Chocolate Panettone

Panettone is such a delicious Christmas treat – part bread, part cake, part stunning centrepiece and not too sweet to boot – perfect for all manner of occasions. Last year I devised a fabulous traditional Panettone recipe, filled with dried fruits and mixed peel and whilst the adults all thought it was spot on, the children were not so impressed with the dried fruit content. So surely a chocolate chip version would please all members of the household?

I have to say, this recipe makes a knock out delicious Panettone – well worth the minimal effort to make a friendly home-made version.

Happy Christmas to all my lovely readers. Have a restful, joyous and safe festive season x

Chocolate Chip Panettone (dairy-free, egg-free, nut-free, soya-free, sesame-free, vegetarian and vegan)

• 500g plain flour
• 1/2 cup caster sugar
• 1 tbsp yeast
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup oat milk, warmed to body temperature
• 1/4 cup dairy-free spread
• Zest of 1 lemon and 1 clementine
• 1/3 cup dairy-free dark chocolate, roughly chopped

– Sift the flour into a big bowl.
– Stir in the sugar, yeast and salt.
– Pour in the warm oat milk, dairy-free spread and zests and bring together to form a smooth and elastic dough.
– Knead in the chocolate until it is are evenly distributed
– Leave in a warm place to double in size.

– Knock back and form into a smooth ball. Place in a greased slightly narrow, tall tin.
– Leave to rise again until it fills the tin. An hour in a warm place should be adequate
– Brush the top with oat milk and sprinkle with a little granulated sugar.
– Place in a preheated oven (190 degrees centigrade/gas mark 5) for 45-50 minutes, until golden and cooked through (it will sound hollow when tapped on the bottom.)