Zingerman's Fall Buyer's Guide 2020 by Zingerman's Mail Order

THANKS, FRANK! By Brad Hedeman

In 1992, ten years after Zingerman’s Delicatessen served their first reuben sandwich, Zingerman’s Bakehouse baked their first loaf of rye bread. After a decade in operation, Paul Saginaw and Ari Weinzweig—founders of Zingerman’s Deli—wanted better bread for their mammoth sandwiches. When they couldn’t find it locally, they decided to make it for themselves. Or rather, they convinced their friend Frank Carollo to travel to upstate New York, train with famed artisan baker Michael London, then return to Ann Arbor and open up a bakery to serve just one client: Zingerman’s Deli. Twenty-eight years later, Zingerman’s Bakehouse is considered one of the best artisan bakeries in the country. Hundreds of passionate, talented bakers have had a hand in that incredible achievement, but it all started with Frank. “Our sandwiches are amazing, but they wouldn’t be a fraction as good if it weren’t for the bread. It’s at least 50% of the experience and flavor of each sandwich,” said Rodger Bowser, chef and managing partner of Zingerman’s Deli. “More than what’s inside, I think it’s the bread our customers notice and enjoy most.” Thanks, Frank! “The first club we ever offered was the Bread Club because that’s what people wanted,” said Mo Frechette, founder of Zingerman’s Mail Order. “They thought we were crazy for shipping bread, but that was more than twenty years ago and it’s still a top seller. It’s rare to find bread this good, which is why we regularly ship it across the country.” Thanks, Frank! Zingerman’s Bakehouse—without knowing it at the time— started the Zingerman’s Community of Businesses. It was the first “other” Zingerman’s and as it found its own success, Frank and his co-managing partner Amy Emberling gave the burgeoning Zingerman’s businesses a template for finding their own success, too.

like, “I’ve been working right next to Frank making bread for two months now, and I just realized he’s one of the owners.” Today, the Bakehouse has annual sales over $10 million, a staff of about 130, and has been recognized all over the country. Jane and Michael Stern called the rye bread the best in the country in Saveur magazine. In May 2020, Food & Wine named Zingerman’s Bakehouse one of the top bakeries in the U.S. The accolades are many, the list of mentees is long, and the impact Frank has had on everyone that works in Zingerman’s is immeasurable. Good luck on your next adventure. We know we’ll see you soon and often. Thanks, Frank! Brad Hedeman is a writer and food finder at Zingerman’s Mail Order. His favorite food is french fries topped with other foods. Reach him to bond over your favorite fry toppers—or about anything else—at bhedeman@zingermans.com.

Thanks, Frank! There aren’t enough pages in this catalog to scratch the surface of what Frank has meant to the 700+ Zingerman’s employees working in our ten business community. But Ari sums it up well: “If there could be a poster child for humility, Frank would be the guy. There’s a popular anecdote about Frank that I’ve heard from a multitude of Zingerman’s bakers over the years: folks will pull me aside and say something

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eat like frank Frank’s Favorites Gift Boxes After more than three decades working with food, Zingerman’s Bakehouse founder and managing partner Frank Carollo knows a thing or two about good food. Here are a couple of collections of his favorites, each packed in a colorful cartoon box. Frank’s Bakery Favorites Box includes a loaf each of our classic Farm Bread and our new Country Miche Bread, a bag of freshly milled organic Wheat Porridge, and a pair of Oatmeal Raisin Cookies. G-FCB frank’s bakery gift box $65 FREE SHIPPING

Frank’s Pantry Favorites Box comes packed with Ortiz’s line-caught Bonito Tinned Tuna, a bottle each of Petraia Olive Oil and La Vecchia Dispensa’s Six Year Aged Balsamic, American Spoon’s Sour Cherry Preserves, and a jar of Wood Fire Roasted Piquillo Peppers. G-FFV frank’s pantry gift box $115 FREE SHIPPING

Frank’s nEw Favorite Bread

frank’s long tIme FavOrite Bread

Country Miche Bread

Farm Bread

“Miche” is French for loaf and typically refers to the large size and round shape in the style of traditional French country bread. Bigger loaves have bigger flavor, a moister crumb and longer staying power. Ours is made from a mix of Michigan stone-ground wheat, rye flour, whole buckwheat, and spelt flour, all whole grain and freshly-milled in house at Zingerman’s Bakehouse just minutes before being mixed into a dough and naturally leavened by its own unique starter. Deep and complex flavor. B-MCH 4 lb handmade round $28 B-MCH-A 2 lb handmade loaf $15

Imagine sitting around a French farmhouse table waiting for dinner. This would be the bread the family would serve. Like French pain au levain, it's made with a sour starter and a mix of white and freshly milled whole wheat flours. Its crust is crisp, its flavor subtle and never tiring. The three pound round is my favorite. Cut into quarters and freeze what you don’t eat. B-FRM-RND 3 lb round $18 B-FRM-LOF 1 ½ lb loaf $9.50 SHIPS 2 BUSINESS DAY

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bakinG zingerman’s at hOmE Zingerman’s Bakehouse Cookbook

The must-have baking book for home bakers of all skill levels. Since 1992, Zingerman’s Bakehouse has fed fans in Ann Arbor and across the country with traditional breads, brownies, cookies, coffee cakes, and other baked goods, the likes of which have been disappearing from our shops and our home baking repertoires. In honor of our Bakehouse's 25th anniversary we have 65 of our most popular recipes in a handsome cookbook with a ton of pictures and, being Zingerman's, illustrations. Featuring behind-the-scenes stories of the Bakehouse that share our growing pains, lessons learned and professional techniques that enable and encourage every home baker to bake deliciously. P-ZBH 240 page hardcover $30 $3.99 BOOK RATE SHIPPING

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BACK TO SCHOOL

RECOMMENDED FOOD READING FOR FOOD LOVERS THE FOODS OF ITALY BY WAVERLEY ROOT Recommended by Val Neff-Rasmussen Writer and food finder at Zingerman’s Mail Order Waverley Root’s book is the definitive region-by-region guide to Italy’s foods. I can vouch for it being a tremendous resource for learning about what foods to search out when planning a trip to Italy, but it’s just as enjoyable as an armchair vacation into the many eccentricities tucked atop each Italian hillside. Root’s wry sense of humor pops when you least expect it, too, with comments like, “only a really obstinate winebibber would persevere with Alionza, a wine distinguished by lack of distinction.”

SIMPLE FRENCH FOOD BY RICHARD OLNEY Recommended by Ed Behr Editor of The Art of Eating, author of numerous books including 50 Foods: The Essentials of Good Taste I don’t believe anyone has ever written a more sensual cookbook than Simple French Food. The book is a teaching book in the best possible way, always sending you back to your own palate, and the selection of details can make you feel you’re with Olney in his kitchen. It’s also an eater’s book, driven by the pleasure of eating. This was the book that made me understand that it was possible to cook in the way I wanted to cook.

A TASTE OF INDIA BY MADHUR JAFFREY Recommended by Amy Emberling Managing partner of Zingerman’s Bakehouse, co-author of the Zingerman’s Bakehouse Cookbook I cooked from this book more than any other when I got my first apartment after college. It gave me confidence that it’s possible to study a very unfamiliar cuisine and to become proficient at it, something that I’ve continued to do many times over in my professional career. This is one of the biggest lessons at the foundation to my approach to food and cooking now.

SALT BY MARK KURLANSKY

Recommended by Brad Hedeman Writer and food finder at Zingerman’s Mail Order Succinct and informative, Kurlansky connects the dots of human civilization through salt. Where people settled, how they lived, what they ate...it all comes down to the white crystals of wonderment. And he did it all without flowery, indulgent, unimportant writing. Pretty impressive for a food book.

THE FLAVOR THESAURUS BY NIKI SEGNIT Recommended by Stella Parks Pastry chef, author of BraveTart: Iconic American Desserts The Flavor Thesaurus is a guide to relationships—how one flavor can amplify or underscore another to produce a more satisfying composition. It’s the only book I keep in my kitchen, and one I reference whenever a recipe feels a little flat. Even for those who don’t have any intention of stepping into the kitchen, thumbing through The Flavor Thesaurus will provide insight into many curious culinary relationships, such as the pairing of avocados and hazelnuts, lamb and anise, cumin and apricot, or banana and clove.

back to sChOol: learn how to spice Épices de Cru Grand Spice Set & Book

Over two dozen metal tins, translucent tops, each filled with a shock of spice bursting with aromas: floral, toasty, bright, rich, herbal, earthy. What really steals the show, though, is the taste. Ethné and Philippe de Vienne’s Montreal spice business, Épices de Cru, has what I think are hands-down the best spices around. This kit has 26 of their house blends sourced from around the globe, enough to keep a curious cook busy for months. It comes with a 143-page book featuring 60 of their well-tested recipes. Makes a stunning gift. Note the spices are whole, which makes them last much longer. They only need a quick grind with a mortar and pestle or food processor. P-EDC 26 spices, plus book $90 SHIPS FOR FLAT RATE

back to sChOol: study snacks

The Munchies Collection Shipped free to any home or campus, including those located in Lansing. Ann Arbor Tortilla Chips, Fundidora Salsa, Zingerman's Virginia Peanuts, John Macy's Cheesesticks, our Zingerman’s Peanut Brittle, and a Zingerman’s Magic Brownie. G-MUN munchies gift box $65 FREE SHIPPING

back to SChOol: ChEese flavor EducatiON

back to sChOol: Oil Flavor Education

Tour de Olive Oil Gift Box

Mountain Cheese Flight

This gift lets the recipient experiment at will. Our printed gift box comes with a half liter of feathery light Roi extra virgin olive oil from the Italian Riviera; a half liter of assertive but smooth Peranzana extra virgin olive oil, made just for Zingerman’s by Marina Colonna in the Molise, and a one-ounce sampler of four citrus-pressed extra virgin olive oils. Also includes a loaf of Paesano Bread for ripping and dipping. Makes a great gift for a cook of any skill. G-TDO oils & bread gift $100

These three cheeses—Antique Emmentaler from Switzerland, Piave Vecchie from Italy, and Comté from France—are all made with similar cheesemaking styles favored high up in mountains, where the emphasis is on big wheels that age and keep for a long time. Taste the similarities and differences along with either a box of artisan bread or crackers. G-MTN with artisan bread $100 G-N-MTN with crackers $100

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back to sChOol: learn a new skiLl

Home Cheesemaking Kit

Every box comes with rennet and citric acid—enough for 30 batches of cheese—as well as easy to follow instructions on how to make your own mozzarella or ricotta from scratch. All you need to provide is milk and salt. It takes less than an hour to turn the milk into cheese. A great gift for kids, cheese lovers and families that cook together. P-HCK makes 30 batches $39 SHIPS FOR FLAT RATE

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WILL THIS EXPIRED YOGURT/TIN OF TUNA/ [FILL IN THE BLANK] KILL ME? By Val Neff-Rasmussen

ARE FOODS PAST THEIR EXPIRATION DATES UNSAFE TO EAT? Probably not. The dates printed on foods—whether they are labeled as “sell by,” “best by,” “use by,” or any other variation on the language—have very little to do with safety, or even when the food will “expire.” Instead, the dates are determined at the whim of the food’s manufacturer, as their best guess as to when the food will be past its peak quality level. What is the “peak quality level”? Whatever the manufacturer thinks it is.

DOES THE GOVERNMENT REQUIRE FOODS TO HAVE DATES PRINTED ON THEM? No. With the exception of baby formula, the federal government does not require any foods to be printed with any sort of expiration dates. State laws vary widely, and many states don’t have any laws about food labeling or require labels on only certain foods, like shellfish.

IF EXPIRATION DATES ARE OFTEN MEANINGLESS AND NOT REQUIRED, WHY PRINT THEM AT ALL? A century ago, when we all grew our own food or bought it from our neighboring farmer or corner grocer, we didn’t need dates on our foods; we knew how fresh it was. But throughout the 20th century, as the agricultural system got bigger and food eaters bought more packaged foods and thus became more removed from food growers, we lost that knowledge. How could we be sure that what we were buying wasn’t stale or spoiled? By the 1970s, a growing demand for clear indicators of freshness resulted in the piecemeal development of various dating systems. The printed expiration dates stuck around. Consumers liked them because they felt they had more insight into their foods. But perhaps more significantly, manufacturers liked them, too. By being conservative with the dates they print, they can subtly convince consumers to buy more food. A recent survey reported that 91% of us have thrown out food because it was past its printed expiration date, and data shows that

the average US household throws out 15-25% of all the food they buy annually. If our food “expires” and we have to replace it, that means more sales for the manufacturer— and less money left in our own pockets. Does that mean you should completely disregard all expiration dates? Instead, I’d recommend taking them with a grain of salt. They can still sometimes be a useful tool for reference. For instance, we print “eat by” dates on all of our pastries. We bake them without any preservatives, just like you would at home. So, just like how a scone you bake from scratch in your own kitchen will start growing mold after a couple of weeks, our scones will, too—and we want you to get to enjoy them before then! But that’s the important point: ultimately, it’s the mold—not the date we print—that determines whether a pastry is still good to eat. The date is just a tool to hint at when that might be more likely to happen. For a good list of how long to keep all sorts of foods ranging from eggs to flour to soy sauce, check out J. Kenji Lopez-Alt’s article “The Food Expiration Dates You Should Actually Follow” printed in The New York Times in April 2020.

