THE BOZZA: "PANE SPECIALE CHE PIACE"

yes, i know, i was complaining about tuscan saltless bread, and here i am again talking about it. but i found yet another tuscan loaf i can actually eat! so i gotta tell you about it. tuscans pride themselves on their saltless bread and declare that it the perfect bed for salty toppings like prosciutto crudo (cured ham) or rich pecorino cheese. when i was at the beach in castiglione della pescaia last week i found myself in front of what looked like a huge corn flake cookie: the bozza bread (sorry for the neon lighting that doesn't do the color of the bread justice!). advertised as "special bread that people like", bozza literally means a "rough draft", or something that is "oversized and swelling". when i asked how they make it, i got the typical answer: "just water, yeast and flour!" but everyone has their secret ingredients whether it is lard, olive oil, sugar, honey or milk. so what the answer really meant was that if i want more, i have to go back! i didn’t get the secret out of them, but i brought a loaf home with me.