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6 Delicious Italian Christmas Breads: Pandolce, Panettone & Beyond
February 20, 2024
Italy boasts a dizzying variety of Christmas sweets—including lots and lots of holiday “breads.” Or so their names, which all include the word “pane” or “pan,” would make you think.
But they’re not all really breads. And they’re definitely not all the same. Here’s how to tell the difference between them.
![wrapped Italian Christmas breads at an Italian market.](https://www.walksofitaly.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/1st-paragraph-.jpg)
Check out the local market to pick up one of these traditional Italian Christmas breads. Photo credit: Gabriella Clare Marino
Table of Contents
ToggleMust-Try Italian Christmas bread
Pandoro
This sweet Christmas bread from Verona is star-shaped and dusted with powdered sugar (some say to make it look like the nearby mountains).
The name pan d’oro means “bread of gold,” and since white bread cost a lot in the Middle Ages and was consumed only by the wealthy, that’s exactly what this would have seemed like to the Veronese families who pinched pennies to enjoy this treat once a year. Today, you’ll sometimes see a hole cut in pandoro and filled with chantilly cream or gelato.
![freshly dusted pandoro with powdered sugar.](https://www.walksofitaly.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/pandoro.jpg)
The dusted vanilla-scented icing is said to resemble the snowy peaks of the Italian Alps during winter. Photo credit: N i c o l a
Pandolce
Meaning “sweet bread,” pandolce is the variety from Genova. Legend has it that the famed 16th-century Doge of Genova, Andrea Doria, invited Genovese chefs to submit recipes for a food that would represent the Republic’s wealth, as well as be nutritious, durable and suitable for long sea voyages—and so pandolce was born.
It’s dense, crumbly, and filled with spices and candied fruits. According to tradition, a part of the pandolce should be set aside for the poor, while another should be kept for the feast day of St. Blaise on February 3rd.
![close-up of pan dolce](https://www.walksofitaly.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/pan-dolce.jpg)
Which Italian Christmas bread is your favorite? Photo credit: Yulia Khlebnikova
Panforte
Despite the name, this isn’t really a bread at all. Instead, it’s a chewy, dense fruitcake from Siena, heavily flavored with honey, cloves, coriander, cinnamon and white pepper.
Thanks to its durability, Crusaders carried panforte with them on their quests. Records showing that cakes of panforte even were paid to Sienese monastery as a kind of tithe in 1205.
![freshly baked panforte](https://www.walksofitaly.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/panforte-1.jpg)
Enjoy your panforte with an espresso. Photo credit: jules
Panpepato (or pampepato)
Not really a bread, either, panpepato (“spiced bread”) is a heavy gingerbread cake spiced with cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, honey, nuts, dark chocolate, and candied fruit. It dates back to 15th century Ferrara, although some say its origins are Tuscan, and the cake’s shape is supposed to look like a clergyman’s cap.
In 1465, the first reference to panpepato showed up in writing in no less than a record book for the noble house of d’Esta, saying that the Duke gave his butler a gold ducat, telling him to put it inside the panpepato being served to the guests.
![Italian Christmas treat, panpepato, in front of a Christmas tree.](https://www.walksofitaly.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Panpepato.jpg)
Did you know that panpepato is a type of panforte? Photo credit: Luca Sbardella
Panettone
Hailing from Milan, panettone is a sweet, dome-shaped bread loaf studded with raisins and candied citrus peels. Interestingly, the dough takes several days to make: like sourdough, it has to be cured. Serve it up with either a hot beverage or a sweet wine like Moscato d’Asti.
![freshly cut panettone](https://www.walksofitaly.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Panettone.jpg)
Take a slice out of this panettone. Photo credit: N i c o l a
Pangiallo
From Rome and the Lazio region, pangiallo, a golden yellow (giallo) bread filled with nuts, raisins, spices, and candied fruit (including lime peels), has ancient origins. Pagan Romans baked up pangiallo’s predecessor during the winter solstice as offerings to facilitate the sun’s return.
The nuts, though, are a recent addition; previously, Romans used dried plum and apricot kernels instead, since nuts were simply too expensive.
![close-up of Italian Christmas bread with nuts.](https://www.walksofitaly.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Pangiallo.jpg)
Do these Italian Christmas breads satisfy your sweet tooth? Photo credit: Brett Jordan
Want to discover Italy’s savory side?
If your sweet tooth has been fully satisfied, you’ll want to check out what savory bites Italy has to offer. Don’t miss out on:
- The tradition of cicchetti in Venice
- Savory porchetta from Umbria and Tuscany
- Eat your way through Rome with traditional Christmas and winter food
![savory bites in Italy](https://www.walksofitaly.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/last-paragraphg.jpg)
From sweet to savory, Italy’s got you covered. Photo credit: Herbert Frank
Update Notice: This post was updated on January 25, 2024
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