Maritozzi con la Panna – Sweet Roman Bun with Cream

Maritozzi are sweet buns that you will often find in bakeries in Rome.  They can be plain but usually close to Easter you will find them with sultanas, candied peel and sometimes also pine nuts.  In this recipe I have just used sultanas soaked in port. Maritozzi are sliced along the top, and filled with whipped cream that has been sweetened with sugar, and they are commonly eaten for breakfast!

• 550g Manitoba Flour *
• 200g sugar
• 30g butter, cubed
• 2 sachets brewers’ yeast (14g)
• pinch salt
• 2 eggs
• 200ml warm water
• 100g sultanas
• 100ml port

Syrup

• 100ml boiling water with 150g sugar and juice of 1/2 a lemon.

*Manitoba flour is  essentially a strong, highly-refined white bread flour, it is mostly used as a flour to strengthen other flours, often being mixed in right at the mills.  Such flours are sold as special strength flours — the flours may be marked as being especially for bread, pizza, baked goods.  It is only called ‘manitoba’ flour in Italy.  I have made these buns before with both plain flour ’00’, (and they turned out beautifully), and also Manitoba Flour.  All the Italian recipes stress that the flour for Maritozzi must be Manitoba flour, hence why I have mentioned it for this recipe.

Another important thing to discuss is the yeast.  Usually you would mix some sugar with the yeast and warm water in a bowl and once it becomes foamy you add it to the flour.  With this yeast, it isn’t necessary… you can add all the ingredients together and then add the warm water.  If the water is too hot though it will kill the yeast, and if it’s too cold, it won’t activate it…. SO…. make it nice and warm.

1. Soak sultanas in port.
2. Add flour, salt, sugar, butter, eggs and yeast into the bowl of an electric mixer fixed with a dough hook.  Mix until combined, and slowly add warm water.  Continue mixing until all ingredients are incorporated, and you have achieved a smooth dough. It will be sticky, but if you think it’s too ‘wet’, add another 50g of flour.
3. Tip into a bowl greased with olive oil, and cover with a clean, dry tea towel.  Leave to rise in a warm, dry place for 3 hours. The dough should double in size.
4. Drain sultanas.  Knead dough on a floured board and incorporate the sultanas. Divide the dough into even sized balls (you’re supposed to weigh each of them so they are all the same…. I did not do this, hence mine varied in size).  Shape each dough ball into an oval shape and place on a baking tray lined with baking paper.  Cover again with tea towel, and allow to rise again for another hour.
5. Preheat oven to 200°C and bake for 10 minutes.
6. Mix ingredients for syrup, and brush onto the hot buns as soon as they come out of the oven.  Allow buns to cool completely.  Split them from the top, and fill with freshly whipped cream sweetened with sugar.   Serve dusted lightly with icing sugar.  (makes about 18).

MARITOZZI CON LA PANNA

• 550g farina manitoba
• 200g zucchero
• 30g burro
• 14g lievito di birra
• pizzico sale
• 2 uova
• 200ml acqua tiepida
• 100g uva sultanina
• 100ml porto

sciroppo di zucchero

• 100ml acqua bollente
• 150g zucchero
• succo da 1/2 limone

1. Mettere a bagno l’uvetta in porto.
2. Aggiungere la farina, il sale, lo zucchero, il burro, le uova e il lievito nella ciotola di una planetaria fissato con il gancio per impastare pane. Mescolare, e aggiungere lentamente l’acqua tiepida. Continuare a mescolare fino a quando tutti gli ingredienti sono incorporati, fino a ottenere un impasto liscio.  (Sarà appiccicoso, ma se si pensa che è troppo ‘bagnato’, aggiungere un altro 50 g di farina.)
3. Ponente l’impasto dei maritozzi in una ciotola unta con olio e copritelo con un canovaccio pulito e asciutto. Lasciare lievitare in un luogo caldo e asciutto per 3 ore. L’impasto deve raddoppiare di dimensione.
4. Scolate l’uvetta. Impastare la pasta su un piano infarinato e incorporare l’uvetta. Dividere l’impasto in palline,  di dimensioni uguale (e suggerito di pesare ciascuno di essi in modo che siano tutti uguali …. non ho fatto questo, ed e per questo la mia varia in dimensioni).   Forma ogni palla in una forma ovale e sistemateli su di una leccarda da forno foderata con un foglio di carta da forno.  Coprire di nuovo con un canovaccio e lasciarli lievitare per un’altra ora.
5. Preriscaldare il forno a 200°C e cuocere per 10 minuti.
6. Mescolare gli ingredienti per lo sciroppo, e spazzolare sui panini caldi, non appena escono dal forno.   Una volta raffreddati, fate un taglio al centro di ogni maritozzo e farcite ognuno con panna montata leggeremente zuccherato.   Servire spolverato leggermente con zucchero a velo. (Rende circa 18).