SO HOW DO I KNOW IF A FOOD IS SAFE TO EAT? Trust your eyes, nose, and mouth! Humans have been eating food for millennia; we’ve only been printing expiration dates on foods for a few decades. For most of human history, we’ve judged for ourselves if food was good to eat. Look at it: do you see mold growing on it? Smell it: does it have an off-putting aroma? Try a tiny nibble: does it make you want to retch? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then don’t eat it! But if it looks, smells, and tastes fine, it probably is. Val Neff-Rasmussen is a writer and food finder at Zingerman’s Mail Order. Her favorite breakfast is a bowl of yogurt with jam, and a couple of pieces of buttered toast. You can reach her to share your favorite toast ideas—or for any other reason—at vneff-rasmussen@zingermans.com.

VINTAGE FISH, REALLY? REALLY! Vintage Tuna

Vintage Sardines

Tuna in tins, especially these from the fourth-generation family firm Ortiz, is one of the jewels in Spain’s culinary crown. Ortiz’s fish are all line caught—not netted—in the Bay of Biscay, then hand cleaned and tinned in good olive oil. The olive oil is key. It adds flavor and makes the texture rich and smooth over time. Extra aging amplifies the effect.

Great tinned sardines get better with age, just like you. There’s a particularly delicious brand of magic that infuses this oily, rich, bony, saline fish when it hibernates for years in a wallet-sized metal cocoon. The fish we save as vintage come from the biggest, fattest catches of the year, the end of Portugal’s summer haul. A real treat for the seafood adventurer in your life. P-SAR-2014 2014 vintage 125 g tin $10 P-SAR-2015 2015 vintage 125 g tin $10 P-SAR-2016 2016 vintage 125 g tin $10 10+ any sardines $7 ea.

Loin: The loin is the big working muscle of the tuna, and the everyday tuna we’re used to eating in tuna. Loins can get ticky tacky firm when young, but soften up to silk when aged. P-ORT-2013 2013 loin, 112 g tin $12 P-ORT-2015 2013 loin, 112 g tin $12 P-ORT-2016 2016 loin, 112 g tin $12 10+ any loins $10 each

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Belly: Known as toro in Japanese, ventresca in Spanish, the belly is blessed with the most tender meat, the meltingest texture. Aged, it just gets better. P-TUN-2016 2016 belly, 110 g tin $28 5+ bellies $24 each SHIPS FOR FLAT RATE

AGE YOUR OWN

Portuguese Sardines

Start your own vintage tinned fish cellar with the cream of the crop. We’ll fill a colorful, under the sea themed box with three of our favorites: 2014 vintage Portuguese sardines, 2013 vintage Spanish bonito tuna loin, and 2016 vintage Spanish yellowfin tuna ventresca. G-VFS 3 vintage tins, gift boxed $50

Kick off your vintage fish cellar—or make your Thursday night dinner especially delicious—with our freshest tins of sardines, from the summer 2019 catch. Now they’re at their punchiest; over time, the flavors will meld together. Each tin holds four or five tender, perfect sardines, come nested in a tin of olive oil, and their flavor is extraordinary—the prize of Portugal, revered there as a kind of national seafood treasure. We offer pure olive oil (classic style) or extra virgin olive oil, which has the effect of making the flavor more buttery, less metallic; in a way it’s less fishy. P-SAR 125 g classic $7 P-SAR-10 case of ten classic tins $55 P-SEV 110 g extra virgin $9 P-SEV-10 case of ten extra virgin tins $75

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Vintage Fish Starter Collection

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WHAT DOES “EXTRA VIRGIN” MEAN?

AN EXPLANATION OF OLIVE OIL’S ODD LABELING TERMS By Val Neff-Rasmussen

“Extra virgin” is a legal term used to categorize olive oil. It’s like the USDA ratings for beef: Prime, Choice, and Select. For olive oil, the standards are set by the IOC, or International Olive Council, an organization set up by the UN to coordinate and promote olive and olive oil production. Just like the USDA beef ratings, the IOC specifies a hierarchy for olive oils. From highest to lowest quality, the rankings are: extra virgin olive oil, virgin olive oil, and ordinary olive oil (on labels, it’s usually just called “Olive Oil,” or sometimes “Pure Olive Oil”). There are additional lower rankings of olive oils that aren’t for consumption, just like how beef that ranks lower than “Select” still gets used for other products, like dog food.

THERE’S A THREE PART TEST FOR EXTRA VIRGINITY: HOW IT’S MADE, ITS CHEMICAL COMPOSITION, AND HOW IT TASTES. First, extra virgin olive oil, virgin olive oil, and ordinary olive oil must all be made only from olives, and processed only by mechanical means (which is to say, no chemicals can be used). These might seem like no-brainers, but since ancient Roman and Greek times and continuing to today, conniving oil salesmen cut good olive oil with cheaper oils, like sunflower oil or heavily chemically refined olive oil, to boost their profit margins. Secondly, extra virgin olive oil must have less than 0.8% oleic acid, which, counterintuitively, is the name for a type of fat, not an acid like vinegar. Oleic acid occurs naturally in olives and many other vegetable and animal fats. As olive oil oxidizes—which is a technical way of saying, as olive oil goes rancid—the amount of oleic acid increases. In other words, an extra virgin olive oil must be less than 0.8% rancid. Virgin olive oil must have between 0.8-2% oleic acid. Ordinary olive oil is between 2-3.3% oleic acid. What makes for more oleic acid? One big factor is how the olives are handled. Like apples, olives will bruise if they get bumped around. And just like how an apple that falls to the floor is probably still pretty good if you eat it immediately but develops a big, mushy brown spot if you let it sit for a few days, a bruised olive gets worse the longer it sits around, too. To produce olive oils with low oleic acid (and also ones that taste great), it’s best to handle the olives gently and get them to the mill as quickly as possible. After pressing, the oil should be stored away from light and oxygen, both of which will oxidize it (and thus create more oleic acid) over time.

Third, extra virgin olive oil must meet certain flavor standards. First, it should taste “fruity,” which, as the IOC uses it, means that it should taste like olives. The IOC also considers bitterness and pepperiness to be positive flavor attributes for oils. Secondly, an extra virgin oil must not have any flavor defects. In particular, it should not taste muddy, winey, or rancid, each of which indicates poor handling of the olives. Virgin and ordinary olive oils are also supposed to taste fruity, but they’re allowed to have some flavor defects.

DOES “EXTRA VIRGIN” MEAN THE OIL IS GOOD? In a word, no. It does mean in most cases it should be better than oils labeled as virgin or just plain olive oil, but there’s an enormous range in quality of oils labeled as “extra virgin.” What’s more, thanks to the alleged widespread adulteration and corruption in the big olive oil industry, a vast proportion of what’s labeled as “extra virgin” doesn’t truly meet the IOC’s standards. For a deeper look into olive oil fraud, check out Tom Mueller’s fascinating book, Extra Virginity. So how do you buy a good oil? Oils from smaller producers— especially those grown and pressed on a single estate—are much less likely to be tampered with. But the best advice I can give you is to taste it. If an oil tastes good to you, and gives good flavors to the foods you eat with it, then it’s good.

5 GREAT TAKES ON OLIVE OIL FEATURING DIFFERENT MAKE TECHNIQUES

never presSed

Mariano Sanz Olive Oil

hand ladled

Onsa’s Olive Oil

From the rarely visited Sierra de Gredos, the wild, sparsely settled mountain region of western Spain not far from the Portuguese border. The extra virgin olive oil is made by Mariano Sanz Pech. No pressing is used in the production: Mariano bottles only the “flower of the oil,” which drips naturally from the crushed olives. It’s unfiltered, leaving it lusciously cloudy in the bottle. Great on salads, with grilled meats of all sorts or on bean dishes. Better yet, just pour it on a nice thick slice of toasted Farm Bread, sprinkle on a pinch of sea salt and add a couple slices of ripe tomatoes and enjoy the fruits of Mariano’s labor. O-MAR 500 ml $30

Majid Mahjoub makes excellent extra virgin olive oil on his farm in Tebourba, Tunisia. This particular oil, named for Majid’s wife Onsa, is made from olives harvested later in the season. Longer ripening makes for softer, sweeter flavors, which are balanced here with a bitter, peppery kick. To make the oil, instead of relying on the standard modern centrifuge, Majid’s crew uses an ancient technique: after they mill the olives, they separate the oil in a basin of water. When the oil floats to the top, the oil is scooped off by hand with giant, shallow ladles. The gentle technique protects the subtleties of the oil. O-ONS 500 ml $20 SHIPS FOR FLAT RATE

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stone milLed

Roi Olive Oil Roi extra virgin olive oil has been made in the mountain town of Badalucco in Liguria, Italy, by the Boeri family since 1900. The Boeris use an old stone mill to make the oil, the way all oils were made a century ago but practically none are today. This delicately flavored oil is the favorite of many of our crew. I regularly recommend it to folks who are beginning their olive oil education. At home, I love to pour Roi on freshly baked whole fish (half an hour at 350 degrees for a fish that weighs a pound). O-ROI 1 liter $45 O-ROI-500 500 ml $25

preSsed within 24 hours Peranzana Olive Oil

We looked long and hard for an oil to call our own. We finally chose this one. Zingerman’s Olive Oil is made by Marina Colonna on her ancient estate in the Molise, a little over 100 miles due east of Rome. Made from hand picked Peranzana olives pressed the same day they’re taken from the tree, this extra virgin olive oil is hugely flavorful. O-ZIN 500 ml $29 SHIPS FOR FLAT RATE

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fermEnted

Maussane Olive Oil From the sunny hillsides of Provence, where there’s a tradition to make oil with the ripest, blackest olives that have been fermented for a few days before pressing. The fermentation means that technically this oil is classified as virgin, but in this case, labels don’t mean everything. The fermentation creates a rich, buttery, golden nectar with a distinctive herbal character no other oil can match. O-MAU 500 ml $40 SHIPS FOR FLAT RATE

IS FRESH PASTA BETTER THAN DRIED? By Mo Frechette

Fresh or dried, which is better? Are people concerned about this? Are you talking about it at dinner, arguing for one pasta style over the other? Frankly, I don’t know if this is a debate or not. If it is I’m sure it ranks very low on the scale of disputes, somewhere far under the controversy about whether water should be served with or without ice. It is a question that comes up with friends and colleagues from time to time, though. And almost always I find that folks assume fresh pasta is better. That if you had the time and wherewithal you should use fresh pasta over dried 100% of the time. Maybe that’s because it’s more work to make (if you make the pasta at home). Maybe it’s because fresh pasta is more fragile, more perishable. Maybe it’s because dried seems more industrial, more like a commodity and can sell for so much less.

Worse, it’s flour with a burnt edge to the flavor. The extra hot ovens singe the surface in a way Martelli and Rustichella’s slow, low drying methods do not. To see what I mean, taste a piece of uncooked commercially made DeCecco pasta (one of the better industrial companies) and Martelli spaghetti next to each other. The flavor is remarkably different. At home I almost exclusively use dried pasta. The dishes I like to cook are robust. Spaghetti with sardines, arugula and lemon. Penne with black pepper, pecorino and sausage. And my regular favorite: Il Mongetto’s plain tomato sauce (see facing page) with a tin of Ortiz tuna (see page 43) tipped in, oil and all.

Spaghetti extruded through bronze dies in small batches.

