Pane Di Pasta Tenera Condita – Italian Knot Bread

I’m getting ready for another out of town trip, so I wasn’t sure I’d be able to make these with the Bread Baking Babes (BBB), but I’m so glad that I found the time to do so.  Crispy on the outside, tender on the inside with a slight tang, these were tasty rolls that were delicious slathered in butter.  I’m not sure that I got the knots quite right, but then decorating and shaping food are not my strong suits.

The BBB get together ever month and bake a bread that one of them has picked.  Often, they bake it multiple times to work the kinks out of the recipe, then they issue an invitation via the blogosphere for all interested parties to join them.  I can’t always do so, but I always check to see what they’ve been up to.  I guess you could call me a bread voyeur.

Ilva, of Lucullian Delights, chose this month’s recipe, pane di pasta tenera conditaor or what Ilva calls Italian Knot Bread.   She chose this from Pane: Il Piacere di Preparare in Casa by Anna Gennari.  Like Ilva, I’m more of a whole grain person, but I am glad that I set my biases aside and baked these lovely little rolls.  I did make a few modifications:   I halved the recipe (I still made 12 rolls), used butter instead of lard, and used active dry yeast instead of fresh (which is impossible for me to find).  To make the biga, I used King Arthur 100% Oragnic AP Flour, and I used their 00-Italian Style Flour for the rest of the recipe.

I found a lot of guidance over at Aparna’s blog, because she cut the recipe in half, too.  It helped to double check my calculations against hers, and everything turned out great.  From start to finish, this took me less than three hours to make, and I have six unbaked rolls sitting in the freezer (frozen before the second rise) to accompany a future bowl of soup or pot of chili.

Ilva will have a roundup of everyone who participated, and be sure to check her blog for the original recipe, as well as links to the other Bread Baking Babes.

Pane di Pasta Tenera Conditaor
Adapted from a recipe in Pane: Il Piacere di Preparare in Casa by Anna Gennari

Biga

200 g unbleached all purpose flour
1/4 tsp dry instant yeast
170 ml water

Dissolve the yeast in the warm water, add to the flour, and quickly work the dough together.

Put it in a container, cover it with a half closed lid or kitchen towel and leave it for 15-24 hrs.  I left it on the counter overnight for about 12 hours.

Dough

250 g biga
500 g flour – type 00
200-260 ml warm water (about 100 F)
1-3/4 tsp. active dry yeast
25 g extra-virgin olive oil
30 g butter
12 g honey
12 g kosher salt

Put the flour either in a big bowl or on a baking board, add the butter and mix it with your fingers until it has ‘crumbled’ and is completely mixed with the flour.  Or you could throw this in a food processor and give it a whir.

Dissolve the yeast in some of the water, let it sit for a few mintues, and then add it to the flour. Mix as well as you can.

Mix salt, olive oil and honey with the rest of the warm water and add it to the flour. Now work it until it holds together and then add the biga.

Work the dough until it is smooth and doesn’t stick.  You may have to add a little flour, but wait a while before you do.  If you’re using a stand mixer, knead it for about 8 minutes.

Put dough into a lightly greased big bowl, cover it with plastic film and leave to rise until it has doubled.

Now take up the dough and divide it into 12 equal parts and roll them it into long strands, 12-13 inches long.

To make the knots

1. Roll out the dough into even long strands and lay them out on a flat surface.

2. Make a semi-circle with the dough strands, and bring the ends towards you and cross them.

3. Then twist the two ends together a twice, like in the photo, somewhat like when shaping a pretzel.

4.  Now lift the upperpart of the circle and bring it towards you, folding it over the twisted part.

5. Tuck the two ends of the twisted part under the knot carefully, while lifting the roll from the working surface. This will make the knot part more prominent and it hides the ends.

Put the knots on baking sheets and leave to rise (covered) until they have doubled in size (about 15 to 20 minutes).

Bake in a 375 F oven, middle rack,  for 25-35 minutes until golden brown.