Colombian Everyday Rolls – Panes Cascaritas

These rolls called panes cascaritas or panes rollitos are widely known in Colombia for breakfast. It is a staple in Colombian cuisine, especially in the capital Bogotá. They are similar to the French croissants, but require much less work. The amount of butter is also reduced and the dough does not need to be folded as many times. Instead, you will fold the dough once so that it has two layers and then fold into a book-fold, which is also called a double fold. As you will do this right away without any chilling times, it is only one rise you have to wait for. In a way, this simplified version also reminds me of the Argentinian croissants called medialunas. I would say that the Colombian version is probably the simplest of them all and requires the least amount of work. I wanted to make a staple bread for World Bread Day and decided for these. If you want to serve a typical Colombian breakfast, you would probably also serve Colombian hot chocolate and some scrambled eggs named huevos pericos. 

If you would like to try some yeast breads from Colombia, I can highly recommend roscones. These are small yeast wreaths filled with guave paste. Other traditional breakfast breads are not made with yeast or wheat. Pandebonos are very popular, these are gluten-free cheese puffs and of course arepas. The most famous arepas or corn flatbreads are filled with cheese and named arepas con queso.

Credit: Sazón con sabor (Youtube in Spanish)

Print Recipe

Colombian Everyday Rolls

Serves: About 8 pieces

Prep Time: 45min – Cooking Time: 30min – Total Time: 1hr 15min

Colombians eat these rolls everyday for breakfast, they are a quicker version of the French croissant and are named panes cascaritas or panes rollitos.

Ingredients

• 330 grams of all-purpose flour
• 60 grams of butter in pieces + 40 grams butter for later
• 40 grams of regular sugar
• 10 grams of fresh yeast or 3 grams of active-dry yeast
• 6 grams of salt
• 140 grams of water
• Egg wash

Instructions

1

Weigh all ingredients except for the 40 grams butter and egg wash into a large kneading bowl. Knead for five minutes on lowest. Then increase to second lowest and knead for five more minutes. Press the dough into a container and chill in the fridge for half an hour. Meanwhile bring 40 grams of butter to room temperature. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface into a rectangle of 30x60cm. Spread the butter evenly on all of it. Then fold in half so that the butter is fully covered. Roll out again into a rectangle of 30x60cm. Fold the outer thirds to the inside and fold that over again.

2

Now roll out the dough again the last time into a rectangle of 30x60cm. You can either cut the dough into 8 triangles or simply into 8 stripes. I made triangles, this will then look a bit more like croissants. If making triangles, roll up from the widest side. Place the rolls on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, then cover with a damp towel and let rise until double in size. This may take 2-3 hours.

3

Preheat oven to 180 dgrees Celsius, brush the rolls with egg wash and bake for about 25-35 minutes or until golden. Best served fresh.