Whatever the story behind the myth, though, it’s not true. Fresh pasta is not better than dried. It’s just different. There are many times when dried pasta is preferable. Probably the most concise way to think of the tradeoff is this: use dried pasta when you want to enjoy noodles with a lot of texture and flavor; use fresh when you want a softer, subtler dish. Dried and fresh pasta are made very differently, hence the different results and different uses in the kitchen. Traditional dried pasta is made by extruding durum semolina dough through bronze dies. It’s dried at relatively low temperatures for a couple days. The bronze die extrusion leaves the pasta with a rough hewn texture. You can feel it in your mouth and the sauce really grips to it. The slow drying ferments the flour a bit. It transforms the dough from tasting like raw flour to something more like bread. In contrast, fresh pasta is usually rolled and cut and there is no fermentation. The texture is much softer, smoother and the flavor is much less intense, much more like flour. It’s important to note when I talk about dried pasta I’m not talking about any old dried pasta. There are only a handful of companies that do dried pasta right. My two favorites are Martelli ( find it on zingermans.com) and Rustichella (see next page). Most dried pasta is industrially made with exasperating shortcuts that leave it tasting unexceptional. In particular, they employ hot, short drying times so there is no transformation of the dough’s flavor. It tastes like flour.

Mo Frechette founded Zingerman’s Mail Order. His favorite snack food is popcorn. You can reach him to ask him about his favorite ways to season it—or anything else you’re wondering about—at moeats@zingermans.com.

Cooking pasta: don’t skimp on salt I salt the water pretty heavily as soon as the water starts to churn. “Salty like the sea,” says Signora Passalacqua, the mother of my Sicilian friend Gioacchino. Salty water gives the pasta a base of flavor you just can’t get salting afterwards. I use our French grey sea salt ( find it on zingermans.com). Dollar per pound, it’s still the best sea salt I’ve ever tasted. How much al dente is enough? It’s up to your taste how long you cook pasta and what texture it is, of course. Talking to folks in the pasta trade, they definitely show a preference for a version of al dente that’s more firm than most of us are used to. For one, Rolando Beramendi, the U.S. importer of Rustichella, cooks the penne for just 7 minutes, not the recommended ten or eleven. Who’s slow, who’s quick? These are some average pasta drying times. Barilla, Italy’s largest brand, dries its pasta at 95o Celsius for three hours. DeCecco, 80o Celsius for 10 hours. Rustichella, 45o Celsius for about 40 hours.

clasSic pastA Rustichella Pastas

Gianluigi Peduzzi’s Rustichella pasta, from Italy’s Abruzzo region, has long been a staple in my home. It’s so flavorful I go back and cook it time after time to make sure I didn’t just dream it. Hard durum semolina is extruded through bronze dies so it has a scruffy, rough surface, perfect for holding sauce. It’s dried at low temperatures for three to four days, depending on the shape, which gives it a dense, chewy texture. Rustichella takes a quick weeknight pasta dinner from ordinary to extraordinary. P-RUS-SPA P-RUS-BUC P-RUS-FET P-RUS-PEN

500 g spaghetti 500 g bucatini 500 g fettuccine 500 g penne 2 or more of any,

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$7 $7 $7 $7 $6 each

The Best tomatO sauce I know Il Mongetto Tomato Sauce

Gentile Napoletani Pasta

For years Il Mongetto has been the top contender for my favorite bottled pasta sauce. They have a clean, fresh flavor that I never tire of. Conjured up by the serenely insightful Santopietro family in the shadows of the Italian Alps, their sauces are filled with tomatoes, shallots, celery, carrots, olive oil from Umbrian maker Alfredo Mancianti and salt. Il Mongetto sauces have complex, compelling flavors that other sauces only aspire to. Keep some around for that night you don’t want to cook. Pasta with Il Mongetto sauce is the best fast food I know. More flavors at zingermans.com. P-ILL-PLA 10.15 oz jar $12 2 or more jars $10 each

From Gragnano, a hilltop town just south of Naples that’s known as the birthplace of dried pasta. The Zampino family makes Gentile pasta using a special type of wheat called Senatore Capelli, an old heirloom varietal that’s difficult to grow but incredibly aromatic. The Napoletani shape is like a shell, but with more embellished ridges. Outstanding with chunky sauces. P-GNP 500 g bag $10 SHIPS FOR FLAT RATE

the king Of chEEse

Parmigiano Reggiano

While nearly all Parmigiano Reggiano is made from the milk of Friesan cows pooled from many farms, at Valserena they make their parm using only the milk of their own Bruna Sola cows. Bruna Solas produce less milk than Freisians, but it has more butterfat—and more flavor. After two years of aging, the cheese is outstanding grated over a dish or for snacking on by itself. C-PAR by the pound $35

SHIPS FOR FLAT RATE

SHIPS 2 BUSINESS DAY WARM WEATHER CARE

Rustic Retreat Dinner Gift Box A pasta dinner that’s not a cliché. This gift boxed set includes Italian Pasta and Il Mongetto Tomato Sauce, our Paesano Bread, a tin of line-caught Ortiz Bonito Tuna, Travel Olive Oil from Tuscany, and two brownies for dessert: walnut-studded Magic Brownie and one no-nut Black Magic Brownie. G-DIN rustic retreat gift box $85 FREE SHIPPING

CALL 888 636 8162 9AM–10PM ET EVERY DAY ZINGERMANS.COM

WHOLE GRAIN PASTRIES ARE MORE DELICIOUS. WAIT, REALLY? By Brad Hedeman

For centuries, coarse, whole grain flours were the everyday norm for bread and gruel. White flours were a once-in-awhile treat for only the most special cakes or breads, reserved for the highest of holidays. As refined white flours became more readily available in the 20th century, Big Ag marketing departments promoted them by running a smear campaign against whole grains. Sure, the story went, the “nuts and twigs” diet of hippies was OK for healthy eaters, but not for anyone who wanted their foods to actually taste good. Boy did they get it wrong. For the past two years, a quiet revolution has been bubbling up at Zingerman’s Bakehouse. Thanks to a couple of granite mill stones that now reside in Ann Arbor inside our bakery, the flavors, aromas, and textures of our baked goods have been getting a big boost. We’re now using freshly milled, whole grain flours in all of our brownies and cookies. In the process, we’ve discovered a new stratosphere of flavor for these sweet treats.

GOOD GERMS The biggest advantage our granite mill gives is the ability to keep the grain’s germ intact and present in the flour. The germ is a tiny part of a grain, packed with precious nutrients and oils. Those oils are super flavorful—but also volatile. They go rancid over time. Industrial flour producers often remove the germ so the flour will keep for longer. What they gain in shelf life, they destroy in flavor and texture. Whole grain flours have a deep, toasty, wheat-y flavor that amplifies the flavor of pastries baked with it. And because we mill our flour just minutes before we bake with it, the shorter shelf life is a moot point.

MORE OIL, MORE TENDER The oil present in the germ makes for a softer, more tender texture for our pastries. It’s something you notice in the cookies, especially. They’re moist, almost fluffy, practically melting in your mouth. I’ve eaten a lot of Zingerman’s Bakehouse cookies in my day, tasting them as recipes have been tweaked, and this is the most noticeable improvement in texture I’ve ever experienced.

LOCAL GRAIN ECONOMIES Being local and knowing the provenance of your ingredients is a cornerstone of the modern food scene. Farmer’s markets have flourished, and many of us once again address our butcher by their first name. So why are local flours so hard to find? Unlike a fresh turnip or egg, grains must be transformed before we can use them. They must be milled. A century ago, practically every river, stream, brook, and creek anywhere near a town had a grain mill. Local farmers took their crops there for grinding. But as agricultural industrialization has pushed for the efficiencies of centralization, local mills shuttered. With them, flour went from being a product of the community to a faceless commodity. By installing our own mill, we’re turning back the clock. We now buy many grains directly from local farmers in Michigan and nearby states. In doing so, we gain more control of the quality of pastries and breads we bake.

A TIGHTER LOOP Milling some of our own grains in house has highlighted another problem: it can be hard to find the grains you want, grown the way you want. We’ve forged relationships with local farmers willing to grow particular wheats and grains just for us. It’s a risk for both of us. We commit to buying all the crop, and the farmer does their best to grow the varieties we’re excited to bake with. Thanks to the close relationships we’re developing with local farms we’re able to explore and experiment with different, sometimes tastier, grains. We’re not looking to reinvent the wheel (or cookie in this case), but if we can find a specific strain of wheat that can make a specific recipe just a little better, we want to do it.

CUStom Pastry Boxes Fill your own cartoon gift box or wooden crate with an assortment of Zingerman’s Bakehouse pastries. Choose your mix, pick your packaging, then give us a ring or hop on our site at zingermans.com where you can customize your box online. Your personal selection is hand packed to order.

Brownies

Scones

Treats

Magic Brownie with walnuts

Oatmeal Raisin Cookie

Currant Scone

Black Magic Brownie without nuts

Ginger Jump-Up Cookie

Lemon Scone

Brioche Orange & Almond Bostock

Sky’s the Lemon Cookie

Ginger Scone

Pecan Blondie Gluten Free Townie Brownie* * Not made in a gluten free facility.

Raspberry Patti Pocket Hand Pie

Country Pecan & Raisin Scone Date & Orange Scone

IN A CARTOON BOX

IN A WOODEN CRATE

G-4PP G-6PP G-10P G-15P G-20P

G-8CR G-15C G-20C G-30C

4 pastries 6 pastries 10 pastries 15 pastries 20 pastries

FREE SHIPPING

$40 $49 $65 $90 $110

8 pastries 15 pastries 20 pastries 30 pastries

$65 $105 $135 $190

FREE SHIPPING

mini brownie bites

Tiny but Mighty

Magic Brownie Bites

Zingerman’s legendary Magic Brownies—with and without toasted walnuts—carved down to a quarter of their original size. Each is baked with real butter, cane sugar and dark Belgian chocolate. G-MBB 20 bites in box (illustrated) $55 G-M50 50 bites in wooden crate $115 G-M100 100 bites in wooden crate $195 G-M200 200 bites in wooden crate $350 FREE SHIPPING

CALL 888 636 8162 9AM–10PM ET EVERY DAY ZINGERMANS.COM

bakery gifts a bakeR'S basket

Almost as Good as Grandma’s Gift Basket

This is one of our most popular baskets, a selection of some of the baked goods made by Zingerman’s Bakehouse presented in a wooden box emblazoned with the Zingerman’s name.

DELUXE (illustrated) Cinnamon Raisin Bread, a Zingerman’s walnut-studded Magic Brownie and a no-nut Black Magic Brownie, a Currant Scone and a Lemon Scone, a Pecan Blondie, an Oatmeal Raisin Cookie, a Sky’s the Lemon Cookie, a Ginger Molasses Jump-Up Cookie, Honey and Preserves. G-GRA-1 deluxe $100 FREE SHIPPING

ULTIMATE Double of all the pastries plus a loaf each of Cinnamon Raisin and Chocolate Sourdough breads. G-GRA-2 ultimate $175 FREE SHIPPING

Sunday Afternoon Bakery Basket Who says all pastries have to be sweet? We stuff the gift basket with a loaf each of Sourdough Bread and Pecan Praline Banana Bread, a Pecan Blondie and a walnut-studded Magic Brownie, an almond and orange scented brioche Bostock, a Sky’s the Lemon Cookie, a Ginger Jump Up Molasses Cookie and an Oatmeal Raisin Cookie, a raspberry-filled Patti Pocket hand pie, and a box of four mini scones. G-SSV gift basket, serves 6-8 $125 FREE SHIPPING

Pastry Dreambox Our oval wooden crate is stuffed to bursting with a nosher-sized Sour Cream Coffee Cake, two Currant Scones, a walnut-studded Magic Brownie, a no-nut Black Magic Brownie and a Pecan Blondie, a Ginger Molasses Jump-Up Cookie, an Oatmeal Raisin Cookie, a raspberry-filled Patti Pocket hand pie, a loaf of Classic Banana Bread, a mini Pecan Pie, and six handmade, crispy Palmiers. G-DRE serves 14–16 $150 FREE SHIPPING

Baked Goods Bonanza

Pastry Sampler

Big, beautiful cartooned gift box with no-nut Black Magic and walnut-studded Magic Brownies, a Pecan Blondie, Oatmeal Raisin and Ginger Molasses Jump-Up Cookies, a Ginger Scone, a Currant Scone, a raspberry-filled Patti Pocket hand pie, a six pack of all butter Palmiers and our nosher-sized Hot Cocoa Coffee Cake. G-BNZ serves 10–12 $115

Our cartooned gift box includes a no-nut Black Magic Brownie, a Ginger Molasses Jump Up Cookie, a mini Sour Cream Coffee Cake, a raspberry-filled Patti Pocket hand pie, a Currant Scone, plus a pouch of six handmade, crispy, all butter Palmiers. G-ZBS serves 6-8 $65

FREE SHIPPING

free shipping on all gift boxes & baskets

BAKERY CLUB Three Months

Six Months

G-BKC-3 $125

G-BKC-6 $240 Includes first 3 months plus:

carbophiles, rejoice Bake of the Month Club

How do you choose between crusty, hearthbaked breads and buttery, handmade pastries? Easy—choose both. Each month we’ll ship a loaf of Zingerman’s Bakehouse bread accompanied by a Zingerman’s Bakehouse pastry or three.

