The panettone diaries of Elena and Gia Vin & Grill's baker Mayara Palma Martin

Panettone takes an inordinate amount of time to make, but like all good things, time = flavour. Here's how a baker at Elena and Gia does it.

J.P. Karwacki

J.P. Karwacki

December 11, 2024- Read time: 5 min
The panettone diaries of Elena and Gia Vin & Grill's baker Mayara Palma MartinPhotograph: Elena

Many of Montreal’s bakeries have been in the throes of panettoni production for weeks now, and in a word, it’s... complicated.

It takes an inordinate amount of time, control, and precision to produce, but like all good things, time = flavour.

We asked the baker behind the panettone of Elena and Gia, Mayara Palma Martin, about everything that goes into making panettone for the holiday season.

Photograph: @elenamontreal / Instagram

The mind behind the madre 

But first, an introductory preamble: Originally from Curitiba, Brazil near the Argentinian and Chilean borders, Mayara was a social worker before living in Montreal for the last six years, where she embraced a lifelong passion for cooking and pursuit of working in kitchens professionally.

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