Today in things that make me proud to be an Italian-American: Caputo’s lard bread.
An old-school standby, Caputo Bakery (not to be confused with the unrelated Caputo’s Fine Foods) is a no-frills storefront with a serious bread selection. The service isn’t the friendliest and the place isn’t much to look at, but just get over it, because you’re paying $4.75 for a giant loaf of tender brioche-like bread, stuffed (stuffed!) with cubes of provolone, hunks of salami, and a hefty crank of black pepper. Oh, and did we mention the reason the dough is so tender is because it’s kneaded with lard? A gorgeous, hard-to-find specialty (and, it must be noted, a real umami bomb) that’s worth traveling for.
That sounds like the best thing ever.
