Cinnamon and Mascarpone Maritozzi

Maritozzi are soft sweet buns typical of Roman cuisine, and this cinnamon and mascarpone variant sounds delicious. Here is the recipe:

Ingredients

• 500 g of 00 flour
• 25 g of fresh yeast
• 120 g of sugar
• 150 ml of lukewarm milk
• 100 g of soft butter
• 2 eggs
• The grated zest of 1 lemon
• 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
• 1 pinch of salt
• 250 g of mascarpone
• 2 tablespoons of powdered sugar (for the mascarpone cream)
• Raisins and pine nuts to taste (optional)

Preparation

1. In a bowl, dissolve the yeast in the lukewarm milk and add a couple of tablespoons of sugar and 150 g of flour. Mix and let it rest for about 15 minutes until a sponge forms (a sort of pre-ferment).
2. Meanwhile, in a mixer or a large bowl, put the rest of the flour, the soft butter in pieces, the eggs, the rest of the sugar, lemon zest, cinnamon, and pinch of salt. Start kneading by gradually adding the pre-ferment.
3. Knead until you get a homogeneous and slightly sticky mixture. At this point, you can add raisins and pine nuts if you wish.
4. Let the dough rise in a warm place covered with a damp cloth until it doubles in volume, about 2 hours.
5. After rising, divide the dough into pieces of about 80 g, shape into elongated buns, and place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, spacing them apart.
6. Cover them with a damp cloth and let them rise again for another 30 minutes.
7. Bake the maritozzi in a preheated oven at 180 °C for about 15-20 minutes or until golden.
8. Let them cool on a wire rack.
9. When the maritozzi have cooled, whip the mascarpone with the powdered sugar.
10. Split the maritozzi in half without completely separating them and fill them with the mascarpone cream.

You can dust the maritozzi with additional cinnamon or powdered sugar before serving.

Trivia

Maritozzi were once the dessert of lovers in Rome; it was customary for a boyfriend to bring a maritozzo to his beloved on the morning of Good Friday. The original recipe does not include cinnamon and mascarpone, but culinary tradition is open to tasty reinterpretations like this one!