From our family to yours...

PARISI would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your support and partnership throughout the year and to wish you and your families buon natale e felice anno nuovo!

The PARISI team will be enjoying the festivities and indulging with delicious traditional Italian Panettone.

What's your favourite way to prepare Christmas Panettone?

Below are some scrumptious ideas from our team.

A taste of Italy at Christmas…

What’s your favourite way to prepare Christmas Panettone?

These are some of our favourite ideas…

8 popular ways to enjoy Panettone…(remember to remove the paper wrapper that runs around the outside and base of the cake).

As Panettone has a bread like texture, it marries well when toasted and embellished with a slathering of butter, cream cheese, honey or Nutella.
Using Panettone as a twist on the English style bread and butter pudding is simply delicious. Substitute the bread in your favourite bread and butter pudding recipe, even add a drizzle of Limoncello, Amaretto or Frangelico over the Panettone slices for some extra Christmas spirit. Or spread with marmalade as well as butter then pour over the custard mixture and bake.
Cut wedges of Panettone and dip into chocolate sauce or mascarpone cheese.
Make a toasted sandwich filled with Nutella and serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Enjoy for breakfast in French toast style. Swap bread slices for Panettone slices and dip them into the egg mixture before frying in a buttery pan. Sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar or maple syrup, pure Christmassy indulgence.
Make your own rum au baba, soak the Panettone in rum syrup and serve with Chantilly cream.
Lustful tiramisu, instead of savioardi biscuits, use Panettone to soak up the coffee syrup and mascarpone. A modern take on a traditional favourite.
Slice thinly and use as a sponge base to create the most magnificent cassata (Italian ice cream cake) or zuccotto di panettone (ricotta pudding)

Share your favourite Christmas Panettone recipe ideas with us on our Facebook page @parisibathware #parisipanettone

Have you ever wondered what Panettone is?

The word ‘panettone’ derives from the Italian word ‘panetto’, a small loaf cake. The first recorded association of Panettone with Christmas can be found in the Italian writings of 18th century illuminist Pietro Verri. He refers to it as ‘Pan de Ton’ (luxury bread).

There are many legends as to the origins of Panettone back in 400 at the court of Ludovico il Moro. The sweet prepared for the sumptuous Christmas lunch burned, but the kitchen gourmet, Toni, managed to prepare a substitute with the remaining ingredients. So the ‘l pan del Toni’, the ‘panettone’ was born.

Other more romantic legends, however, see two lovers or a convent of nuns as protagonists.

The consecration of Panettone came in 1700 when the Cisalpina Republic favoured the opening of ovens and pastries.

Until then, white bread (called mica) was only reserved of wealthy people while the poor were doomed to millet bread. The only exception was Christmas Day when all the social classes could eat the same bread, the so-called pan de sciori, or pan del ton, made of pure wheat and stuffed with butter, sugar and zibibbo.

Due to the luxurious nature and ingredients, Panettone became a special dish to be savoured and enjoyed at Christmas as the tradition we know today.

Typically, Panettone has a cylindrical shape, its leavening is natural and its soft insides are enriched with candied fruit, orange and raisins. Today other ingredients can include honey, malt, vanilla, custard and chocolate.

Panettone is lovely if you think of it as bread rather than a cake. It’s tasty cold but warming it up a little brings out the flavour. Italians often have it for breakfast.

As a dessert, it’s wonderful served alongside a glass of Moscato d’Asti, sweet and sparkling, this bubbly wine is great for holiday toasting and compliments the citrus and yeasty flavours of the Panettone.