The Leaning Tower of Pandoro

We have all heard of The Leaning Tower of Pisa… So here we have the Leaning Tower of Pandoro!

Pandoro, similar to Panettone but with a few differences mainly that Pandoro is without the raisins and candied fruits. Pandoro is a traditional Italian sweet yeast bread, most popular around Christmas time and originated in Verona. True to its name (pan d’oro means ‘golden bread’), the cake has a bright yellow colour. Pandoro is traditionally a star-shaped cake that is dusted with powdered sugar to resemble the snowy peaks of the Italian Alps.

Ingredients

• 1 Pandoro cake
• Powdered sugar/icing sugar
• 1/2 cup/50g crushed pistachios
• 1/2 cup/50g fresh red currants/cranberries
• 1 cup/100g crushed hazelnuts
• 2 cups/450g mascarpone
• 2 cups/600g Nutella

Method

Add the mascarpone and Nutella to a large mixing bowl and whisk together until well combined and silky smooth.

Slice the Pandoro in five thick slices horizontally from bottom to top. Spread each layer evenly with the Nutella and mascarpone mixture.

Re-stack the Pandoro and lay each slice on top of each other so the points don’t match to resemble a Christmas tree as you are layering the Nutella mascarpone mixture. Lay each slice slightly off centre to create the leaning effect.

Decorate with red currants/cranberries, hazelnuts and pistachio. Finish with a dusting of powdered sugar on top.