Panforte is a Christmas Fruit Cake originating from Siena Italy. This recipe is made with mixed dry fruits,nuts,candied peel and spices like Traditional British Christmas Cake but the texture and taste completely differs.This Christmas Cake is chewy in texture with the combination of dry fruits,nuts,spices and little flour ( just enough to bind together)with a boiled syrup made from sugar ,honey and Maple syrup combined with melted chocolate and cocoa powder.
Literally,Panforte means “Strong Bread” or Peppered Bread ,which refers to the spicy flavour. Sienese called it “Panpepto” due to the strong pepper used. As I have tweaked the recipe I omitted Pepper added Maple syrup to honey and sugar . The process of making Panforte is simple and easy. All the dry fruits ,nuts and spices are mixed with flour and the boiled sugar syrup,honey and maple syrup along with melted chocolate and cocoa powder is added and baked in a spring form pan. The finished fruity nutty chewy disc is dusted with icing sugar and it is purely optional. Dusting of icing sugar creates the Christmassy feeling.
Every house hold prepares this recipe during Christmas in Italy. This recipe do not need any techniques but has to work quickly before it sets. Baked Panforte cake should be well wrapped in plastic wrap and stored in an airtight container in a cool area or can frozen in a freezer safe bag. It will keep up to four to five months. Panforte served in small wedges with a cup of coffee or wine or as a Dessert after a meal. Do try and let me know the feedback in comments. Lets jump to the step by step preparation of the recipe.
Preparation Time : 20 mins
Baking Time : 60 mins
Serves : 16
Ingredients
Hazelnut – 120 gms
Blanched Almond – 120 gms
All purpose flour – 1/2 cup.
Mixed dry fruits(raisins, sultanas, fig) – 120 gms
Candied Citron, lemon, orange peel – 5 gms
Compound chocolate – 100 gms
Unsweetened cocoa powder – 11/2 tbsp
Ground cinnamon – 1/2 tsp
Sugar – 2/3 cup
Maple syrup – 60 ml
Honey – 100 ml.
Salt – 1/4 teaspoon
Procedure
Preheat oven to 180 °C . Place hazelnut on a tray and bake for 15 mins until it turns light brown. Keep it aside to cool.Bake almonds for 5 mins until it turns light brown. Let it cool. Chop hazelnut and almond coarsely.
In a large bowl add nuts, candied fruit, spices, flour, salt and Cocoa powder.
Melt chocolate in a steel bowl by double boiler method. Stir the melted chocolate into the chopped fruit and nut mixture. Mix well until melted chocolate is evenly coated.
Meanwhile grease pan well and place a parchment paper below.In a sauce pan, stir together honey, sugar and maple syrup. Stir continuously until sugar has dissolved. Wash the side’s of the pan with silicon brush dipped in warm water. Continuously boil the mixture over medium heat without stirring until the temperature reaches 115 °C.
Switch off heat and stir the boiled sugar, honey and maple syrup into the chopped nut, fruits and flour mixture. Transfer the mixture immediately to the greased pan and flatten the surface with wet hands. Spread evenly as the mixture will get hard quickly.
Preheat oven to 150 °C and bake for about 30 to 35 minutes or until the surface forms blisters. Remove from oven and let it cool on a wire rack.
Once it’s cooled, wrap tightly in a plastic wrap and store in a cool, dry place. Well wrapped Fruit cakes will stay for several months and can be served with cup of coffee or wine or as a dessert after a meal.
Hope you like the recipe!If so, please try it out,leave your comments and feedback, which means a lot to me. Thank you so much for visiting by the site!
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Basic Vanilla Cake/Easy Vanilla Cake
Eggless Butterless Chocolate Cake
No-Bake Blueberry Biscuit Mousse Cake
Notes
You can add any dry fruits according to your taste. Can add pepper powder or ginger powder with the combination of cinnamon powder.
Panforte/ Italian Christmas Fruit And Nut Cake
Equipment
- Digital Candy Thermometer
- Microwave Convection Oven
Ingredients
- 1 cup Hazelnut
- 1.1 cup Blanched Almond
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 0.5 cup Mixed dry fruits(raisins, sultanas, fig)
- 0.1 cup Candied Citron, lemon, orange peel
- 1½ tbsp Unsweetened cocoa powder
- ½ tsp Ground cinnamon
- ⅔ cup Sugar
- 60 ml Maple syrup
- 100 ml Honey
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180 °C . Place hazelnut on a tray and bake for 15 mins until it turns light brown. Keep it aside to cool.Bake almonds for 5 mins until it turns light brown. Let it cool. Chop hazelnut and almond coarsely. In a large bowl add nuts, candied fruit, spices, flour, salt and Cocoa powder.
- Melt chocolate in a steel bowl by double boiler method.
- Stir the melted chocolate into the chopped fruit and nut mixture.
- Mix well until melted chocolate is evenly coated.
- Meanwhile grease pan well and place a parchment paper below.In a sauce pan, stir together honey, sugar and maple syrup. Stir continuously until sugar has dissolved.
- Wash the side’s of the pan with silicon brush dipped in warm water.
- Continuously boil the mixture over medium heat without stirring until the temperature reaches 115 °C.
- Switch off heat and stir the boiled sugar, honey and maple syrup into the chopped nut, fruits and flour mixture and mix gently.
- Transfer the mixture immediately to the greased pan and flatten the surface with wet hands. Spread evenly as the mixture will get hard quickly
- Preheat oven to 150 °C and bake for about 30 to 35 minutes or until the surface forms blisters. Remove from oven and let it cool on a wire rack.
- Once it’s cooled, wrap tightly in a plastic wrap and store in a cool, dry place. Well wrapped Fruit cakes will stay for several months and can be served with cup of coffee or wine or as a dessert after a meal.
Notes
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