Raison d’Etre Jewish Rye Bread Sour Cream Coffee Cake

Frenchie French Mountain Bread Palmiers Orange and Almond Bostock

Chocoholic Chocolate Sourdough Bread Magic Brownie Black Magic Brownie Mini Hot Cocoa Coffee Cake

All American Roadhouse Bread Classic Banana Bread Oatmeal Raisin Cookie

Tutti Frutti Cinnamon Raisin Bread Currant Scone Lemon Scone Raspberry Patti Pocket

Sweet & Savory Peppered Bacon Farm Bread Sea Salt Pecan Blondie Spicy Ginger Scone Molasses Ginger Cookie

FREE SHIPPING

Cinn ful Cinnamon Roll Gift Box Almost anyone can make a cinnamon roll smell good while it’s baking, even among the cell phone kiosks at the mall. Unfortunately, most have little more than aroma to offer. You won’t taste much beyond sugar and cinnamon. The real challenge is to fashion a cinnamon roll that tastes as good as it smells. These fit the bill. Warm them up, break one open and put your nose up close. You’ll smell sweet butter, Indonesian cinnamon, real vanilla. But the real treat is next. Take one bite. That’s all you’ll need to forget the litany of cinnamon roll disappointments life has dealt you. With serving instructions. G-CIN ten roll tin in wooden crate $55 A-CIN ten roll tin in cartoon gift box $50 FREE SHIPPING

the NYC deli classic from A2 Zingerman’s Classic Cheesecake Walk into any classic deli in New York and you’re sure to find cheesecake on the menu. At Zingerman’s Bakehouse, they use fresh cream cheese from Zingerman’s Creamery, real vanilla, lots of sweet butter and a graham cracker crust (we make our own graham crackers, too). This classic cheesecake is luscious. Dense yet fluffy in texture, rich yet bright in flavor. A-ZCH 7” cake, serves 6–8 $85 FREE SHIPPING

CALL 888 636 8162 9AM–10PM ET EVERY DAY ZINGERMANS.COM

coffee cakes

Coffee cakes have been our best selling gift since we started mailing food in the early 1990s. Having tried a truckload of coffee cakes in the past two decades I can say quite honestly that I haven’t tasted one I like better. I think the same goes for a lot of our customers—many folks return year after year to send this gift and this gift only. It’s substantial, it’s honest, it’s straightforward, and it’s really good. I guarantee you really can taste the difference.

SOUR CREAM COFFEE CAKE

This is a Zingerman’s classic and perennially our most popular gift: rich, moist Sour Cream Coffee Cake made with organic flour, loaded with Indonesian cinnamon and toasted walnuts, baked in a traditional bundt pan. It’s very impressive and extremely delicious. And it lasts. In theory, a week or two after delivery, wrapped, it’ll still be soft and scrumptious, melting in the mouths of a hungry office staff. Personally, I’ve never seen one withstand the onslaught of the hungry for more than an hour. A-SCC-L large serves 10-12 in cartoon box $60 G-SCC-L large in wooden cheese crate $70 A-SCC-S small serves 5-7 in cartoon box $45 G-SCC-S small in wooden cheese crate $49 FREE SHIPPING

LEMON POPPY SEED COFFEE CAKE

NEW DELI COFFEE CAKE

HOT COCOA COFFEE CAKE

Real lemon oil and a veritable passel of Dutch poppy seeds, plus loads of real butter and Madagascar vanilla. A-LMC-L large in box $60 G-LMC-L large in crate $70 A-LMC-S small in box $45 G-LMC-S small in crate $49

Our new classic. Butter crumble topping with pistachio, clove, cardamom, coconut and more. A-NDC-L large in box $60 G-NDC-L large in crate $70 A-NDC-S small in box $45 G-NDC-S small in crate $49

With dark cocoa, a touch of espresso and chunks of dark chocolate that go molten if you heat it. A-COA-L large in box $60 G-COA-L large in crate $70 A-COA-S small in box $45 G-COA-S small in crate $49

FREE SHIPPING

PICK YOUR PACKAGING

CARTOoN GIFT BOX

Sturdy, re-usable, way fun. Illustrated by our one-andonly Ian Nagy. Made with recycled cardboard.

american-made cheEse CRATE Crafted in Wisconsin by Dufeck, the country’s last cheese crate maker. Zingerman’s logo silk screened on the lid.

SELECT YOUR SIZE

SmaLl

The “Nosher” size cakes about 6 inches in diameter and 4 inches tall. They serve 5-7 easily.

Large

The “Fresser” size cakes are about 9 inches in diameter and 3 inches tall. They serve 10-12 handily.

COFFEE CAKE CLUB Three Months

coffee cake club Coffee Cake of the Month Club Why stop at one cake? Give someone a chance to enjoy all of our coffee cakes, one per month. Just as they start to miss what they finished, a fresh one arrives. Your succulent sentiments will be hard to forget.

G-C-3 $120 Sour Cream Summer Fling Hot Cocoa

Six Months

G-C-6 $230 Includes first 3 cakes, plus: Tea Cake Lemon Poppy Seed New Deli

Twelve Months G-C-12 $450 Includes first 6 cakes, plus: Almond Pound Cake Casbah Olive Oil Sour Cream Hot Cocoa Lemon Poppy Seed

FREE SHIPPING SUMMER FLING COFFEE CAKE

ALMOND POUND CAKE

Loaded with slow-toasted coconut and lime. Light on the tongue, fresh, zesty and even a bit tart. A-SFC-S small in box $49 G-SFC-S small in crate $55

A bright, nutty flavor from a rich, all-natural almond paste, within a thin, buttery crust. A-ALM-S small in box $49 G-ALM-S small in crate $55

FREE SHIPPING

CASBAH COFFEE CAKE

OLIVE OIL CAKE

Nutty tahini (sesame seed paste) based cake swirled with a ribbon of chocolate. Like an exotic version of a peanut butter cup in coffee cake form, with all the flavor but without the peanuts. A-THN-S small in box $49 G-THN-S small in crate $55

Made with toasted almonds, freshly grated lemon zest—nearly a whole lemon’s worth per cake—and lots of excellent extra virgin olive oil. Super moist and luscious. A-OOC-S small in box $49 G-OOC-S small in crate $55

TRIPLE CAKE CRATE

Choose any three of our nosher-sized cakes, we’ll nestle them in a wooden cheese crate. G-3CK 3 cakes in wood crate $100 FREE SHIPPING

FREE SHIPPING

SWEET BUTTER TEA CAKE

The same rich, buttery batter we use for our Sour Cream Coffee Cake, but without the walnuts and cinnamon. Luscious and buttery. Available in the nosher size only. A-TEA-S small in box $45 G-TEA-S small in crate $49 FREE SHIPPING

CALL 888 636 8162 9AM–10PM ET EVERY DAY ZINGERMANS.COM

Michigan Made Made in Michigan Basket

Guaranteed to cure the homesickness of a misplaced Michigander. This gift basket is stuffed with a jar of Cherry Berry Conserve from American Spoon in Petoskey, a jar of Koeze’s Cream-Nut Peanut Butter from Grand Rapids, a bag of Al Dente Pasta from Whitmore Lake, and from here in Ann Arbor a bottle of Clancy’s Fancy Hot Sauce, a bag of Zingerman’s Sea Salt Potato Chips, a box of Zingerman’s Peanut Brittle, a bag of whole bean High Flyer Coffee, six all-butter Palmiers, and a loaf of Zingerman’s Sourdough Bread. G-MIM gift basket $160 FREE SHIPPING

Michigan Breakfast Boxes

Get the morning started with a taste of Michigan for a few or for a crowd. The Classic Michigan Breakfast Box includes a loaf of supremely toastable Cinnamon Raisin Bread, a Currant Scone and a Lemon Scone, Sour Cherry Preserves to slather over all of those, plus a bag of Zingerman’s whole bean High Flyer Coffee. G-MIB classic breakfast box, serves 4-6 $80 FREE SHIPPING

Great Lakes Artisan Gift Box Peanut Butter from Koeze in Grand Rapids, Michigan, American Spoon Preserves from Petoskey, Michigan, freshly roasted whole bean Zingerman’s Coffee, Mo’s Bacon Chocolate bar from Vosges in Chicago, Marieke Gouda from Thorp, Wisconsin, Nueske’s Applewood Smoked Bacon from Wittenberg, Wisconsin, and our Cinnamon Raisin Bread. G-GLA great lakes gift box $125 FREE SHIPPING

direct from Ann Arbor Ann Arbor Artisan Gift Boxes

With nibbles from across Zingerman’s and many of our favorite foodmakers in town, these boxes let you send a taste of Tree Town to your favorite displaced Ann Arborite.

THE ANN ARBOR ARTISAN TOWNIE BOX Hand assembled in our cartooned gift box, it has a no-nut Black Magic Brownie and a Molasses Ginger Jump Up Cookie, loaf of Zingerman’s Roadhouse Bread, a bag of Ann Arbor Tortilla Chips, Clancy’s Fancy Hot Sauce, and Zingerman’s Spiced Pecans. G-AAA townie box $75 FREE SHIPPING

THE ANN ARBOR ARTISAN BIG HOUSE BOX Stuffed in our classic yellow Zingerman’s Deli bag, includes all the items in the Townie box plus Manchester cheese from Zingerman’s Creamery, a pound of Zingerman’s Lean Corned Beef, Zingerman’s whole bean High Flyer Coffee, Zingerman’s Peanut Brittle, a jar of Zingerman’s “Old” Pickles, and a bottle of our house-made Red Rage Barbecue Sauce. G-AAA-B big house box $175 FREE SHIPPING

Zingerman's Artisan Gift Box

People travel hundreds of miles to our little deli to taste foods like these. If you can’t visit our store this might be the best way to taste the food long distance. Our cartoon box includes an orange and almond brioche Bostock, a walnut-studded Magic Brownie, a Sky’s the Lemon Cookie, a mini Sour Cream Coffee Cake and hearth baked bread from Zingerman’s Bakehouse, a bag of whole bean High Flyer Coffee from Zingerman’s Coffee Company, a box of Peanut Brittle from Zingerman’s Candy Manufactory, a bag of Zingerman’s Sea Salt Potato Chips, a bottle of Red Rage Barbecue Sauce, and a bag of Spiced Pecans. G-ART zingerman’s artisan gift box $110 FREE SHIPPING

Zingerman’s Exclusives Basket

Many of our best-selling foods can’t be found anywhere other than Zingerman’s. Some of them we make ourselves; others are made just for us by remarkable food makers we partner with from all over the world. This basket includes the best of the best of foods you won’t find anywhere else, including Zingerman's Travel Olive Oil, La Vecchia’s Dispensa’s Balsamic Vinegar, Virginia Diner Peanuts, American Spoon’s Cherry Berry Conserve, Portuguese Sardines from La Gondola, a bag of Zingerman’s Sea Salt Potato Chips, Zingerman’s Peanut Brittle, and from Zingerman’s Bakehouse a loaf of Roadhouse Bread, a Pecan Blondie, Magic Brownie, and a Ginger Jump Up Molasses Cookie. G-ZXC gift basket $150 FREE SHIPPING

CALL 888 636 8162 9AM–10PM ET EVERY DAY ZINGERMANS.COM

paesano

PEpPerEd bacon

ChoColate Sourdough Paesano

Chocolate

SHIPS 2 BUSINESS DAY

Sourdough Thin, snowy-white crust Our sourdough bread surrounds a soft, savory stuffed with chunks of crumb with lots of holes. dark Belgian chocolate. It’s This is the traditional bread of Puglia—the heel hard to resist ripping off a hunk to eat immediately, of Italy’s boot—and the best one to eat alongside but it's best heated in the oven until the chocolate a pasta dinner or to rip just begins to melt. and dip in olive oil. B-XSB 1 lb loaf $12 B-PAE 1½ lb loaf $9.50

jewish rye

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Jewish Rye

Chile Cheddar

This is rye like my grandparents ate in Eastern Europe, with plenty of rye flour, a natural sour rye starter (not the usual canned shortcuts) and lots of time to let the dough develop. The bread for our reuben and many other sandwiches. B-RYE 1½ lb loaf $9.50

Softly spicy, fire-roasted New Mexico green chiles and Nor’easter Cabot cheddar blended into tangy Farm Bread. Great on its own or as an accompaniment to dinner. Heat it up so it’s steamy when you crack the crust. B-CHI 1¼ lb loaf $16

SHIPS 2 BUSINESS DAY

OUR OURGUARANTEE GUARANTEEIfIfyou youexperience experienceaaproblem problemwith withone oneofofour ourproducts, products,customer customerservice, service,shipping, shipping, or oryou youjust justdon’t don’tlike likehow howitittastes, tastes,please pleaselet letus usknow. know.We’ll We’lldo dowhatever whateveritittakes takestotomake makeititright. right.

When you walk into Zingerman’s Delicatessen, the first thing you see is bread. Enormous shelves stretching up to the ceiling, piled high with stacks of beautiful loaves. You can’t escape the smell. Invited to taste, you’re unable to resist. Like most, you’ll end up leaving with a couple tucked under your arm. There’s not a bad loaf among them and the real gems—traditional peasant loaves like Paesano, Farm, and Jewish Rye—will redefine what you think bread can be. It may sound crazy to take that bread and send it in the mail. It sounded nuts in 1992 when we started baking. Still does today. But we ship more bread than any other food we sell, always have. If you’re not totally convinced but curious to see what the fuss is about, rest assured you can try it without risk. I guarantee you’ll love it. If you don’t, I’ll refund or re-ship, no questions asked.

find dozens more loaves at zingermans.com

Sourdough Peppered Bacon

Sourdough

Tangy Farm Bread dough with Nueske’s Applewood Smoked Bacon and Tellicherry black pepper. Every bite has a bit of sourdough tang and a lot of the sweet, smoky meatiness of bacon, plus a little spice. B-BAC ¾ lb loaf $16

The crisp, crackly crust, moist honeycombed interior and that trademark sour tang will tickle your tongue. So good that we regularly ship them to San Franciscans across the country. B-SDR 1½ lb round $9.50

SHIPS 2 BUSINESS DAY

Farm Farm Bread

Pecan Raisin

Like French pain au levain, this bread is a white-wheat mix with a sour starter. Crisp crust, subtle and never tiring flavor. B-FRM-RND 3 lb round $18 B-FRM-LOF 1½ lb loaf $9.50

Dense with a half pound of big, juicy Red Flame raisins and toasted pecans in every tangy loaf. The New York Times says our Pecan Raisin Bread “redefines the category.” B-PEC 1¼ lb loaf $18 SHIPS 2 BUSINESS DAY

SHIPS 2 BUSINESS DAY

Chile CheDdar

Pecan raisin

CALL CALL888 888636 6368162 8162 9AM–10PM 9AM–10PMET ETEVERY EVERYDAY DAY ZINGERMANS.COM ZINGERMANS.COM

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now freshly milled Zingerman’s Bakehouse began milling many of their own flours in the fall of 2018. That’s allowed for two huge improvements. First, we can work directly with local farmers to get grains straight from the source, like the Luckhardt family raising wheat for us just down the road on their farm in Saline, Michigan. Secondly, the flours we mill are truly whole grain. Unlike most “whole grain” flour in the United States, which is actually processed like white flour and then has some of the bran added back in, our flours never separate any part of the grain. We haven’t switched over to milling all of our own flour in house ourselves, yet. But month by month, we increase the baking we do with freshly milled whole grain flours. The result is ever bigger and better flavor, but don’t take my word for it. Try for yourself. You really can taste the difference.

THE Best thing SInce sliced BrEAD

State Street Wheat Bread

After more than 25 years of artisan baking, Zingerman’s proudly presents: a pre-sliced bread! Okay, maybe that doesn’t sound exciting, but it’s a big deal. We’re working with a collective of artisan bakers to create pure and simple whole grain sandwich breads that have broad appeal—familiar flavor, familiar texture, familiar shape— but are healthier than mass-produced, grocery-store bread because of our ingredient choices and artisan baking techniques. We mix freshly milled organic flours with a bit of honey and a touch of olive oil. We bake the bread lightly to keep the flavors mild and approachable. What you get is a flavorful sandwich loaf, with the added bonus of a tender and moist crumb, and a relatively long shelf-life. The family will love it. B-SSW 1¾ lb handmade loaf, sliced $9 SHIPS 2 BUSINESS DAY

ROadhousE

The house bread at our restaurant, Zingerman’s Roadhouse, and a local favorite. It’s based on an early New England recipe, made by combining freshly-milled rye flour and cornmeal with wheat. It’s got great crust and a soft, chewy center that has a slight sweetness from dark molasses. B-ROA 1½ lb handmade loaf $9.50 SHIPS 2 BUSINESS DAY

Dinkelbrot

French Mountain

SHIPS 2 BUSINESS DAY

Whole grain, freshly milled spelt and rye loaf made with loads of sunflower seeds. Dense, moist, delicious, different from most of the breads we bake whose origins tend to be French and Italian. Excellent for sandwiches. I enjoy devouring loaves armed only with good butter and sometimes a toaster. B-DNK 1½ lb handmade loaf $14

French Mountain Bread has a chestnut colored crust nearly a quarter inch thick, a dense wheaty crumb inside and a toasty, long lasting flavor. Made from freshly milled whole grain wheat and a tangy, natural fermentation, it’s totally terrific for toasting. B-MON-A ¾ kilo handmade loaf $12.50 B-MON-B 2 kilo “Z” loaf $27

cinnamon raisIn

A cinnamon raisin bread with substance. A chewy, solid loaf where the flavor of the dough supports the freelancing of the Red Flame raisins and the racy scent of Indonesian cinnamon. Sweetened and moistened with a hint of clover honey. Makes sensational Sunday morning toast. B-CIN 1½ lb handmade loaf $12 SHIPS 2 BUSINESS DAY

ChocOlate chErRy

A chocolate lover’s fantasy come true—the best Belgian and French chocolate and dozens of dried Michigan cherries. A few minutes in the oven, the chocolate chunks begin melting, the aroma of cocoa fills the air. Spread it with just a hint of sweet butter or set a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top of a warm slice. You’ll be sitting in front of the most decadent dessert you've had in years. B-CHO 1¼ lb handmade loaf $18 SHIPS 2 BUSINESS DAY

VolLkornbrOT

This very traditional, very dense and chewy German bread starts with organic rye grown by the Breslin family in Ottawa, Illinois, freshly ground into whole grain flour at our Bakehouse on our own stone mill. That flour gets mixed with rye chops, sunflower seeds, sea salt and a bit of water. After a long fermentation period to coax out huge, tangy rye flavor, the loaves get a long, slow bake. After coming out of the oven, they “cure” for at least 24 hours. This is one bread that really gets better with age—unlike every other bread we sell, we recommend keeping this one in plastic in the fridge, cutting a slice when you’re ready to eat it. It’s moist and chewy, earthy, with a pleasant sour kick to balance the sweet, nutty flavors of the grain. B-VOL 2 lb handmade loaf $9.50 SHIPS FOR FLAT RATE

8-Grain 3-Seed

Cracked wheat, cracked rye, cracked barley, corn grits, oats, millet, buckwheat, whole wheat, whole rye, flax seed, poppy seeds, a little honey and a nearly irresistible outer crust of toasted sunflower seeds. More than a mouthful—this ain’t no bird feed. The crust is hearty, the interior is still soft and chewy—especially when you pop it in the toaster. It’s outstanding toasted and topped with a little cream cheese and some Early Glow Strawberry Preserves, or a slather of good peanut butter. B-8GR 1¼ lb handmade loaf $10 SHIPS 2 BUSINESS DAY

CALL 888 636 8162 9AM–10PM ET EVERY DAY ZINGERMANS.COM

bread gifts BREAD CLUB

monthly lOafing Bread of the Month Club Our bread is magical. When you walk into Zingerman’s Delicatessen it’s the first thing you see. It’s what you smell. You can’t resist when you’re invited to taste. If you’re worried that someone will think you’re a little crazy for sending bread through the mail, it may reassure you to know that you’re not alone. We send thousands of loaves to bread lovers nationwide. It’s considered by many to be some of the finest bread made anywhere. A real treat.

One Loaf Per Month

Two Loaves Per Month

Three Months

G-1-3 $75 Roadhouse Bread Paesano Chocolate Sourdough

G-2-3 $110 Roadhouse & Sourdough Chile Cheddar & Paesano Chocolate Sourdough & Farm Bread

Six Months

G-1-6 $140 Includes first three months, plus: Farm Bread (Better Than) San Francisco Sourdough Jewish Rye

G-2-6 $210 Includes first three months, plus: Country Miche & Jewish Rye 8-Grain 3-Seed & Cinnamon Raisin Pecan Raisin & Onion Rye

FREE SHIPPING

Build your own bread gift box

Select three or six hearth-baked Zingerman’s Bakehouse breads from the list below: classic or creative, sweet or savory, or a mix of everything. We’ll pack them in our fun, cartooned gift box (for three breads) or our giant wooden crate (for six breads). Full list of breads to choose from online at zingermans.com. G-3BD 3 breads, gift boxed $65 G-6BD 6 breads, gift crate $125

Traditional

Farm Loaf French Mountain Sourdough Roadhouse Dinkelbrot Spelt

Sweet

FREE SHIPPING

Chocolate Sourdough Chocolate Cherry Pecan Raisin Cinnamon Raisin 8 Grain 3 Seed

Savory

Chile Cheddar Peppered Bacon Farm Bread

Rye

Jewish Rye Onion Rye Pumpernickel

Sweet & Spicy Bread Box

Some traditionalists may stick up their noses at the idea of cheese, pepper or chocolate in bread. But judging by the popularity, they’re in the minority. Our cartooned gift box is stuffed to bursting with a loaf of Chocolate Sourdough, Cinnamon Raisin, Chile Cheddar and Peppered Bacon Farm Bread. G-SAM-B sweet & spicy $85 FREE SHIPPING

Bread-fest Gift Box

Toast ain’t just toast when it’s made from Zingerman’s Bakehouse bread. To that end, here’s two of our most popular breakfast breads (good any time of day, of course, even if they’re not toasted). This colorful, printed gift box selection includes a loaf each of Cinnamon Raisin and 8-Grain 3-Seed Bread, a couple of Ginger Scones to sweeten the deal and a small jar each of Honey and Preserves. G-FES bread-fest box $65 FREE SHIPPING

Deli Deluxe Bread Box

These are the breads we built our reputation on. While we ship over two dozen types of loaves, these foundation breads have probably seen more tables than any other. Honor a bread fanatic by sending our cartooned gift box of Jewish Rye, Farm Bread, Better Than San Francisco Sourdough and Pecan Raisin. G-SAM-A deli deluxe $80

Rustic Peasant Loaf Gift Box

This box is for all those classic bread lovers out there, the ones who turn up their noses at Cinnamon Raisin, the ones who fight for crust. We offer three of our most hallowed peasant loaves, the ones our bakers consider their crowning achievements. The gift box includes a loaf each of Paesano, Farm Bread and Roadhouse. G-PEA peasant gift box $55 FREE SHIPPING

FREE SHIPPING

grain to the GRINdsTONE Freshly Milled Bakery Gift Box The big new thing at Zingerman’s Bakehouse is a small stone mill, where we’re milling local grains into whole grain flours and baking with them the very same day. This collection of breads and pastries highlights the best of these new, freshly milled flours in brand new treats and updated classics. Our colorful, cartoon gift box includes Country Miche Bread, Roadhouse Bread, an Orange Date Scone, a Pecan Blondie, and a trio of cookies: a Molasses Ginger Jump Up Cookie, an Oatmeal Raisin Cookie, and a Sky’s the Lemon Cookie. G-FRM gift box $80 FREE SHIPPING

CALL 888 636 8162 9AM–10PM ET EVERY DAY ZINGERMANS.COM

returnless guarantee Customer service is our passion, our charge and our mission. If you experience a problem with any of our products, customer service, shipping—or even if you just plain don't like how it tastes—please let us know. We'll do whatever it takes to make it right for you. We never ask you to return anything so you can shop worry-free.

shipping rates

CALL TOLL-FREE 888 636 8162 TEXT US 734 436 2006

MERCHANDISE TOTAL

FLAT RATE 4 BUSINESS DAY

TWO BUSINESS DAY

2 DAY WARM WEATHER CARE

ONE BUSINESS DAY

0 - $25

$10.99

$13.99

$23.99

$30.99

$25.01 - $50

$10.99

$17.99

$27.99

$33.99

$50.01 - $75

$10.99

$19.99

$29.99

$38.99

$75.01 - $100

$10.99

$22.99

$32.99

$42.99

$100.01 - $125

$10.99

$27.99

$37.99

$46.99

$125.01 - $150

$10.99

$36.99

$46.99

$50.99

INTERNATIONAL 734 477 6986

$150.01 and up

$10.99

25%

25% + $10

35%

FAX 734 477 6988

FLAT RATE 4 BUSINESS DAY

EMAIL service@zingermans.com PROPER MAIL 610 Phoenix Dr. Ann Arbor, MI 48108 BUSINESS GIFTS 866 260 6169 bizgifts@zingermans.com

Alaska and Hawaii

Local Pick Up

Add $10 to rates. Flat Rate Order by phone or online Arrives in 1-4 business takes 8 days. Two Business and you can arrange to days. Shipment qualifies Days takes 3 business days. pick up at our warehouse for $10.99 flat rate only if One Business Day takes in Ann Arbor. all items selected ship for 2 days. flat rate. Bread doesn't ship flat rate, sorry.

International Shipping

2 DAY WARM WEATHER CARE

During warmer months we include extra ice and protection for some foods that suffer under summer's heat.

Sorry, we are unable to ship outside the U.S. Contact us and we'll be happy to help you find someone who can assist.

frequent foodie reward program If you spend enough to earn a prize, we'll let you know. It's that easy. No membership fee. No account number. No pin. No need to sign up. The current Frequent Foodie period is October 1, 2019 to September 30, 2020. (It repeats every year.)

Money you spend

Latitude of Award

Gift card reward

over $10,000 $5,000–9,999 $4,000–4,999 $3,000–3,999 $2,000–2,999 $1,000–1,999 $500–999

Pine Stump Junction Ishpeming Slapneck Escanaba Menominee Bad Axe Paw Paw

$500 $250 $200 $150 $100 $50 $25

reubens zingermans Sandwich Kits Zingerman's Reuben has been our top-selling sandwich since our doors opened on the corner of Detroit Street and Kingsley in 1982. It's a soul-filling combination of corned beef, Swiss, homemade Russian dressing and sauerkraut that, when properly prepared at home, is a show-stopping meal. Guaranteed to up the office lunch ante (and, bonus, ensure that nobody microwaves any fish). Some assembly is required, but considering it has been known to make adults weep in appreciation, we think it’s worth it.

WHAT'S INCLUDED Jewish Rye Bread (Pumpernickel in Brooklyn Reuben)

Meat Fixins Emmentaler Swiss Russian Dressing Sauerkraut Coleslaw Garlicky Pickles Zingerman’s Potato Chips Magic & Black Magic Brownie Bites Professional Deli Instructions

REUBEN SANDWICH KITS Corned Beef Reuben G-SHE serves 8 $200 G-SHE-2 serves 3-4 $150

Turkey Georgia Reuben G-GEO serves 8 $200 G-GEO-2 serves 3-4 $150

Pastrami Brooklyn Reuben G-BIN serves 8 $200 G-BIN-2 serves 3-4 $150

Jenny's Fix Corned Beef & Pastrami Reuben G-JJA serves 8 $200

FREE SHIPPING

SANDWICH BLISS “The reuben is killer.” BARACK OBAMA

“Zingerman’s sandwiches are an 11 on a scale of 1 to 5.” OPRAH

“You guys!! Truly, what a delivery. This Pastrami Sandwich Kit was for a chef friend of mine who basically died & went to heaven with this thank you gift I sent. She REALLY appreciated the specificity of the directions and was thrilled at the end result. Whole thing, huge success.” JENEL, LOS ANGELES, CA

“Now that’s a sandwich!” MICHAEL IVINS, THE FLAMING LIPS

"The best reuben in America." FOOD & WINE

“Your Reuben Sandwich Kit absolutely floored my parents. Easily the best present I have ever gotten them. It made up for 37 years of me being an awful son. They cannot stop talking about how great it was.” PAUL, SWANNOA, NC CALL 888 636 8162 9AM–10PM ET EVERY DAY ZINGERMANS.COM

THE NEW AMERICAN RANCH

Ninety-nine percent of American meat comes from animals bred to turn feed into flesh as efficiently as possible. We bred out their ability to survive the elements (solution: cram them cheek by jowl into enormous barns) or to fight disease (solution: pump them full of antibiotics). We also bred out most of the flavor. The good news is that there are a handful of farmers out there today who are breaking from the industry norms and turning back the clock on meat. They’re raising heritage breed animals that were selected for flavor, not efficiency. They’re raising them outdoors, on pasture, where they have plenty of room to roam and they eat what they’ve always eaten rather than laboratory-developed rations. All that extra time, care, and effort can pay off with amazing flavor.

About Cory Carman

Cory is a fourth-generation rancher running her family’s farm in the Wallowa valley in eastern Oregon. Cory can tell you all about the various components of grasses, and which parts contain more proteins or more carbohydrates, and how those components change as the grass grows. She uses that knowledge to put the right cattle on the right pastures—since her cattle never eat grain, getting the ideal nutrition from grass is a must. The result is beef that’s tender, juicy, and supremely flavorful.

Carman Ranch Beef

Bavette Steaks

The bavette is a favorite among butchers for its huge flavor, but unknown to most of the rest of us—unless you’ve enjoyed one at a bistro in Paris, where it’s more common. It comes from next to the flank, so it’s great for grilling up rare like a flank steak. Beefy, juicy, with slightly sweet flavor. Ships frozen. M-BAV-2 two steaks, 10-12 oz each $65 M-BAV-4 four steaks, 10-12 oz each $120 SHIPS 2 BUSINESS DAY WARM WEATHER CARE

NY Strip Steaks

Cory Carman

Strip steaks—also known as Kansas City strips, top loin or strip loin steaks—are a perennial favorite because they strike a balance between being tender and packed with flavor. They’re equally outstanding on the grill or in a cast iron pan on the stove top. These grass-fed, grass-finished strips that we get from Cory Carman and her team are deeply savory, with earthy flavor and a great mineral tang. Ships frozen. M-STP-2 two steaks, 10-12 oz each $75 M-STP-4 four steaks, 10-12 oz each $140

Dry-Aged Cowboy Cut Ribeye Steaks

Grass-fed steaks have a reputation for being lean and lacking the marbling of grain-finished beef. These ribeyes defy that norm, with luscious fat and stunning marbling. The cowboy cut has a couple inches of bone sticking out, giving you a handle to hold onto. The steaks are dry-aged for two weeks, creating huge flavor with a deep mineral tang. Bone in, 2 inches thick, serves an army. Ships frozen. M-RIB-2 2 steaks, 1½ lbs each $200 M-RIB-4 4 steaks, 1½ lbs each $375 FREE SHIPPING

SHIPS 2 BUSINESS DAY WARM WEATHER CARE

GRILLING the New (Old) stEAks aNd chops Heritage Meats Grill Kit

Everything needed for a grilling bender. Whether they're into entertaining or going solo at the grill, this is a gift for a serious, conscientious and flavor-loving cook. Easy to prepare, super delicious when done, the hardest choice you’ll have to make is what to eat first. Includes two grass-fed coulotte steaks, two heritage breed Red Wattle pork chops, grass-fed Ground Beef, plus a bottle of Zingerman’s Red Rage Barbecue Sauce. G-GRK grill kit, over 3 lbs of meat plus sauce $150 FREE SHIPPING

old schoOL modern MEAT Caveman Combo Meat Box

When Fred Flintstone got that cut of dinosaur rib that toppled his car it was a comic nod to real cuts of meat like these. Huge versions of the chops and steaks we’re used to, cut thicker, with more bone, more fat, more meat, more everything. That includes more ethical: like the prehistoric herds of grazing buffalo that lived their lives out on the prairies with no feedlots, antibiotics or hormones, these are cuts from cattle and pigs raised out on pasture with room to roam and the diets they evolved to eat. We’ll send two thick-cut Red Wattle porterhouse pork chops, a gigantic cowboy cut ribeye from Carman Ranch—a ribeye with a bone handle. Plus a pound of grass-fed ground beef. Shipped frozen for a night of grilling you’ll never forget. G-HMT about 4 lbs of meat $165 FREE SHIPPING

when pigs fly

Heritage Pork Chop Tasting Flight The breed of a pig has a huge impact on flavor. The heritage breeds, as they’re called, are hogs who’ve been bred to thrive in different climates and produce great tasting meat. They’re making a bit of a comeback these days. You can spot them called out by name on menus in restaurants or at butchers’ counters, if you’re lucky enough to still have a working butcher in your town. It’s rare to spot more than one breed in the case, though, let alone four, like in this flight of pork chops. Here’s your chance to set up a taste-off with friends among the most delicious chops you’ll find in America. Our airborne pork feast includes two each of four different breeds, 8 chops total: Red Wattle, known for its sweet flavor and meltingly delicious fat; Duroc, known for its complexity; Ibérico, Spain’s iconic breed now raised in Georgia; and Cinta, an old breed from Tuscany now raised in Iowa. In total, the box includes over 5 pounds of supremely flavorful pork, a one of a kind experience, ready for grilling. Ships frozen. G-PC4 8 pork chops, 5+ lbs total $160 FREE SHIPPING

find pork CHOPS a la carte AT zingermans.com

CALL 888 636 8162 9AM–10PM ET EVERY DAY ZINGERMANS.COM

pork futures Bacon Club Our bacon club has been lauded by chefs, sous chefs, home chefs, pork-o-philes and bacon freaks all over America. It’s our most popular food club by far and it’s not just the novelty of bacon-by-mail that makes it so loved. The bacons are downright amazing. It’s hard to find any of these bacons in most shops, let alone all of them. They represent the pinnacle of American bacon making and, let’s be honest, this is one food that no one in the world does better than us. Sorry Europe, it’s true. Your Parmigiano-Reggiano and your Champagnes are great, but you can’t touch our bacon.

"Fantastic gift!"

BACON CLUB

BOBBY FLAY

“The best thing I ever ate!” CHEF MICHAEL SYMON

cheEse aLl year Quarterly Artisan Cheese Club

BACON CLUB All Year G-BAC-12 $395

Month 1 Applewood Smoked

Month 5 Tennessee Dry Cured

Month 9 Vande Rose Applewood

Month 2 Kentucky Dry Cured

Month 6 Hickory Smoked Duroc

Month 10 White Oak Ibérico

Month 3 Arkansas Peppered

Month 7 Spencer’s Irish Style

Month 11 Indiana Jowl

Month 4 Juniper & Thyme

Month 8 Burger’s Steak Bacon

Month 12 Cherrywood Smoked

FREE SHIPPING

From dairy to cave to table. In this club we go country to country through four traditional cheese cultures. We taste cheeses subtle (like northern Italy’s cave aged Fontina Val d’Aosta, the truffle of the cheese world), cheeses emphatic (like Switzerland’s mountain cheese called L’Etivaz, made in eighty pound wheels) and cheeses rare (like the one-andonly Tarentaise from Vermont). The tour is extensive but never tiring. These are the cheeses like you’ve never tasted before. Weighing in at over a pound and a half per shipment, they’ll last the recipient for weeks.

CHEESE CLUB G-CH-4 four quarterly shipments $299 Q1 Italy Cave Aged Taleggio Parmigiano-Reggiano Fontina Val d’Aosta

Q3 Switzerland L’Etivaz Antique Gruyère Extra Aged Emmental

Q2 France French Mountain Cheese Mimolette Fort St. Antoine Comté

Q4 USA Reading Raclette Bayley Hazen Blue Pleasant Ridge Reserve

FREE SHIPPING

the new cure New American Cheese and Charcuterie Box There are some serious contenders for America's crown in cheese and cured meats and they are in this gift box, ready for an antipasto plate extraordinaire. A collection of some of America’s best new(ish) makers, including Marieke Penterman’s nine-month aged Gouda, Spring Brook Farm’s Reading Raclette cheese, Underground Meat’s Summer Sausage, Antonio Fiasche’s Nduja, and Red Bear Provision’s Red Square Salami. G-ACM gift box serves 12 $125 FREE SHIPPING

Charcuterie and Cheese Gift Box With a larder like this, the recipient can lay out a devastatingly handsome spread of food so quickly it’ll seem like Harry Potter cast a spell. We pack a culinary collection in its own wooden “cupboard” that a lazy gourmand can stash until hunger—or desirable company—strikes. Includes Old Kiev Salami, French Cornichon Pickles, Dutch Gouda and Zingerman’s Nor'easter Cabot Cheddar, Moroccan Olives, a loaf of Zingerman’s Artisan Bread, Tempesta’s spicy 'Nduja Cured Meat Spread, Zingerman’s Virginia Peanuts and Rustic Bakery Olive Oil and Sea Salt Flatbreads. Serves ten for snacks, lasts for weeks when refrigerated. G-CAC charcuterie & cheese gift box $175 FREE SHIPPING

Custom Meat & Cheese Boxes Build your own ultimate meat & cheese spread. Select cheeses—we’ll hand cut each half-pound wedge to order—and cured meats to pair with them. Then choose what you want to include with all those proteins: tangy Sourdough bread, artisan crackers, or a full party spread with Farm Bread, Crackers, Cornichon Pickles and Virginia Diner Peanuts.

