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As the Cagliese walk along the
cobblestone streets of Cagli, Italy, the smell
of freshly baked bread permeates the fresh early
morning air.
A small bakery hidden in a narrow alley opens
its doors every morning at 6:30 sharp, welcoming
local customers with an enormous variety of breads,
cookies and pastries.
Of all the breads made by Domenico Ricci and
Giuseppina Pierantonio at Ricci Bakery, the unsalted
baked goods are the first to go.
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“We
could not imagine our lives any other way.”
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“Within the first hour of business the
demand for bread baked without salt is so overwhelming
the trays are typically refilled six times,”
remarked Ricci as he restocked the wooden crates
with loaves of salt-less bread hot out of the
oven. “Meanwhile the ordinary salted loaves
of bread sell at a much slower rate.”
One of the oldest Cagliese traditions is baking
bread without salt.
Despite the partiality for saltless bread in
Cagli, locals seemed unable to provide a definite
explanation of what perpetuates this tradition.
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Domenico
Ricci, Owner of Ricci Bakery |
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“There is no particular reason the tradition
of saltless bread is still practiced today,” said
Stefania Calandrini. “Many people have researched
and written books about this topic, but they have not
reached any simple answer. It is a unique tradition
in the Marche region of Italy.”
Calandrini did, however, describe the history behind
the tradition.
Back in the 1500s, salt was a heavily taxed item, which
forced people to use it sparingly. Italians could no
longer afford this everyday necessity; therefore, bread
makers knew the only way they could continue to sell
their products at an affordable price was if they did
not use salt.
When they began to bake bread without salt, they were
able to lower their prices and maintain their loyal
clientele.
“Because there is a large amount of salt found
in meat such as pork, ham, salami and prosciutto,”
Calandrini pointed out, “Italians in the Marche
region believe unsalted bread simply goes better.”
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Salty meats require a bland and saltless accompaniment
so that one can truly savor the taste of the meal,
Cagliese believe.
Ricci Domenico and Giuseppina Pierantonio have been
dedicated to their line of work for nearly 40 years.
They opened the bakery in Cagli together 18 years
ago and continue their dedication to serve the city
and their valuable customers.
Restaurant and café owners and supermarket
managers flood the shop everyday buying loaves of
bread to sell at their establishments. Local Cagliese
purchase their daily supply of saltless bread for
their families every morning as well.
“Within the first hour of business
the demand for bread baked without salt is so
overwhelming the trays are typically refilled
six times.”
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“My favorite kind of bread is the one baked
with cheese,” Laura Mattioli, an English and
Italian translator from Pesaro, said. “I bring
home a loaf of it every week. It’s not boring
like the other breads; you can even eat it plain!”
Despite their grueling work schedule, which requires
them to slave away, baking bread and serving customers
from 1:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m., Domenico and his wife
truly love their job. "We could not imagine our
lives any other way," they claim.
Most of the products made in the Ricci Bakery are
prepared without salt, such as the loaves of bread
served in restaurants before the meal. Any sort of
bread that is served with cheese or meat is always
saltless. In addition, the salt-free variety complements
sweet foods.
“It is rare someone comes into the bakery asking
for bread with salt, which is why I do not have to
make as many loaves of bread with salt,” said
Caterina Serallegri, the owner of Cagli’s popular
Panetteria. “As a matter of fact, there
is only one type of bread made with salt that we sell
on a daily basis.”
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Ten
Pound Bags of Flour |
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Mixture
of Unsalted Bread Dough |
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The
local specialty, Cheese Bread |
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Panini breads are small loaves of bread that are always made with salt —
approximately 300 grams, roughly the equivalent
to American-style bread — because they are
used for sandwiches.
Despite its bland flavor, there are advantages
to baking bread without salt: bread rises faster
and air pockets enlarge which allows holes to
form.
“When I discovered bread with salt, I liked
it very much, but I only eat it with salami, prosciutto,
and cheese,” Ketty Pompili, owner of Alimentari,
a market that sells authentic and traditional
Italian delicacies, said. She said she did not
discover bread with salt until she was in her
late teens.
“The bread I sell at my store is rarely
made with salt because it tastes better with the
dishes I serve,” Pompili said.
Most inhabitants of the Marche region declare
they are rarely bothered by the lack of flavor
in their bread.
“I do not even taste the difference between
breads with or without salt,” claimed Fabrizio
del Re, a bartender at Caffé del Corso.
“Either one tastes good to me, but if I
had to choose one, I guess it would be salt-free
bread.”
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