Venezuelan Christmas Ham Bread - Pan de Jamón

This Pan de Jamón, a Venezuelan Christmas bread, is a wonderful combination of sweet and savory flavors. 

Pan de Jamón is often served on Christmas Eve in Venezuela on a single plate with a chicken salad called ensalada de gallina, roast pork, and hallacas (South American tamales with cracked corn) (source: Gran Cocina Latina: The Food of Latin America by Maricel E. Presilla, 2012). 

This bread, with its sweet and savory flavors, reminded me of the combination of flavors of bacon and French toast, or chicken and waffles. Neither the sweet and savory flavors are overwhelming. They just work so well together. 

This Venezuelan bread tradition is said to have originally been created at the beginning of the twentieth century in the Caracas bakery, Panadería Ramella. Soon after, the bakery, Montauban & Cia, followed suit by advertising their pan de jamón in the local newspaper (the 1906 version of Tik Tok). Pretty soon, pan de jamón took off as a holiday tradition. 

The rest, as they say, is history! 

Ingredients:

On the sweet side, you have raisins along with a dark sugar glaze. 

On the savory side, you have capers, bacon, ham, and green olives. I used thinly slice honey baked ham, which is both sweet and savory in a way. 

The bread itself is very slightly sweet, with just a little bit of sugar. 

To Assemble this Venezuelan Christmas Bread:

After the first rise, roll the dough out into a 16 inch by 9 inch rectangle, brush it with some melted butter, and then lay the ham slices followed by bacon slices over the top, leaving about a 1/2 inch edge along the sides and three inches on one end. 

Sprinkle with the olives, raisins, and capers, and then fold the 16 inch side edges over. Using a bench knife, cut 1/2 inch strips into the 3 inch uncovered part of the dough. 

Roll the dough up, lengthwise. 

Once you've reached the strips, stretch the strips over the roll. You can cross them if you like, or place them parallel to each other. 

Place the loaf onto a parchment lined baking sheet, cover, and let rise before baking. Part way through baking, brush the top of the dough with a dark sugar glaze. 

Recipe Variations:

You can make the dough and assemble the bread the same day, or you can let it rise and then refrigerate it overnight before assembling and baking the next day. 

Traditionally, the glaze would include papelón or panela (grated brown sugar), but dark brown sugar works just fine. In fact, you will love the effect that the glaze gives to the bread. 

For the olives, the traditional ingredient is manzanilla. I used castelvetrano. They're my new obsession. Any pitted green olive will do. 

For the ham, you can use any quality ham, as long as it's thinly sliced. 

This recipe is for a half loaf and serves eight. For a full loaf, double the recipe and roll out the dough to a 16 inch by 16 inch square. The full loaf will span the length of a halfsheet pan. 

Make-Ahead:

You can make the dough for the bread through the first rise and then refrigerated it overnight (which is what I did). The next day, you can immediately roll out the dough, layer the ingredients, and shape the loaf. The second rise might take a little longer because the dough is cold. 

This bread is best served warm the day that it is made. If you have leftovers, wrap them up and place them in the refrigerator. Reheat them by the slice either in the oven or toaster. 

Serving Suggestions:

Serve this bread as an appetizer, breakfast, or lunch with a salad. You can also serve it for dinner with a vegetable and additional protein. 

More Christmas Breads You May Also Enjoy:

Czech Christmas Bread

Stollen

Finnish Pulla

Panettone

Pecan Kringle

St. Lucia Buns

Pandoro

Welcome to this month's Bread Bakers! 

#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. Follow our Pinterest board! If you are a food blogger and would like to join us, just send a note with your blog URL to foodlustpeoplelove@gmail.com. 

• Passion Kneaded: Christopsomo (Greek Christmas Bread)
• A Messy Kitchen: Joululimppu
• The Wimpy Vegetarian: Julekake: A Norwegian Christmas Bread
• Food Lust People Love: Lassy Raisin Bread 
• A Day in the Life on the Farm: Laufabraud 
• Zesty South Indian Kitchen: Sourdough Bobalki (Slovak Christmas Eve Bread)
• Sneha's Recipe: Vánočka/Vanocka - Czech Christmas Bread
• Karen's Kitchen Stories: Venezuelan Christmas Ham Bread - Pan de Jamón

Venezuelan Christmas Ham Bread - Pan de Jamón

Yield: 8 servings

Author: Karen Kerr

Prep time: 1 HourCook time: 1 HourInactive time: 2 HourTotal time: 4 Hour

This Pan de Jamón, a Venezuelan Christmas bread, is a wonderful combination of sweet and savory flavors.

Ingredients

For the Dough

• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1 tablespoons butter
• 11 ounces (about 2 1/4 cups) bread flour
• 3/4 teaspoon instant yeast
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 large eggs (75 grams) large eggs, lightly beaten

For the Filling

• 1/2 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
• 8 ounces thinly sliced ham
• 4 slices smoked bacon, par-cooked on a plate between layers of paper towels in the microwave (about 3 to 4 minutes in one minute increments, flipping the bacon and changing out the paper towels as needed)
• 15 pitted green olives, sliced into thirds
• Scant 1/2 cup dark raisins
• 1 tablespoon capers, rinsed and drained

For the Glaze

• 2 ounces dark brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons water

Instructions

To Make the Bread

1. In a small saucepan, combine the milk, sugar, water, and butter over low heat and cook until the butter has melted and the sugar has dissolved. Set aside until the temperature has returned to about 110 degrees F.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer , whisk together the bread flour, instant yeast, and salt.
3. Add the milk mixture and the eggs and mix with the dough hook on medium low for 15 minutes, until smooth and elastic.
4. Move the dough to an oiled bowl or dough rising bucket and let rise, covered, until doubled, about an hour. At this point, continue to the next step or refrigerate overnight.
5. Roll the dough out to a nine inch by 16 inch rectangle. Brush the dough with the melted butter, and then lay the ham slices followed by bacon slices over the top, leaving about a 1/2 inch edge along the sides and three inches on one end. Sprinkle the ham and bacon evenly with with the olives, raisins, and capers.
6. Use a bench knife to cut one inch strips into the 3 inch end, vertically (see photo). Fold the 1/2 inch edges of the dough over to enclose the very edges of the ham.
7. Roll up the filled dough (see photo) until you reach the cut strips. Stretch the strips to wrap them fully around the rolled up dough. Feel free to criss cross them if you prefer.
8. Cover the loaf loosely with oiled plastic wrap on a parchment lined baking sheet and let rise in a warm spot in your kitchen. About 30 to 45 minutes.
9. Heat your oven to 350 degrees F.
10. Mist the loaf lightly with water, prick it a few times on top with a thin skewer or a fork, and place it in the oven.
11. While the bread is baking, combine the sugar and water in a heatproof bowl and microwave for about a minute or two, until the sugar has dissolved. Set aside.
12. After the bread has baked for 45 minutes, remove it from the oven and brush it with the sugar mixture. Return it to the oven and bake for an additional 15 minutes.
13. Let the loaf cool for about 15 minutes, and up to an hour, before slicing.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

371

Fat (grams)

15 g

Sat. Fat (grams)

5 g

Carbs (grams)

46 g

Fiber (grams)

2 g

Net carbs

43 g

Sugar (grams)

9 g

Protein (grams)

15 g

Cholesterol (grams)

67 mg

https://www.karenskitchenstories.com/2024/12/venezuelan-christmas-ham-bread-pan-de.html

Karen's Kitchen Stories

ham, Christmas

bread

Venezuelan

Recipe adapted from Gran Cocina Latina