CHOOSE FROM Spicy Calabrian Pork Salami ’Ndjua Spicy Pork Spread Beef & Pork Summer Sausage Prosciutto Americano Ham Ibérico Cured Ham Speck Cured Pork

Zingerman’s Cabot Cheddar Camembert Parmigiano Reggiano Marieke Gouda Artisanal Manchego Antique Gruyère And many more online!

CUSTOM CURED MEAT & CHEESE BOXES WiTH Bread 4 meats & cheeses with sourdough G-4MC $130

with Crackers 4 meats & cheeses with artisan crackers G-N-4MC $130

Party SpreAd 4 meats & cheeses with full spread G-4MP $180

FREE SHIPPING ON ALL CALL 888 636 8162 9AM–10PM ET EVERY DAY ZINGERMANS.COM

in sympathy Whenever someone loses a loved one, their house is usually besieged by grand floral arrangements. I usually send food, though, and often find it’s really appreciated—especially when they can enjoy the foods right out of the box. We offer two options. Need it there tomorrow? Call us. Not sending in sympathy? No problem, we can remove the identifying label.

Bereavement

Sitting Shiva

Illustrated. A not too perishable assortment of a nosher-sized Zingerman’s Sour Cream Coffee Cake, a dozen assorted Brownie Bites, Old Kiev Salami, Celtic Sea Salt Caramels, John Macy’s Cheesesticks, Zingerman’s Virginia Peanuts, a bag of buttery Palmiers and a bag of Zingerman’s Coffee, ground. It’s packed with class in our oval wooden crate with Zingerman’s printed on the lid. G-BER bereavement gift box $140 G-BER-NL same contents, no label $140

A good choice for Shiva, the week-long mourning period in Judaism for close family members. Our wooden crate comes filled with a box of Apricot and Currant/Walnut Rugelach, a Chocolate and Raisin Babka, Kosher Vanilla Butter Caramels, Zingerman’s Peanut Brittle, and two bags of Halvah: one Maple, one Cardamom Orange. Baked goods are not Kosher. G-SHV shiva gift box $140 G-SHV-NL same contents, no label $140 FREE SHIPPING

FREE SHIPPING

Congratulations! Gift Box They just closed on their mortgage. They just graduated from college. They just landed their dream job. They just had their first anniversary—or their 31st anniversary. Whatever the occasion, say “congrats!!” deliciously with this colorful gift box stuffed with a Sour Cream Coffee Cake and eight assorted Brownie Bites, a jar of Balaton brandied cherries, Butter Toasted Peanuts, John Macy’s Cheesesticks, and a couple personal-sized bags of Zingerman’s potato chips. G-CGT congratulations! gift box $100

Jewish Deli Care Kit For the Jewish deli devotee stuck in The Land of No Decent Deli, send a taste of the most beloved deli classics: a loaf of Zingerman’s Jewish Rye, a pound of Lean Corned Beef, a kit to make Matzo Ball Soup, a bag of Maple Halvah, and a Chocolate and Raisin Babka. G-JDC deli care kit $115 FREE SHIPPING

FREE SHIPPING

Kitchen Starter Kit Wooden gift box includes Zingerman’s Italian Olive Oil, Vecchia Dispensa’s Aged Balsamic Vinegar, Spanish Tuna, Italian Sea Salt, Tellicherry Black Peppercorns, Italian Pasta and Il Mongetto’s excellent Pasta Sauce, Koeze Cream-Nut Peanut Butter, Wood's Cider Jelly, Marash Red Pepper Flakes, Zingerman's High Flyer Coffee, Raye's Down East Schooner Mustard, Bluegrass Soy Sauce and a bag of Celtic Sea Salt Caramels. G-KIT kitchen starter kit $225 FREE SHIPPING

Zingerman’s Gift Cards Good for a midnight snack shopping spree online, an afternoon Reuben binge at the Delicatessen or a Tuesday evening burger at our Roadhouse. Gift cards are available in any amount, good at any Zingerman’s business. Mailed or electronic. G-GIF mailed USPS free, or overnight for $15 E-GIF emailed instantly for free

Get Well Gift Box

Midnight Feeding New Baby Box

Gift boxed mini Sour Cream Coffee Cake, Earl Grey Tea, a kit for Matzo Ball Soup, Ginger Chimes candies, Marcona Almonds, and a no-nut Black Magic Brownie. G-GWG get well gift box $75 G-GWG-NL without "get well" label $75

Gift boxed mini Sour Cream Coffee Cake, a mini Hot Cocoa Cake, two no-nut Black Magic Brownies, Holy Cow Beef Sticks, Celtic Sea Salt Caramels, Coop’s Mocha Chocolate Sauce, Marcona Almonds, John Macy’s Cheesesticks, Zingerman’s Sea Salt Potato Chips, and a darn cute Zingerman’s bib. G-BBY midnight feeding new baby gift box $125

FREE SHIPPING

CALL 888 636 8162 9AM–10PM ET EVERY DAY ZINGERMANS.COM

ClasSic Never GIVE THE GRANDEST The Ultimate Basket Unequaled food glory. Includes an assortment of three Zingerman’s Brownies, Molasses Ginger Jump-Up Cookie, Oatmeal Raisin Cookie, Raspberry Patti Pocket Hand Pie, Holy Cow Beef Sticks, Zingerman’s Whole Bean Coffee, Zingerman’s Peanut Brittle, Ann Arbor Tortilla Corn Chips, Salsa, Moroccan Olives, John Macy's Cheesesticks, Zingerman’s Spiced Pecans, a box of four Mini Scones, All Natural Gummies, Taralli Olive Oil Crackers, and Zingerman’s Sea Salt Potato Chips. G-ULT ultimate basket $225 FREE SHIPPING

FREE SHIPPING

on all gift boxes & baskets.

The Snackboard Baskets

These have always been our most popular gift baskets. No heating, no cooking, just eating required.

SMALL

A loaf of Zingerman’s Farm Bread and a Pecan Blondie, Ann Arbor Tortilla Chips, Premium Salsa, Zingerman’s Peanut Brittle, John Macy’s Cheesesticks, Virginia Diner Peanuts. G-SNA-S small $115 FREE SHIPPING

Medium

All the food from the small plus a walnut-studded Magic Brownie, Holy Cow Beef Sticks, and all-natural Gummies. G-SNA-M medium $140 FREE SHIPPING

Large

All the foods from the small and medium plus a Ginger Jump Up Molasses Cookie, Celtic Sea Salt Caramels, and Moroccan Olives. G-SNA-L large $175 FREE SHIPPING

Deluxe

Illustraed Everything in the other three sizes plus Antonio Mattei’s Biscotti, Maple Halvah, and Zingerman’s Spiced Pecans. G-SNA-D deluxe $200

FREE SHIPPING

Fail Gifts The Weekender Gift Boxes Great all-purpose gifts, built from foods the recipient can snack on right out of the box. Whatever the occasion, folks will dig right in.

the cLassIc Weekender

Hand assembled in our cartooned gift box has a loaf of Zingerman’s Artisan Bread, a no-nut Black Magic Brownie and a Pecan Blondie, Holy Cow Beef Sticks, Zingerman's Peanut Brittle, Virginia Diner Peanuts, and a nosher-sized version of our extremely popular, extremely good Sour Cream Coffee Cake. G-WEE weekender gift box $100 FREE SHIPPING

the Long Weekender

the Baked WeEkender

Packed in a handsome wooden cheese crate, includes all the items in the Classic Weekender plus Zingerman’s freshly roasted High Flyer Coffee, Zingerman's Potato Chips, Cornichon Pickles, Zingerman’s Banana Bread, and a dozen Vanilla and Chocolate Coconut Macaroons. G-LWE long weekender $200 FREE SHIPPING

In a giant wooden crate, includes all the items in the Classic Weekender plus a loaf of Chocolate Sourdough Bread, a walnut-studded Magic Brownie, a mini Pecan Pie, a box of four assorted mini sweet scones, a bag of buttery Palmiers, a raspberry-filled Patti Pocket hand pie, an almond and orange scented brioche Bostock, two Oatmeal Raisin Cookies, and two Sky’s the Lemon Cookies. G-BWE baked weekender $215 FREE SHIPPING

SNACK CLUB Three Months G-SNC-3 $110

JUST A NIBBLE... Snack of the Month Club

Make snack time a little more delicious with full-flavored treats. From nuts and crackers to dried fruits and baked goods, each monthly shipment includes snacks for two to four grazers (or one hungry, nibbling gourmand).

Six Months

G-MCH-6 $215 Includes first 3 months plus:

Americana

Nuts & Twigs

Virginia Diner Peanuts Red Bear Provisions Salami Sticks 3 Zingerman’s Mini Cookies

Dried Afghani Mulberries 4 pouches of Pic’s Peanut Butter Irish Brown Bread Crackers

Crunch-o-rama

Euro-Snacks

Ann Arbor Tortilla Chips Spicy Cashews 4 assorted flavors of Zingerman’s Potato Chips

Italian Taralli Crackers Spanish Marcona Almonds German Fruit Gummies

Zingy Treats

Sweet & Salty

2 Zingerman’s Scones 4 Zingerman’s Brownie Bites Zingerman’s Spiced Pecans

Heirloom Roasted Pepitas Rosemary Maple Almonds Effie’s Corncakes

FREE SHIPPING

CALL 888 636 8162 9AM–10PM ET EVERY DAY ZINGERMANS.COM

Aged Balsamic Vinegars from La Vecchia Dispensa Working just off the historic square in the center of the old town of Castelvetro, southwest of Modena, Italy, Roberta Pelloni, her husband Marino Tintori, and their son Simone make a range of great vinegars. Although Americans tend to gravitate toward sweet caramel-flavored balsamics, Marino is quick to emphasize “the key to great Balsamico is balance.” Exaggerating sweetness is an easy way to enhance appeal and reduce the need for proper blending and aging. You might not notice it at first, but after many uses overly sweet balsamics get kind of dull. Not so with those from the Tintoris. We’ve been selling them for over a decade, and they have a legion of followers who return to them again and again.

8 Year

10 Year

16 Year

250 ml bottle V-8YR $25

250 ml bottle V-10Y $35

250 ml bottle V-16Y $45

10 YEAR BALSAMIC

Oak Barrel of 16 Year Aged

30 Year Anniversary

1 liter barrel V-BAR-16 $350

100 ml bottle V-30Y $50

4 Ages Sampler Bottles 4 x ¼ oz each V-VBT $30

ALL SHIP FOR FLAT RATE

splash of basque Sherry Vinegar

While balsamic has garnered the publicity, specially aged sherry vinegar sits aging in oak barrels in southern Spain waiting to be discovered. Sanchez Romate draws upon 300 years of experience making sherry and sherry vinegar to blend different ages of vinegar (from three to fifty years old) to create a sweet, soft, mouth-tingling flavor. It became a staple in my home long ago, but for centuries before that it became the choice of the royal family of Spain—and the Vatican. Add a few drops to creamy tomato soup or a cold summer gazpacho. Drop a dash on a salad of ripe, sweet, summer tomatoes. Mix it into a classic cocktail sauce and stand back for the fireworks. I’ve found it makes good food extraordinary. V-25Y 750 ml bottle $25

get your chips ready

Malt Vinegar

It’s rare to find an artisan version of Britain’s most famous vinegar. Most malt vinegars are made by big producers more interested in speed than quality. Sadly, they have come to define the category. Until today. The slow, flavorful way of production is what they do at The Old Nuclear Bunker in Cornwall, England (gotta love British names). Hot water added to crushed barley activates enzymes that convert the starch in the grain to sugar. Yeast converts the sugar to low grade alcohol, which is then loaded in oak barrels to age out and mellow for months on end. The result is a sweet, bright, nutty type of vinegar that’s great with waaaaay more than just a fry up. V-MLT 250 ml bottle $15 SHIPS FOR FLAT RATE

SHIPS FOR FLAT RATE

Years ago, the gelato makers at Zingerman’s Creamery traveled to Italy to learn how to make great gelato from the undisputed experts. We pretty much do it exactly the same way today. First, we get the best milk we can find: it comes delivered directly from Calder Dairy, one of the last farmstead dairies in Michigan that’s just southeast of Ann Arbor. We churn the milk in small batches with super delicious ingredients like Zingerman’s cold brew coffee, Michigan maple syrup, Guittard cocoa, and loads more. The result is gelato with creamy, rich texture and with direct, intense flavors that’s guaranteed to knock some socks off. Gelato is to American ice cream what Gucci is to Levi’s. It takes every one of ice cream's details and elevates them. In Italy, most towns have at least a few gelaterie, tiny shops that sell nothing but gelato. They usually have at least a dozen flavors, from sexed up standards like super dark chocolate to sorbets and more. But before you pick your flavor, you’ve got to pick your gelateria. Here’s my tip: choose a shop with a long line—or, since this is Italy, a big, disorganized crowd. The locals know where to get the gelato with the most luscious texture and the biggest, boldest flavors. Because that’s the thing about gelato. When it’s really good the flavors are like nothing you can find in any other dessert.

