Lieveto Madre or Pasta Madre

Pasta Madre translates to "dough mother" in Italian. Pasta Madre is a stiff, low hydration starter generally used to make Panettone and other dairy and egg enriched dough. This type of sourdough starter is generally 50% hydration or lower. It gives a very mild flavor profile.

You can make a Pasta Madre from your liquid sourdough starter. You use the liquid sourdough starter to create a lower hydration version which is rolled up and then kept either in cloth tied up with string or in a water bath (this is the most popular storage method).

Find the instructions on making your own Pasta Madre here.

Recipes for Pasta Madre Pasta Madre is typically used to make Panettone or Italian Christmas Cake, but it can also be used to make other baked goods including sourdough cinnamon rolls.