence that Certosino was the special bread appreciated by the Popes of Rome.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

On the contrary, the ancient dough of the Bolognese Panone did not contain candied fruit, and the garnish was simpler as well.<\/span> Then, starting in the second half of the 20th century, as wealth spread, some began to enrich Panone with candied fruit that <\/span>originally belonged only to Certosino.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

To avoid confusing the two traditions, I prefer to make Panone the old-fashioned way, with only dried fruit.<\/span><\/p>\n

It is often possible to find another recent variation of the recipe: the version with eggs or milk.<\/span><\/p>\n

As with Certosino, honey and jam are used in Panone to bind the other ingredients together. A significant difference concerns the yeast, which is present in Panone but only in modest quantities in Certosino.<\/span><\/p>\n