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Growing up we always ate Panettone. Panettone is a traditional sweet Italian fruit bread. A common Italian tradition is to bring a panettone to someone’s house when you visit during the holiday season. Usually the host will open and serve the bread to enjoy over a cup of coffee or sweet liqueur.
I carry on this tradition with my family, especially since Panettone was such a large part of my childhood memories. My father worked in an Italian bakery when we were little and he always brought us home fresh Panettone wrapped in paper, not in a box…old school.
It seems like just yesterday my father would slice his panettone up and toast it for breakfast or late afternoon snack. That scent of toasted candied fruit bread still resonates with me to this day…It brings back warm family memories that I will treasure always! When I was little most people didn’t even know what Panettone was. Now you can pretty much find it anywhere. I have seen them at Costco, Trader Joe’s and most surprisingly, thrown in a bin at the Christmas Tree Shop (eek!).
I actually picked up a few of these mini panettone recently. Since I was so shocked to see them at the discount store, I was really curious to see how they would taste. They weren’t that bad but they were a little dry.
Being the cooking lover that I am, I decided to take make these mini loaves into a “Panettone Toast” – my Italianized version of French Toast. I must say these are delicious and easy to make.
Here’s what I did:
*I used 2 mini Panettone which were 3.5 oz each. I yielded 5 slices from each mini loaf.
NOTE: a traditional large Panettone is 32 oz.-
Use approximately 2 large eggs and 1/4 cup of milk/cream for every 3 ozs. Adjust nutmeg and orange extract seasoning to taste.
- Slice the panettone bread like this …
- Scramble eggs with milk or half and half, a pinch of nutmeg and orange extract. I use orange extract instead of vanilla to enhance the flavors of the candied fruit.
- Dip the slices like you would french toast…
- Place on a greased griddle (or saute pan) until golden brown on each side.
When done serve with powdered sugar and orange slices.
So the next time you see Panettone in your local market, pick one up and make this “Italian” French Toast 🙂
Panettone Toast
Ingredients
- 2 3.5 oz mini panettone sliced
- 4 large eggs
- 1/2 cup milk or half n half
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 1/8 tsp orange extract more if desired
- Cooking spray or butter for griddle
- Powdered sugar for sprinkle
- 1 orange for garnish
Instructions
- Slice panettone into 1/4" slices (about 5 slices per loaf)
- Scramble eggs, milk, nutmeg and orange extract
- Warm griddle with butter or cooking spray
- Dip each slice into egg wash and then place onto hot griddle.
- Panettone are done when golden brown on both sides.
- Serve warm with orange slices and sprinkled with powdered sugar.
Notes
Here are some other breakfast/brunch recipes you might enjoy:
