A bread from Zingerman’s Bakehouse that is great for everything!
We first introduced the Paesano bread in the winter of 1993, about six months or so after we’d opened in the Bakehouse the previous September. Best I can recall, we all liked it from the get-go, but I don’t think that any of us who were there would have imagined how big a part of our repertoire it would become over the years. Over 30 years later, it’s the favorite of many long-time customers, a classic that many hundreds of people in town have come to count on every week! It’s also a regular part of our Mail Order customers’ purchasing routine—we’ve pretty certainly shipped Paesano to every state in the Union over the years.
The Paesano bread is one of those rare culinary offerings that seems to be loved equally by serious food folks and also by those who are most comfortable with more mainstream offerings. While I love so many of our other breads—Country Miche, Roadhouse in particular right now—the Paesano has long been a favorite of mine. It’s probably my top pick for making bruschetta. The toasting really takes the already fine flavor up even higher. Because the Paesano holds up well, I’ve regularly taken it on a plane with me. I have probably taken Paesano to Ethiopia, Slovakia, Ireland, California, and a hundred points in between.
One day, a couple years after we’d begun to bake it, back at a time when the Paesano was still relatively new to us, I was traveling for the first time in the southern Italian region of Puglia. As I always do, I sought out bakeries. I can go a long time without really eating a meal, but I have a hard time if I don’t have any bread with me. What I discovered is that the bread that many bakeries in the region make is essentially a very close first cousin of Paesano. Same great thin crust and pillowy white crumb.
If you’re one of the folks who still don’t yet know it, the Paesano has a thin crust that we dust lightly with organic cornmeal. Inside it has a soft white moist crumb that, as many folks around here will now rattle off without having to think about it, is “great for ripping and dipping.” It’s also got beautiful big holes in the dough, which is a tribute to the quality of the work done by the Bakehouse bread team—the holes are a sign of good dough development. On occasion, we do get complaints about the holes. When that happened, founding Bakehouse partner Frank Carollo would always smile seriously and say, “Wow! Thank you so much! We work really hard to put those holes in there.”
Earlier this year I wrote a bunch about the British-born food writer Patience Grey who lived most of her adult life in Puglia. Her favorite breakfast meal was simple and, having tested it out, wonderfully delicious! Fresh ricotta, plum jam, and Paesano bread. The three ingredients together are so, so good. I make it with the remarkable Bellwether Farms fresh ricotta we have at the Cream Top Shop. The Damson Plum Jam comes from American Spoon Foods up in Petoskey. And of course, thick hand-cut slices of Paesano. (I always cut my bread one slice at a time as I use it—the uneven texture and freshness of the slice make a remarkable difference in the eating experience.) Milky and creamy, sweet and savory, earthy and tart, wheaty and wonderful. Put the three together and, patient or otherwise, you will absolutely have a lovely morning meal!
