New Bread Loaves from La Brea Bakery (Karin E. Baker)
A great slice of artisanal bread is always something to celebrate. Esteemed chef and baker Nancy Silverton recently unveiled three new reasons to rejoice with the release of her La Brea Bakery Founders line.
Silverton helped transform American eating habits after founding La Brea Bakery in 1989, enabling her to introduce high-quality bread to the masses. Soon available across the country, these artisanal loaves retain their high quality to this day.
Eventually stepping away from La Brea Bakery to work on projects like Pizzeria Mozza and amass even more James Beard Awards, Nancy recently returned to the bakery to develop, with the help of SVP of Innovation Jonathan Davis, this new line of bread in honor of the bakery’s 30th anniversary.
During a recent tasting at La Brea Cafe Cafe, Silverton explained why she loves the challenge of making bread: “It’s such a challenging, delicious thing to make. It’s alive. You don’t know until 24 hours later if it’s a success.”
Nancy then introduced us to her new trio of loaves. Created using her original starter while made to appeal to contemporary tastes with ingredients like alternative flours, sprouted grains and seeds, all three sourdough variations were delicious. The crusty Pain Levain, a slow-fermented sourdough, was perfectly enhanced by apricot and raspberry jams, while the Country Wheat Batard, a sourdough made of wheat bran and whole-wheat flour, was well accompanied by a candied red onion and goat cheese spread. My favorite, the Sprouted Multigrain and Seed enhanced with sunflower and pumpkin seeds, paired beautifully with an artichoke and parmesan spread.
Want to get in on the carb-y action? All three loaves, GMO-free and responsibly sourced, can be found at local markets and at the aforementioned cafe.
