Christmas
Gubana
Popular on Food52
30 Reviews
Yazoolulu
December 31, 2014
I made two of these for Christmas morning. One I filled according to recipe, and the other I filled with an orange fig mixture. I put one in a 10 inch springform pan and the other in a larger ceramic casserole dish. I let them both rise overnight and baked them in the morning. Very good-well received by everyone.
Giulia M.
January 1, 2014
Thanks for sharing this recipe, Emiko! I used it to make a Gubana for Christmas and my grandma (who is from Trieste) loved it (after pouring some Grappa over her slice though!)
I had some issues with the baking time: I baked the cake for 60' until dark golden, but the inside was still wet and the inside dough was uncooked. I baked it a further 20' until the outside became too dark and crunchy. Should I have baked it for less time but at a higher temperature perhaps?
I had some issues with the baking time: I baked the cake for 60' until dark golden, but the inside was still wet and the inside dough was uncooked. I baked it a further 20' until the outside became too dark and crunchy. Should I have baked it for less time but at a higher temperature perhaps?
Emiko
January 1, 2014
Ha, so glad it got your grandma's approval! Of course with grappa! For the baking time, an uncooked middle and too dark/burnt on top usually means the cake tin is too small. So a larger tin would hopefully do the trick, then use a skewer to test how the middle is going after 1 hour, and if it still needs a little more time then give it a bit more time but I wouldn't go higher temperature as the top will tend to go very dark. Thanks for the feedback!
Paula R.
December 21, 2013
Emiko - The original recipe just says " Let Rise", so the advice to let it double in size is necessarily helpful. For those of us who need to plan ahead for cooking timeframe it would be most helpful to have a benchmark range for rise time - an hour, 1-2 hours, four days? - before we start to make the recipe. Thank you for your consideration.
Emiko
December 21, 2013
Hello again Paula. Sorry but I don't have an exact timeframe for that as it depends on the conditions in your kitchen - if you let it rise above the oven, while the oven's on (perhaps you're cooking something else in there) it will rise quicker than if you leave it in the fridge, overnight, say to bake the next day - both are ok. But let's say in an average 68 degree room, you may want to let it rise about an hour (though this may not necessarily mean it's doubled in size!). While other recipes will say to double in size, in my recipe I found letting it rise just a little is sufficient. I hope this has helped you!
Bob H.
December 6, 2023
This recipe looks fantastic. I just wish there was more of a visual cue after the rise. With all that work and filling I'd hate to have under-risen and gummy dough.
Paula R.
December 18, 2013
It would really be helpful if you would give an approximate time frame for rise. Also suggest that you amend the recipe to note that cake should rise " to double in size".
Emiko
December 19, 2013
Thanks for the suggestion Paula! The fact is that timing can differ depending on the conditions in the kitchen (i.e. how warm it is, if there is a draft) so I don't use a time. While the traditional recipe says to wait for it to double in size, when I made the cake that you see in the photos, it hadn't actually doubled in size completely when I baked it! So it could even be fluffier if you wanted (the result is a thicker layer of bread as it rises) but I think it's sufficient to "let it rise". Perhaps you can be more specific about the problems you had in baking this cake as there are many other areas of troubleshooting and it may not have been how long you let the cake rise for?
Paula R.
December 18, 2013
Made this recipe last week. Didn't look like product in pics on this site. What is recommended rise time once filling is rolled in dough?
Emiko
December 18, 2013
Sorry to hear you had trouble. Once your gubana is rolled and in tin, you should let it rise until it's doubled in size (however long that takes in your kitchen conditions!).
Trudie S.
December 14, 2013
Is it possible to use instant yeast in this recipe, or will it compromise the flavour?
Emiko
December 14, 2013
I wouldn't recommend instant yeast only because you want to prove the dough when it's been filled and rolled and instant yeast won't do this. But you could easily substitute active dry yeast. Take a look at this article for how to convert ratios between the different yeasts: http://food52.com/blog/5036-demystifying-yeast
Regine
November 27, 2013
Thanks Emiko and Valentina. I do have strong bread flour. And do try to make a Pandoro once. I know it is no easy task though. I once used the recipe from the "Sorelle Simili," and it turned out fairly good for a first timer like me.
Richard
November 27, 2013
Roll dough half an inch (1/2-1 inch) thick - shouldn't it be much thinner than that?
Emiko
November 27, 2013
Thanks for double checking - it should be 1/2-1 cm thick (see photos for an idea). Not too thin though (unlike similar pastries such as Potica, which is stretched paper thin)!
Valentina S.
November 26, 2013
You're a genius for posting this recipe!
I am Italian, but I had no idea this existed until the son of my boss, who lives in Trieste, brought one down for the holidays. It is really, really good, and I have been thinking of making it for a while now.
It will be the perfect side to my Panettone or Pandoro, so we'll have a delicious backup in case those two fail (which is likely).
Thank you for spreading Italian culture with our real, wonderful and traditional recipes, Emiko!
I am Italian, but I had no idea this existed until the son of my boss, who lives in Trieste, brought one down for the holidays. It is really, really good, and I have been thinking of making it for a while now.
It will be the perfect side to my Panettone or Pandoro, so we'll have a delicious backup in case those two fail (which is likely).
Thank you for spreading Italian culture with our real, wonderful and traditional recipes, Emiko!
Emiko
November 26, 2013
Thanks so much for your comment Valentina, it's SO good, isn't it? It makes my day that someone gets why these regional recipes are my passion! :)
Regine
November 26, 2013
Is Baker's flour the equivalent of all purpose flour? Also, would you consider one day making and presenting a good recipe for Pandoro, the no fruit version of Panettone. I love Pandoro and made it once, but it does require a lot of patience.
Valentina S.
November 26, 2013
It is not necessarily an equivalent. Bread flour has a very high gluten content, and it is necessary for reparations that need a long fermentation time. The longer the fermentation, the higher the gluten content in the flour must be. There are some very high gluten AP flours, but, unless you can check the strength number on the package (should be over 300W) I'd go and get myself some bread flour. You should easily find it in any supermarket :)
Emiko
November 26, 2013
Baker's flour is also known as strong flour or bread flour, it's a high protein flour with more gluten in it (making the dough more elastic than regular plain flour). If you can find flour that's meant for baking bread, pizza etc, that's the one! I have also heard adding cornstarch to regular flour works too. Pandoro? Hm, yes, I'll take it on board! Might have to wait till next christmas but will test a few recipes in the meantime! ;)
Emiko
November 26, 2013
Oh and the elasticity is important here as you need to be able to roll the dough first into a log and then roll it around itself like a snail shell without breaking!
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