Aunt Mary’s Panettone Cake

[Food Network Fan]

Aunt Mary’s Panettone Cake

3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon finely ground sea salt, preferably gray salt
1 cup unsalted butter, plus more for buttering the loaf pans, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
3 large eggs
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1 tablespoon aniseseeds, lightly toasted
2 tablespoons dark rum
2 tablespoons brandy
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 cup chopped candied orange peel
1 ½ cups walnut pieces, lightly toasted
1 ¼ cups golden raisins
1 tablespoon confectioners’ sugar

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter two 9- by-5-by-3-inch loaf pans, dust with fl our, and tap out excess.

In a bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set dry ingredients aside.

In a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream together the butter and granulated sugar on medium speed until fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Stop, scrape down sides of bowl, and add eggs. Mix on medium speed until mixture is pale yellow and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Stop and scrape down sides again.

Measure out 1 cup condensed milk. With the mixer on low speed, alternately add dry ingredients in 4 batches and the 1 cup milk in 3 batches, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients.

Add aniseeds, rum, brandy, and vanilla, and mix just until incorporated.

Add orange peel, walnuts, and 1 cup of raisins and mix just until combined.

Using a rubber spatula, spread batter into prepared pans.

Sprinkle the remaining ¼ cup raisins evenly over the tops. Brush about half (about 6 tablespoons ) of the remaining milk over tops (save the rest for another use).

Bake cakes until they start to pull away from sides of the pans and skewer inserted in the center comes out clean, about 1 ¼ hours, but start checking after 1 hour. Remove from oven and let cool completely in pans on racks.

Turn the cooled cakes out of the pans, turn upright on serving plates, and sift confectioners’ sugar over tops.

Yield: 2 large loaves
Source: At Home with Michael Chiarello