Ingredients:

1 Pandoro (available at most grocery stores, Italian delis or online)

For filling:

Crema Pasticcera (Italian Custard):

1 quart half and half (whole milk can be substituted)

4 eggs

¾ cup sugar

1 ¼ cups flour

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 tsp lemon extract

Rum syrup:

1 cup water

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup rum

For icing:

2 cups powdered sugar

Water or milk as needed

For decorations:

Candied green and red cherries

Sprinkles (optional)

Preparations:

Unpack pandoro.

Slice horizontally into 5 layers. Set aside.

Make custard following these steps:

Pour the half and half (or milk) into a medium pan and place on low heat until warm.

Meanwhile, place the eggs, sugar, vanilla and lemon extract in a separate pan. Whisk until well blended. Add sifted flour and continue to whisk until creamy and smooth.

Add 1/3 of the warm milk to the egg mixture while stirring constantly until fully mixed. Repeat this step 2 more times so that all the milk is incorporated.

Place pan back on burner on low heat, stirring the entire time to avoid sticking and formation of lumps.

Bring to a gentle boil (about 5-7 minutes) and cook two more minutes, until the cream thickens to a pudding consistency.

Remove pan from stove and pour the cream into a glass bowl. Immediately cover with plastic wrap (sticking to the top of the cream) to avoid the formation of a “dry skin”.

Refrigerate until needed.

While custard is cooling down, make the syrup:

Pour 1 cup of water in small saucepan.

Add the 1/2 cup sugar.

Place on medium heat and stir until sugar is fully melted.

Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Add 1/4 cup of rum and stir well.

NOTE: you can adjust amount of rum to your liking by adding less or more.

ASSEMBLY:

Place bottom layer of pandoro on a serving plate or tray.

Drizzle with a few tablespoons of syrup.

Spread a little more than 1/4 of the custard evenly over entire pandoro layer.

Since the layers go from large to small, you will need more custard on the bottom layers than top ones.

Place next pandoro layer at a slant so the peaks alternate (see picture).

Repeat syrup and custard steps until all layers are used.

Make sure to drizzle some syrup over top (cap) piece of pandoro.

Make icing by adding a couple of tablespoons of water or milk to the powdered sugar until desired consistency.

I prefer a thick consistency with just enough movement in it to be able to run down the sides.

Gently pour icing over top of pandoro, allowing the overflow to drape the sides.

Decorate by placing candied cherries and sprinkles, if using, to make it look like a Christmas tree.

Refrigerate until ready to serve.