This bread hails from Puglia, the heel of the boot of Italy. The name itself translates to “villager” or “countryman.”
It’s a rustic peasant bread we make with nothing but organic wheat flour, water, sea salt and yeast, along with an organic cornmeal dusted crust.
This is what bakers call a high hydration bread, at 72% water. The high water content and long fermentation process results in a bread with large air pockets of varying sizes. We love them! They aren’t a mistake. After a trip to our hearth oven when all that moisture and air inside has escaped, the end result is a tender, airy crumb and a thin, chewy crust. It has a sweet and buttery flavor even though there’s no butter or sugar in the recipe. It’s all about the fermentation process.
Paesano is perfect for passing around the table to rip and dip in olive oil, pasta sauce or soup. This bread brings people together and brings any dinner up a few flavor notches. Add this to your bread bucket list: try slices of Paesano brushed with olive oil and garlic on the grill. It’s going to steal the spotlight from the rest of the meal and make you look like a culinary master.
