Verona Butter Bread Cake (Star-Shaped Italian Yeast Cake)
Quick answer
This tall Italian bread cake relies on generous amounts of egg yolk and butter worked into a yeasted dough through long, patient kneading.
What makes this special
- This star-shaped Pandoro Verona relies on high butter content for a silky, airy yellow crumb.
- 130g butter added in 3 stages prevents dough separation and builds silky layers
- Star-shaped mold creates the characteristic peaked silhouette after baking
Key ingredients
Core cooking flow
- 1 Dissolve 6 g instant yeast in 110 ml milk and let it stand for 5 minutes, until small bubbles appear.
- 2 Add the remaining 200 g bread flour, 70 g sugar, 4 g salt, 3 egg yolks, and 3 ml vanilla.
- 3 Add 130 g softened unsalted butter in three portions, kneading until each ad...
This tall Italian bread cake relies on generous amounts of egg yolk and butter worked into a yeasted dough through long, patient kneading. Baked in a star-shaped mold, the risen loaf emerges with a distinctive silhouette and a crumb so airy it pulls apart in long, feathery strands. Vanilla perfumes the interior without competing with the buttery richness, and a thick dusting of powdered sugar before serving gives the cake its signature snow-capped appearance. Adding the softened butter in three stages prevents the dough from breaking and ensures even distribution of fat through every strand of gluten. Maintaining a proof temperature between twenty-six and twenty-eight degrees Celsius produces the best balance of flavor development and structural rise.
Instructions
Read the steps as a cooking flow: prep, heat, seasoning, doneness control, and finish.
- 1Prep
Dissolve 6 g instant yeast in 110 ml milk and let it stand for 5 minutes, until small bubbles appear.
Mix in 100 g bread flour to make a wet sponge, then let it pre-ferment for 20 minutes.
- 2Season
Add the remaining 200 g bread flour, 70 g sugar, 4 g salt, 3 egg yolks, and 3 ml vanilla.
Knead until the dough becomes stretchy and starts pulling away from the sides instead of staying paste-like.
- 3Season
Add 130 g softened unsalted butter in three portions, kneading until each addition is absorbed before adding more.
Keep working the dough until the greasy shine disappears and it stretches thinly without tearing right away.
- 4Control
Cover the dough and proof it at 26-28°C for about 90 minutes, until it nearly doubles.
Press out excess gas, fold it once, then chill for 30 minutes so the butter firms slightly and shaping is easier.
- 5Step
Round the chilled dough tightly and place it in the center of the star-shaped mold.
Proof again at 26-28°C for about 60 minutes, until the dough rises to roughly 80 percent of the mold height.
- 6Season
Bake in a 175°C preheated oven for 35-40 minutes, until the top is deep golden and the loaf feels set.
Let it cool briefly in the mold, unmold carefully, cool completely, then dust evenly with powdered sugar.
After the steps
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