The summer time earlier than I graduated from faculty, I traipsed round Italy with nothing greater than a big backpack and an empty abdomen. I traveled everywhere in the nation, desperate to strive the native delights of each metropolis I finished in: I devoured seafood risotto in Venice, schiacciata (a Tuscan flatbread) in Florence, and tortelli in Parma, amongst many different memorable meals. In Rome, I first encountered maritozzi—candy brioche-like buns full of whipped cream. The buns are sometimes bought with nothing greater than the whipped cream filling and a light-weight dusting of confectioners’ sugar, although some pastry outlets garnish them with chopped nuts, chocolate curls, or contemporary fruit. It’s my idea of a breakfast of champions—particularly when served with a scorching cappuccino.

Maritozzi have apparently been round since medieval instances. In keeping with quite a few sources, a model of the pastry made with nuts and dried fruit was as soon as eaten as a Lenten deal with. (Though it may appear implausible as an abstemious pastry, it is possible they might have been allowed throughout Lent as a result of the bun was made with olive oil as a substitute of animal fats—and presumably not full of cream within the Lenten model.) Maritozzi had been additionally a necessary a part of marriage proposals: In Saveur, author Rebecca Firkser notes that “a person would give his meant certainly one of these buns, even perhaps having a hoop or one other token of affection baked inside—thus incomes the maritozzi their identify,” as “marito” means “husband” in Italian. 

Someplace alongside the way in which, maritozzi turned a extra frequent fixture of Roman pastry outlets, and at the moment, many institutions promote the buns year-round. Craving for the pleasant cream-filled treats I loved on my journey to Italy a few years in the past, I took it upon myself to give you a do-it-yourself model that’s virtually nearly as good as one you’d discover from a Roman pasticceria: a young orange-scented bun sweetened with honey, enriched with olive oil, and full of mascarpone whipped cream.

Getting the Dough Proper for Maritozzi

Many maritozzi recipes use wealthy, buttery brioche dough for the buns. In my analysis, nonetheless, I got here throughout many conventional Italian recipes that had no butter in any respect—as a substitute, most maritozzi doughs name for olive oil. I made a decision to skip the butter and use olive oil as a substitute. For the plushest buns, I additionally used a variation of shokupan (milk bread) dough, which will get its tenderness not from butter, however from a scalded flour combination like tangzhong or yudane. 

Tangzhong is made by cooking flour and water or milk collectively on the range till thickened, and requires about 4 components water to at least one half flour. Yudane, however, sometimes makes use of equal components liquid to dry components, and is made by whisking boiling water or milk into flour. Each strategies assist the starches within the flour—amylose and amylopectin—hydrate and gelatinize, producing a moister loaf that resists turning into stale longer than breads made with out a scalded flour combination. “As a result of a gelled combination of flour and water is drier in texture than an an identical ungelled one, it lets you make a dough with extra water in it than it might in any other case include—with out turning it to soup,” our contributor Andrew Janjigian writes in his shokupan recipe. “I name this ‘stealth’ hydration: The additional water is there, however you possibly can’t see or really feel it within the dough.” 

Janjigian’s shokupan recipe makes use of a intelligent approach that’s barely completely different from the standard yudane methodology: As an alternative of equal components flour and liquid, he makes use of one half flour to a few components liquid, and swaps out the wheat flour for glutinous rice flour, which is almost 100% amylopectin. As a result of amylopectin molecules are extremely branched, they’re “unable to stack collectively and crystallize as effectively,” Janjigian writes, which helps the loaf keep softer for longer. He has you pour boiling milk over glutinous rice flour and sugar, then whisk it till it turns into a pudding-like consistency, which permits the rice flour to swell and gelatinize—attaining the identical factor because the stovetop methodology however with a lot much less effort. 

Utilizing his milk bread recipe as a place to begin, I made a number of tweaks till I landed on a maritozzi dough I used to be proud of: I swapped the butter for olive oil, sweetened the dough with honey as a substitute of granulated sugar, and included contemporary orange zest to offer the buns a citrus kick. The result’s a luxuriously tender and subtly candy dough that’s scrumptious sufficient to eat by itself—however, sure, even higher when full of cream.

Proofing and Shaping Maritozzi Dough

After the dough is blended, it sits at room temperature for as much as 90 minutes, which helps jumpstart the fermentation course of. The dough is then refrigerated for not less than two hours, which helps it agency up and makes it simpler to form into spherical buns. You may also depart the dough within the fridge for as much as 24 hours. This offers the dough an extended, slower proof, leading to much more flavorful buns and supplying you with extra flexibility on once you bake them. For instance, you may prep the dough at evening and bake the maritozzi the subsequent morning. Simply do not let the dough sit within the fridge for greater than 24 hours, or they are going to overproof. 

When the dough has proofed, you’ll divide it into eight equal parts, then pre-shape every right into a spherical—which helps align the gluten strands into the final form you need—earlier than permitting the rounds to relaxation for half-hour. The resting will make it simpler so that you can finally end shaping the buns. If you happen to’ve ever labored with pie or bread doughs and have seen the dough springing again, it’s as a result of gluten improvement has made the dough elastic. Giving the dough time to relaxation reduces its elasticity, making it simpler to form. To form the buns, you merely need to cup the dough in your hand, set it onto a frivolously floured countertop, then roll it in a round movement till a decent ball kinds. It’s enjoyable—and therapeutic.

Filling and Topping Maritozzi

The 2 commonest fillings for maritozzi are whipped cream and whipped cream with mascarpone, a wealthy, tender contemporary Italian cheese. Whereas whipped cream is scrumptious by itself, I a lot want the additional creaminess and delicate cultured taste that mascarpone brings. Plus: Its thickness helps stabilize the filling, making it attainable for the maritozzi to take a seat at room temperature for an hour or two—like for a brunch or picnic—if wanted.

As for toppings for the cream-filled maritozzi, you possibly can’t go improper with a easy dusting of confectioners’ sugar. However when you’d like so as to add some texture and colour, chopped toasted pistachios, chocolate curls, and candied citrus are all good choices. You could possibly even high them with sliced contemporary strawberries. One thing tells me you’ll take pleasure in these “marry me” buns whichever route you go.

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