Ginger-Apricot Panettone

This Italian holiday bread will stay fresh longer when it's made with an overnight starter. We love substituting ginger and apricot for the more traditional candied peel. Hands-on time: 20 mins. to 25 mins. Baking time: 50 mins. to 50 mins. Total time: Overnight, 11 hrs 10 mins. to 15 hrs 45 mins. Yield: One large panettone

Ingredients
Starter

Dough

1 cup Unbleached All-Purpose Flour 1/16 teaspoon yeast 1/2 cup cool water

all of the starter 2 cups Unbleached All-Purpose Flour 1/4 cup potato flour 1/4 cup lukewarm water 2 large eggs 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter 1 1/4 teaspoons salt 2 teaspoons instant yeast 1/4 teaspoon Fiori di Sicilia flavoring 1/4 cup sugar 1 cup chopped dried apricots 1/3 cup diced crystallized ginger

Directions
1) Combine the starter ingredients in a medium-sized mixing bowl, cover, and allow them to rest overnight (8 to 12 hours at room temperature). 2) Combine the starter with the remainder of the dough ingredients (except the fruit), and mix and knead them together by hand, mixer or bread machinetill you've made a soft, sticky dough. 3) Knead in the ginger and apricots. 4) Allow the dough to rise, covered, for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, or until it's puffy (though not necessarily doubled in bulk). 5) Gently deflate the dough, and shape it into a ball. 6) Place it in a panettone pan or other straight-sided, tall 1 1/2- to 2-quart pan. Cover the pan and let the dough rise till it's just crested over the rim of the pan, about 1 hour. Towards the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 375F. 8) Bake the bread for 15 minutes; reduce the oven heat to 350F and bake for an additional 35 minutes, tenting with aluminum foil if the crust appears to be browning too quickly. Remove the panettone from the oven and cool completely. Dust with confectioners' sugar, if desired.