There are flavors that need no introduction and sweet bread is one of them. It appears every December, occupies the center of the table and activates a common memory. In each family, in addition, it orders small differences: eThere are those who prefer it with dried fruits and those who do not forgive the polished fruit.; those who dip it in coffee with milk from the 25th in the morning and those who reserve it for the afternoon, with mate or tea. But far from being anchored in tradition, today it returns with renewed strength. More careful recipes, noble ingredients, long fermentations and a dialogue between the classic and the contemporary.
Tradition at the table
Levando opens the tour with a sweet bread that emphasizes the craft and time. For this Christmas, the bakery presents a special edition made with organic flours, nuts, cranberries and a natural orange paste that provides perfume and freshness. Slow fermentation is key: it allows for a light, moist, easy-to-eat crumb. “We like to do it with time and good raw materials: that’s the difference,” explains Gabriel Kogan, master baker. Designed to be enjoyed at room temperature and to accompany mild coffees or dry sparkling wines, it is available in half a kilo and 850 gram versions.
For its part, Güerrín embodies the persistence of a classic. Since 1952, the historic pizzeria on Avenida Corrientes has made its sweet bread with the same recipe, in wood-fired ovens, without preservatives or artificial flavorings and with a generous combination of honey, almonds, cashews, walnuts, raisins and polished fruit. It weighs 1.3 kilos and is produced in limited series.
Also on Avenida Corrientes (and in several other locations throughout the city), Kentucky maintains a similar tradition. With more than 80 years of history, its artisanal sweet bread appears only during the Christmas season. Baked over wood and without preservatives, it combines almonds, walnuts, cashews, figs, cherries and polished fruit in a version that many incorporated into their own end-of-year rituals, whether to share with the family or to give as a gift. It is available in one kilo format.
Haute pastry
In a register more linked to haute cuisine, signature sweet breads appear. Proposals where the classic recipe is taken as a starting point, but worked with a logic closer to fine pastry than to family tradition. It is the case of Alo’s, where chef Alejandro Féraud offers two artisanal versions made with slow fermentation, moist and fluffy crumbmarked butter and citrus perfume and a shiny finish. One combines dried fruits and candied figs; the other is committed to chocolate and candied oranges, with a more intense and aromatic profile. Both are limited production pieces.
In the same vein as the author, Betular Pâtisserie proposes a sweet bread where cocoa runs through the entire recipe. Created by Damián Betular, it combines a dough with cocoa, toasted hazelnuts, artisanally candied oranges and semisweet chocolate. The closing is a cocoa and hazelnut craquelin that adds texture and contrast, while reinforcing its haute pastry profile. Weighing 750 grams, it is an intense and elegant version, designed for those looking for a sweet bread closer to the universe of fine pastry than to the classic dessert.
A new player
For some years now, the Christmas table has added a new protagonist. Panettone, of Italian origin, ceased to be a distant relative of sweet bread to occupy a place of its own. In that logic is inscribed the proposal of Gontran Cherrier, which from its French imprint approaches it with sourdough and natural fermentationprioritizing an airy crumb, clean aromas and a precise balance between dark chocolate, almonds and subtle orange notes.
And if we talk about panettone, it is impossible not to mention Artiaga, an unavoidable reference in the field. After a few years making sweet bread when not many people took up the challenge, in 2017 they decided to start working with the panettone recipe. They did it with natural sourdough, trials, errors and learning. The first came out in minimal quantities in 2018; Growth came later, with more equipment, two stores and a demand that exploded in 2023 and 2024. “Panettone is the Everest of the masses,” summarizes Juan Manuel Alfonso Rodríguez, production manager, referring to its high content of butter, yolks and sugars, the three days of production and a key detail: it is cooled upside down so that it does not collapse.
That level of care is what led Artiaga to compete (and stand out) in the Panettone World Cupwhich takes place every two years in Italy. “They are very long days, with a lot of preparation and training, and then working live representing the country,” explains Marisol Alfonso Rodríguez, marketing director. In the last edition, the Argentine team won nine awards, an absolute record, and was runner-up in the world championship. This year, that experience translates into a line that combines classics (chocolate, orange with raisins) with more identity versions, such as the Buenos Aires panettone, with coffee and dulce de leche.
Classic or signature, sweet bread or panettone: more than a recipe, what is shared every December is a way to celebrate.
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