Mini Mambo Italiano: Italian Breads

Sesame Semolina italian bread by Antonis Achilleos

Join us for this mini version of our popular hands-on baking class, "Mambo Italiano: Italian Breads." We'll take you on a brief bread-making journey through part of Italy, as we teach you how to make fresh-baked Italian bread from scratch the Zingerman's Bakehouse way. 

In this class, we'll walk you through the Bakehouse's recipes for Focaccia and Sicilian Sesame Semolina, covering all the essential techniques. You'll learn what in the world a poolish is and why you need it to make these loaves of bread. We'll also teach you how to handle yeasted doughs, proper kneading, shaping your loaves, finding out when your loaves are ready to bake, and more. You'll get plenty of hands-on practice, leaving you with the skills to bake these Italian breads at home anytime you want.

Let's meet the Bakehouse Italian breads you'll be making:

Focaccia—A tender flatbread topped with Parmigiano-Reggiano® cheese. It's a great bread to enjoy as an appetizer, to serve with spreads, or to make a sandwich with. Wait until you experience focaccia warm and fresh from your own oven. You might want to double the recipe at home to account for the imminent snack attack that's coming to a kitchen near you.

Sicilian Sesame Semolina—Our homage to Sicily and a Bakehouse favorite since we opened, this bread is made from nearly 100% durum wheat (the same used to make pasta) in its two different forms—both the coarser ground semolina and the more finely ground durum. The entire loaf is then rolled in unhulled sesame seeds before baking. The natural oil in all those seeds that cover the dough gets slowly roasted in the oven, contributing an intense flavor and aroma, not to mention a lovely little crunch. And that’s just the crust! Inside there’s a firm, rich, and almost cake-like crumb with a golden yellow hue. This bread is fantastic toasted or grilled and pairs beautifully with garlic butter, pesto, olive tapenade, or a sprinkle of good parmesan. For more on why we're so taken with this exceptional Italian bread, head to our blog and read: "Sara's Sweet on Sicilian Sesame Semolina."

You'll leave the BAKE! class with both our Italian bread recipes, the knowledge to recreate them at home, and the Focaccia and Sicilian Sesame Semolina you made in class.

In-Person: We'll end the in-person class with a tasting of what we made and you'll leave with some Sesame Semolina bread dough to bake later at home, plus some great coupons. You may want to bring a cooler and ice pack to class for storing your bake-at-home bread dough on the ride home if you are traveling more than an hour to attend. 

Virtual (2-day): On Day 1, we’ll meet for an our to mix our poolish, before fermenting it overnight, and answer any questions you may have. On Day 2, we'll be mixing our doughs and then, shaping, proofing, and baking our two Italian breads.

 

What our guests have to say about this class:

I was looking for bread baking tips and ended up learning tons. I've always been a big fan of baking and this class has inspired me to try baking different types of bread. —Zixuan W.

Fantastic class with just the right mix of art and science. —Bridget W.

Additional Products

Semolina and Durum Flour Kit

$20.00

We would love to send you the flour you 'knead' for Mini Mambo success. This kit includes 2# of our semolina flour and 2# of our Durum Flour, more than enough to make the Sicilian Sesame Semolina bread in our Mini Mambo Italiano class. The price includes ground shipping. 

Basic Bread Baking Kit

$60.00

Our Basic Bread Baking Kit is great for bakers who are just starting to experiment with bread baking. It comes with 5 tools that will help you get started on your bread baking adventure: a bowl scraper, a bench knife, a lame with three razor blades (for scoring bread), an oven thermometer, and a digital thermometer. The price includes ground shipping. For more in-depth equipment descriptions please go to our FAQ page or send an email to [email protected]



Our classes (except for family classes & kids camps) are for adults 17 & up.

Dates for the Class Class Format Price Class Status Register
Thursday, April 18, 2024 - 5:30pm - 9:30pm EDT
In-Person $135.00 5 spots left
Saturday, May 11, 2024 - 1:30pm - 5:30pm EDT
In-Person $135.00 2 spots left
Sunday, June 16, 2024 - 1:30pm - 5:30pm EDT
In-Person $135.00 12 spots left
Friday, July 19, 2024 - 1:00pm - 5:00pm EDT
In-Person $135.00 12 spots left