Nonna in treaning

Passport & Plate - Nonna's bread

Brazil | Thursday, March 13, 2014 | 5 photos

Ingredients
Yeast:
Half a liter of lukewarm water (about body temperature)
1 tablespoon of biological yeast
1 cup of refined cane sugar
3 to 4 cups of all-purpose flour, or enough to get a loose porridge

Bread:
3 cups of soybean oil
2 tablespoon of salt
Half a liter of room-tempered milk
4 eggs
2 kg of all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting the work surface
Pre-made yeast

 

How to prepare this recipe
Yeast:
In a large bowl, put the yeast and slowly add the warm water. Stir the mix until the yeast is dissolved. Add the sugar and stir. Add enough flour, about 3 cups, until you have loose porridge, not like a dough, more loose.
Normally, I leave the yeast in a covered bowl in a warm environment for about 4 hours, but it varies accordingly to the weather.

Bread:
Mix the yeast, the soybean oil, the salt, the milk, and the eggs in a bowl. Pour the flour slowly to the bowl and mix it with your hands, to make sure all the ingredients are combined, until the dough is not sticking in your hands or in the bowl.
You may not need to use up all the flour called for in this recipe, or you may need more flour than called for. The amounts vary depending on many factors, including weather.
Turn the dough out onto a floured board and knead it, adding flour as needed, until the dough is soft and smooth, not sticky to the touch. To knead the dough fold the far edge of it into the middle of the dough, then turn the dough and repeat. Do this several times, the more you work in the dough; the smoother will be the bread.
Put the dough back to the bowl, cover it, and let it rise in a warm spot for about 1 hour, again the time needed for it rise will depend on the weather. This gives the yeast time to work and the dough should double in size.
Once the dough has doubled in size, the texture should be bouncy and shine, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface to shape it. If your dough is bigger than the necessary for a loaf, divide it and let the rest in the bowl. Use your hand to roll the dough into a round loaf shape. Set in a floured baking tray and let it rise for 1h30.
Preheat your oven in 180° C or light up a wood stove and let the fire turn into ember, before putting the bread in it.
Bake the loaf for about 30 minutes in the oven. The loaf is cooked when it’s risen and golden. Let it cool.

 

The story behind this recipe
During the XIX century, millions of Italians arrived every day at Port of Santos in Brazil seeking for a new life; among these people was my great-great- grandmother’s family. This bread recipe was brought by them and has been passed orally through mom to daughter since then.
When my grandma was a child and lived in a farm of Italian immigrants, every week the women would gather to make bread, often sharing their ingredients and natural yeast. Even now, we keep our bread recipe the closest possible to the one that she learned with her mom.
As a lot of families of Italians descendants, we’re a very matriarchal family, with all revolving around our moms and, mostly, around my grandma, which is why I have learned this recipe with both my mom and grandma.
My family’s relationship with food is one of its defining characteristics; all our events and gatherings are surrounded by food, a lot of food, in fact. Kitchen is always the most crowded place in the house, with everyone working together and chatting; even the men are used to help at the kitchen and to cook.
Most of my dearest moments were, and still are, related to food. Sunday lunches have always been my favorites; crowded house, everyone gathered around a table full of food, talking loud and gesticulating. In my childhood, we kids would always be around the kitchen tasting the food; now that most of us are young adults, we still do that, but we usually help more.
Although my love for Sunday lunches, afternoon snacks - when we chat and have fun -, are times that are dear to me. Most of these times, we do a big recipe of bread to eat and share. When we were children we would always play with the dough and make mini breads. As time went by, my sister and cousins decided to get out of kitchen and help our moms when necessary, while I’ve decided to turn myself in their apprentice. My grandma likes to say that I’m her sous-chef, since I’m the one that always helps her; I prefer to say that I’m a nonna in training.