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The Zoia Panettone Challenge
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The Zoia Panettone Challenge
- Recipe from “Non Solo Zucchero” by Iginio Massari
Iginio Massari a name much revered in the world of Panettone yet his mentor, Achille Zoia is lesser known, but to his credit a speciality flour formulated to accommodate Zoia’s technological liking bears his name… “Panettone Z” produced by Molino Dallagiovanna is the flour of choice being favoured by many maestri for its excellent extensibility.
Publications “Cresci” and “Non Solo Zucchero” authored by Massari both feature recipes from Zoia and these stand out with respect to their formulation and presentation, typically not including any flour in the second mix, favouring high levels of sugar while utilising minimal egg content and ultimately preferring basso forms. This bold approach in omitting additional flour in the final mix appears unique with respect to the typical formulations and presents a considerable challenge to the amateur…
Where a challenge presents itself, there is this baker full of zeal! I tackled his Paradise Panettone many years ago and at that time it took several attempts and felt very difficult to achieve success, often falling from the mould, but with repetition I would find salvation.
*Honey was infused with flavourings; candied orange paste, orange zest and vanilla extract.
Crumb: Some minor defects but otherwise showing good alveolation. It might not look it, but tearing into it, the texture is feathery bread shred. A clean cut no crumbles.
The dough received 3 sets of pre-shape rounds / stretch & folds while resting on the counter in what is technically a bulk fermentation period prior to placing in the mould. After about 90 minutes, enough strength was achieved to diminish spreading and encourage it to rise upwards with vigour.
Experience with this formula demonstrates it makes for a weaker final dough, since all the flour is fermented in the primo impasto. This leads to a less oomph in the final rise, losing its strength as it reaches the high heights when using the alto forms. This weakness shows itself as large bubbles that begin to emerge at the surface.
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50% hydration refreshed mother leaven (lievito madre rinfresco).
Preparing the mother for the overnight rest in water.
Even with a pH too low, this bake ticked all the boxes, delicately light, soft, rich, and sweet but also full of flavour and rounded off by a sense of nourishing satiety.
To all the panettone bakers out there, I present to you the Zoia Panettone Challenge…
Comments
Today I learned! Very interesting and great looking panettone Michael. Congratulations.
I have a lot of respect for this formula after seeing Alberto Bernardi mention something to the effect of it being one formula which he has never had success with.
I am tempted to say "challenge accepted", so I will say less and hopefully post my own Zoia panettone here someday...
Thanks Joe.
Good to know that it really is a challenge even for a pro. Certainly I think it is a test of will, experience and how optimal one's LM is.
Say no more, I will keep my eyes peeled if and when you do post any bakes.
Cheers, Michael
Looks like you nailed it MIchael! I know you have been working on this one for a while! Enjoy!
--Sue
Cheers Sue.
It's a good result, but I am still looking to resolve, once and for all, getting the pH into the right zone as it does affect everything (fermentation, structure, finished taste and texture - everything!). Thankfully, I have concluded that TTA matters more in terms of a successful bake.
I've spent most of my time manipulating the LM in numerous ways, I think I've mentioned I am minded to foundational principles. This was my first Zoia panettone bake in quite a while but was hopeful since my LM is in a really good place right now...
Thanks again.
Michael
Another great looking bake Michael!
A question regarding you LM maintenance: how do you store it if you are not using it for several weeks? Or do you refresh on a regular basis?
Lance
It's good a result, typical of most of my panettone bakes.
My LM is continuously regenerated and refreshed most every day. It takes a break only when I take a break... This is all part of my personal R&D!
If I go on holiday for example, I will feed it 3-4 times more flour (1:3 / 1:4) and bind it legato style and wait for the rope to pull taut before placing in the fridge.
To bring it back to life, a typical approach I developed was to refresh 1:1 with enough water to make a firm dough. Then I would then cut this into pieces and perform two consecutive hot (37/38C) bagnettos held for 3 hours each before re-entering the typical regenerative cycle.
Michael
Both you and Sue (and I'm sure others here) have true dedication to grandi lievitati.
Do you think that that the bound method can be emulated by a tightly cling film wrapped LM "sausage"?
Lance
That's kind of you to say Lance. I enjoy the challenge grandi lievitati presents and I appreciate how LM demands a skilled operator.
With the amount of gas produced, I don't think the cling film alone will be strong enough. Without a stronger material like cloth (I use thick linen) and rope the package is likely to burst. No doubt I tried this at some point.
Michael
Great looking bake. You are certainly an expert at these types of bakes. Congrats 🎉
The result of much experience, that's all!
Thanks again!
A wonderful bake Michael, I’d love to have a wedge of this right now. I keep saying one of these days.
Benny
Thanks Benny, it was great paring with my regular morning cup of coffee!
You've had a lot of success with the sweet starter, so I'm pretty sure you can do panettone ;)
Thanks again!
Michael