Category:
Fresh pastries and bakery, biscuit, confectionary and pastry products;

1. Product name:
Panina

2. Other names:
Pan giallo, panina aretina

3. Short product description:
There are two types of “Panina Arentina”:
“Sweet” or Pan giallo and “Savoury” or “Panina unta” or “Panina con i ciccioli”.
Panina has a round shape, which is sometimes stretched to look more oval. It has a diameter of about 15-20cm and weighs about a kilogram. Its crust is dark brown, but inside, it’s a yellow colour if saffron has been used, otherwise, it’s a more or less tan colour depending on the oil, lard or pork bits. Its texture is similar to that of fresh Tuscan bread. It smells and tastes like the ingredients in it: saffron, raisins and the spices that go with baked yeast bread.

4. Production area:
It’s made in Casentino and in the Tuscan Val Tiberina, province of Arezzo.

5. Production status:
r disappeared r at risk r active

6. Production process:
The production of panina follows specific traditions that differ slightly in the different parts of the Casentino and the Upper Tiber valleys. The main ingredients, flour, fresh yeast and salt, are kneaded with oil, raisins (better yet zibibbo raisins), saffron and finally pork bits and lard. Often, the latter two ingredients are used in the place of the raisins, saffron and oil. Pepper and other spices like cinnamon and nutmeg are also used. Once mixed, the dough is left to rise for a few hours and then baked in a wood-fired oven. It’s important to note that the panina made in Pratovecchio (in upper Casentino) by some families uses flour, fresh yeast, egg and cubed pancetta (rigatino).

7. Materials, equipment and premises used for production:
s Kitchen utensils
s Workspace
s Wood-fired oven

8. Notes on traditionalism, homogeneity of spread and persistence of production rules over time:
Panina is still made according to the traditional recipes passed down the generations. The various combinations of ingredients or exclusion of some and addition of others make this product unique and slightly different in each location and each household. In recent years, it’s common to find a variation of panina that accentuates the sweetness with the addition of sugar to the dough. This version has spread and is very similar to a traditional sweet. Traditionally, on Easter morning, the Casentino “cavallai” (horsemen) would enjoy a rich breakfast of sweet and savoury panina with boiled eggs, salad, lamb chops and sliced cold cuts, including the traditional “capicollo”.

9. Production:
Panina is widely found in the lead up to Easter. It’s made at a household level for individual consumption and involves the majority of bakeries in the area, which directly sell the product or supply it to retailers and local shopping centres. It’s difficult to establish the quantity produced.