Pandolce Genovese - An Italian Christmas Bread

Pandolce Genovese is a typical holiday bread from the Liguria region of Italy. It is filled with sweet raisins and pine nuts. Really easy to put together and delicious on Christmas morning.

This lovely Italian Christmas bread called Pandolce Genovese is part of  our Favorite Italian Christmas Dessert series. I recently shared our Lemon Cornmeal Cookies (gluten-free!) and also our favorite Italian Lemon Knot Cookies-Taralli al Limone

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Christmas time has always been my favorite season, but not because of the presents. It's the baking that fills our home with warmth - trays of cookies, special Christmas breads, and always a loaf of Pandolce Genovese cooling on the counter.

I've been lucky enough to spend Christmas in Italy, wandering through sparkling streets, visiting markets selling artisan sweets and gifts, and tasting every panettone or pandoro offered to us. Pandolce Genovese feels like home to me. It's simple, fragrant, studded with fruit and nuts, and perfect with an afternoon espresso during the holidays.

This recipe is part of our Favorite Italian Christmas Desserts collection. If you love this bread, don't miss our Lemon Cornmeal Cookies, Italian Lemon Knot Cookies, my suocera's Nocatole, and the Calabrian Pitta 'Impigliata - all cherished recipes we bake every December.

What does panettone mean?

Panettone derives from the Italian word "panetto", a small loaf bread. I love panettone and pandoro and we will bake a panettone this Christmas.

Why You'll Love This Pandolce Genovese

• Authentic Ligurian recipe that gives you the true flavor of a classic Italian Christmas bread.
• Simple to make compared to panettone or pandoro, with a shorter rise and no special molds.
• Perfect holiday aroma thanks to citrus, raisins, and orange flower water.
• Dense and flavorful like an Italian fruit bread but softer and more delicate than fruitcake.
• Flexible recipe with easy swaps for nuts, dried fruit, or citrus.

Ingredients

Dough

• ½ teaspoon active dry yeast
• ½ cup warm milk
• ½ cup butter, softened
• ¾ cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon fennel seeds
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 4 teaspoons orange flower water
• 3 ½ cups flour

Filling

• ½ cup dried currants
• ⅓ cup golden raisins
• ⅓ cup finely chopped candied orange peel (or grated zest of one orange)
• ⅓ cup pine nuts (or chopped whole almonds)

Step-by-Step Instructions

• Step 1
  Prepare all filling ingredients and set aside in a small bowl.
• Step 2
  Dissolve the yeast in warm milk and let it rest until foamy, about 10 minutes.
• Step 3
  In a mixer, beat the softened butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
• Step 4
  Add the egg, vanilla, and orange flower water. Mix well.
• Step 5
  Pour in the dissolved yeast mixture. The batter may look slightly curdled.
• Step 6
  Switch to the dough hook and add the flour gradually. Mix until smooth.
• Step 7
  Add the currants, raisins, orange peel, and pine nuts. The dough will be moist.
• Step 8
  Transfer the dough to a large greased bowl, smooth the top, cover with a towel, and let it rise in a warm place for 3-4 hours (it won't rise much; this is normal).
• Step 9
  Preheat the oven to 190°C. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Step 10
  Wet your hands if the dough is sticky. Gently lift it from the bowl and shape it into a 15 cm round loaf.
• Step 11
  Score a tic-tac-toe (#) pattern on top with a sharp knife.
• Step 12
  Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour. If it browns too quickly, lower the oven to 175°C and tent with foil.
• Step 13
  Cool completely. Slice or break into pieces and serve with sweet wine.

Recipe Substitutions & Variations

• Swap cranberries, dried plums, or apricots for the raisins.
• Replace pine nuts with almonds, hazelnuts, or walnuts.
• Add chocolate chips for a modern twist (popular version in Liguria).
• Use baking powder instead of yeast to make pandolce basso instead of pandolce alto.
• Add anise seeds if you like a stronger aromatic note.
• Try adding hazelnuts + chocolate for a Piedmont-inspired version.

Pro Tips

• Keep the dough smooth on top before rising; this helps shape it easily without deflating.
• Wet hands make transferring the sticky dough much easier.
• Check the loaf at 40 minutes and tent with foil if browning too fast.
• The bread improves after 24 hours - the flavors blend beautifully.
• Serve with vin santo, moscato, or strong coffee for the full Italian holiday experience.

FAQ

Freezing & Storing

• Store: Keep in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
• Freeze: Wrap tightly in plastic wrap + foil and freeze up to 2 months.
• Reheat: Warm slices briefly in the oven for that fresh-baked aroma.

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5 from 5 vote

Pandolce Genovese

Pandolce Genovese is a typical holiday bread from the Liguria region of Italy. It is filled with sweet raisins and pine nuts.

Prep Time25 minutes mins

Cook Time50 minutes mins

Rise3 hours hrs

Total Time4 hours hrs 15 minutes mins

Course: Bread

Keyword: artisan bread

Servings: 8

Calories: 311kcal

Author: Lora

Ingredients

DOUGH

• ½ tsp. active dry yeast
• ½ cup warm milk
• ½ cup butter softened plus additional for greasing
• ¾ cup sugar
• 1 tbsp. fennel seeds
• 1 egg lightly beaten
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 4 tsp. orange flower water
• 3 ½ cups flour

FILLING

• ½ cup dried currants
• ⅓ cup golden raisins
• ⅓ cup finely chopped candied I used grated zest from one orange
• orange rind
• ⅓ cup pine nuts I used chopped whole almonds in this one

Instructions

• Prepare the filling ingredients and set aside in a small bowl.
• Dissolve yeast in milk in a small bowl. Set aside until foamy, about 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, beat butter in an electric mixer and gradually add sugar, beating until mixture is light and fluffy. Mix in the egg, vanilla, and orange flower water, and mix thoroughly.
• Add milk and dissolved yeast and mix. (Mixture may appear slightly curdled.)
• Switch to the dough hook and gradually add flour, mixing thoroughly.
• When dough is smooth, mix in currants, raisins, orange rind, and pine nuts. The dough will be moist. Transfer dough to a large greased bowl. Cover with a clean dish towel and set aside in a warm place to rise for 3-4 hours. (Dough may only rise a little; this is a dense bread.)
• When you put the dough in the greased bowl, make sure it is smooth on top because when it ready to bake, you will just transform it directly from the bowl to the parchment lined baking sheet.
• Preheat oven to 375°. Your dough may be sticky. If so, wet your hands before transferring the dough to your parchment lined cookie sheet. Shape into a 6″ round and make a tic-tac-toe (#) pattern on top of the bread with a sharp knife.
• Bake until golden, 45 minutes to 1 hour. *I checked my bread after about 40 minutes and lowered the heat to 350 and tented it with aluminum foil so it wouldn't brown too much more during the remainder of the baking time.
• Cool completely. To serve, cut or break into small pieces and serve with sweet wine, if desired. (Store in an airtight container.)

Nutrition Disclaimer

Please keep in mind that the nutritional information presented below is an approximation and may vary depending on the exact ingredients used.

Notes

• Keep the dough smooth on top before rising; this helps shape it easily without deflating.
• Wet hands make transferring the sticky dough much easier.
• Check the loaf at 40 minutes and tent with foil if browning too fast.
• The bread improves after 24 hours - the flavors blend beautifully.
• Serve with vin santo, moscato, or strong coffee for the full Italian holiday experience.

Nutrition

Calories: 311kcal | Carbohydrates: 75g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 0.03g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.04g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.2g | Sodium: 9mg | Potassium: 162mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 30g | Vitamin A: 9IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 112mg | Iron: 4mg

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