Customizable 5-Gelato Kit Pick your favorite flavors from the list below to assemble your own custom assortment of five gelati. We’ll ship them on dry ice, guaranteed to arrive just in time for cooling down on a hot day. G-5GL 5 pints of gelati $125 FREE SHIPPING

VANILLA DARK CHOCOLATE MINT CHOCOLATE CHIP COLD BREW COFFEE MICHIGAN MAPLE SYRUP PECAN

SALTED CARAMEL CHOCOLATE CHUNK GIANDUJA CHOCOLATE + HAZELNUT MICHIGAN RASPBERRY SORBET LEMON SORBET

GELATO SUNDAE CLUB

gelato jAmborEe

Gelato Sundae Club

Even left plain, gelato is special stuff. Turn it into a gelato sundae and you’ve got an instant party. Turn it into three months of gelato sundaes, and you just became the most popular kid in school. Each month we’ll ship three pints of gelato plus enough toppings to make sundaes for a crowd.

G-GTO-3 $300

The Classic Sundae

The Chocolate Sundae

Vanilla Gelato, Maple Pecan Gelato, Raspberry Sorbet, Coop’s Salted Caramel Sauce, Fruit Perfect Sour Cherries

Dark Chocolate Gelato, Mint Chocolate Chip Gelato, Gianduja Chocolate & Hazelnut Gelato, Coop’s Hot Fudge, Chocolate Sprinkles

The Dreamy Sundae Salted Caramel Chocolate Chunk Gelato, Cold Brew Coffee Gelato, Triple Lemon Sorbet, Spiced Pecan Dust, Crema di Torrone Sauce

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business gifts When’s the last time you sent a business gift and the recipient called you back to say how great it tasted? How they wanted more? How you must be the smartest, best-informed, most well-dressed gift giver they know? I promise at least one of those comments will come your way. Our food has that kind of effect. Want your very own corporate gifting concierge? Call 866.260.6169 or email bizgifts@zingermans.com to get started.

AWESOME OFFICE SUPPLIES Feeds fifteen or more in a way they will not forget. Remotely host the best office party since that time someone snuck a magnum of Veuve Clicquot into the break room. Nosher-sized Sour Cream Coffee Cake, Macy’s Cheesesticks, crispy Palmiers, Spanish Tortas with Anise and Olive Oil, Virginia Peanuts, freshly roasted ground Zingerman’s Coffee, Zingerman’s Peanut Brittle, Homemade Spiced Pecans, a bag of Zingerman’s Sea Salt Potato Chips, two Oatmeal Raisin Cookies, and ten Brownie Bites. G-OFF office supply gift box $165 FREE SHIPPING

serves

Desk Hoarder Gift Box The rest of the office will never know. Our fun, colorful gift box comes stuffed with six Magic and six no-nut Brownie Bites, a box of four mini Scones, a mini Sour Cream Coffee Cake, four assorted personal-sized bags of Zingerman’s Potato Chips, Sea Salt Caramels, Chimes Ginger Chews, three assorted mini Zingerman’s cookies, all-natural Fruit Gummies, and a bag of Spicy Cashews with Lime Leaves. serves G-DHR gift box $115

12-15

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(or one...)

The Jawdropper A far-reaching and many-pleasing assortment of ready-to-gobble foods, from pastries and cheese to cured meats and sapid sweets, all packed in our biggest wooden cheese crate—which repurposes nicely as a puppy storage unit. Includes our walnut-studded Magic Brownie and Pecan Blondie, a nosher sized Sour Cream Coffee Cake, a nosher Toasted Pecan Pie, a Currant Scone, Holy Cow Beef Sticks, a bag of whole bean Zingerman’s Coffee, Tomato Achaar, Spicy Cashews, Sea Salt Caramels, Moroccan Olives, John Macy’s Cheesesticks, Zingerman’s Spiced Pecans, Tuna-Stuffed Piquillo Peppers, Virginia Diner Peanuts, Violet Mustard, and Zingerman’s Sea Salt Potato Chips. G-JAW gift box, serves 25 no problem $250 FREE SHIPPING

serves

25+

, Zingerman s Babkas Babka is a sweet loaf, both fluffy and rich, kind of like a light textured coffee cake with a dense filling swirled throughout. The master bakers at Zingerman’s Bakehouse make two flavors of babka. The first is swirling with chocolate and cinnamon and studded with juicy golden sultana raisins. The second is balanced between sweet and tart, loaded with earthy dates, luscious figs and bright pomegranate molasses swirled throughout, and topped with slivered almonds. Wrapped in tissue and gift boxed, each serves 6–8. G-BAB chocolate raisin babka $45 G-DFP date fig pomegranate babka $45 serves

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6-8

serves

5-7

Banana Breads Three flavorful takes on banana bread, made with freshly milled flour. Classic has no nuts. Chocolate chunk has—you guessed it—huge chunks of chocolate. Pecan praline is topped with a layer of caramel-coated toasted pecans sprinkled with a pinch of sea salt. Wrapped in tissue, each loaf serves 5-7 and comes packed in its own colorfully illustrated box. G-BNA classic banana bread, gift boxed $30 G-BNC chocolate chunk, gift boxed $30 G-BNP pecan praline, gift boxed $30 FREE SHIPPING

serves

4-6

Chocolate Suspension gift box Some will call this a minor indulgence. Some won’t say anything, they'll just smile. Everyone with a weakness for chocolate, flour and butter will know what time it is. A nosher-sized Hot Cocoa Coffee Cake accompanied by four brownies: two each of Walnut-Studded Magic and no-nut Black Magic. G-SUS chocolate suspension gift box $65 FREE SHIPPING

Sweet Elation Gift Box Hearing “thanks!” is nice. Eating “thanks!” is even better. Show your colleagues how much you appreciate them for that time they got all hands on deck to grab that low-hanging fruit, or for consistently circling back to thinking outside the box, or for their laser beam focus on herding all those cats with synergy. Our fun, colorful gift box comes stuffed with a walnut-studded Magic Brownie and a no-nut Black Magic Brownie, plus three Mini Cookies: Oatmeal Raisin, Ginger Jump Up Molasses, and Sky’s the Lemon. G-APP gift box $30 FREE SHIPPING

serves

1-2

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WHAT TO LOOK FOR WHEN BUYING GOOD JAMS AND MARMALADES By Mo Frechette

MORE FRUIT THAN SUGAR Check the ingredient label. Ingredients are always listed in order of quantity. If sugar is listed before fruit on the label you’ll probably want to move on. The maker has sacrificed flavor for sweetness and cost savings, sugar almost always being cheaper than good fruit. Almost all the great preserves I’ve had are made with more than 50% fruit, some top out at 70% plus! The more fruit, the more flavor.

BET TER FRUIT = BET TER FLAVOR Great fruit does not travel well. It needs to ripen on the tree and vine. Once ripe, it’s prone to bruise and rot when picked if it’s not treated carefully. All the great preserve makers we carry are located very close to the orchards that supply their fruit. If they don’t pick the fruit themselves, like Robert Lambert, they do as American Spoon does and buy from nearby farmers who grow and care for the fruit in the way they require.

SEEK LUSCIOUS TEXTURE All good jams have a mouth-filling, juicy texture. Some have little details that make them extraordinary. American Spoon’s Early Glow Strawberry Jam still has bits of whole strawberry. Robet Lambert’s marmalades have chunks of peel that are firm and taste like candied fruit. Meanwhile, beware of any jam that has pectin as an ingredient. It makes the jam solid and, in my opinion, gets in the way of great texture.

3 BOUNDARY-BrEAKING PRESERVES

Quince Conserve

Quince is the main ingredient in Spain’s famous membrillo. This version, made with quinces and a touch of Riesling—both from Northern Michigan—has a lightly acidic yet earthy flavor with a velvet smooth, spreadable texture. It’s equally great alongside salty cheeses or atop toast. P-QCS 8 oz jar $18

WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A JAM, A MARMALADE AND A JELLY?

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Jams, conser ves and preser ves—the names are used interchangeably. These are all sweet spreads made from whole berries or stone fruits.

Guava is one of those exotic flavors that feels very familiar. Its flavor is tropical and bright, and sometimes it actually makes me feel like I’m basking on a beach somewhere instead of nibbling away at my kitchen table. P-GVJ 12 oz jar $10

M a r m a l a d e s are generally made from citrus and usually contain peel. They’re a little more bitter and tart. Jellies are made with fruit juices. Pectin is used to keep them solid. They generally have much less flavor than whole fruit jams—though the cider jelly on the facing page is a notable exception.

Guava Jam

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Vanilla Plum Cream At the storybook castle Château de Born in southwestern France, they grow fabulous plums. After harvest, they dry them just enough to preserve them, then whip them into a luscious cream with a bit of vanilla bean. The flavor is bright and clean and fruity, and the texture is silky and rich. P-VPC 220 g jar $16 SHIPS FOR FLAT RATE

AMERICAN SPOON

American Spoon is one of the very best preserve makers I know, working "up north" here in Michigan. Founder Justin Rashid grew up in northern Michigan and moved to New York in the ‘70s, but he never forgot his roots—or maybe I should say his fruits. “I remembered the amazing fruits being grown in northern Michigan, but they never got any attention.” In June of 1982, Justin moved back to Petoskey, Michigan and started making preserves that celebrated the specific flavor of the varieties of fruits being grown near the shore of Lake Michigan. Despite the success that followed—and the pressure to get big—Justin stayed small, keeping each jar of preserves full of the fruits and flavors he loved. That means that you can't get American Spoon preserves in big grocery chains. Instead, you have to come to Michigan—or have us ship Michigan to you.

Red Haven Peach Preserves

Early Glow Strawberry Preserves

Michigan Sour Cherry Preserves

The Red Haven peach was developed in South Haven, Michigan in the 1920s. American Spoon gets their peaches from Joe Daly and his orchards along Lake Michigan. They hand-peel and destone every supple peach before cooking the fruit with cane sugar in copper kettles. The preserve is thick and chunky with pieces of peach. It’s not too sweet, its texture and chew is the best I’ve ever tasted in a peach preserve and I never get tired of spreading it on morning toast or even glazing pork tenderloin with a bit of preserve. It’s awesome stuff. P-RHR 9 oz jar $15

As Justin Rashid, founder of American Spoon says, “Fruit is about seduction. If you just want a gummy, sweet paste, any brand of jam will do. But if you want a flavor experience, you have to buy a great preserve.” Early Glow strawberries are smaller than your typical strawberry and a bit fickle about ripening, but they have the ultimate in strawberry flavor. American Spoon’s preserves are made with 60% fruit and sweetened with cane sugar. The aroma is amazing. The flavor lingers long. Toast will never be the same. P-STR 9.5 oz jar $13

Cherries are (justifiably) one of Michigan’s most famous crops. The countryside is blanketed with orchards and many farmers grow sour—not sweet—cherries. They’re the kind you put in pies and jams, not directly in your mouth. This is probably the best sour cherry preserves I’ve ever had. Each jar, made by American Spoon in Petoskey, Michigan, is about two thirds Michigan sour cherries and a third cane sugar, that’s it. P-SCP 9.5 oz jar $15 SHIPS FOR FLAT RATE

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Wood’s Apple Cider Jelly Cider jelly is one of the oldest traditional American products. Ours comes from Willis and Tina Wood, whose family has been pressing and boiling cider for over a century. They use only whole, hand-picked apples to make their cider, a blend of Russets, Baldwins, Spies and McIntoshes along with some wild apples that grow on their land. Cooked down with no sugar or other ingredients added, the cider forms a thick, sweettart, intense jelly. Use the cider jelly in the same way you’d use any other jelly or as an accompaniment to cheese or roast meats. P-CID 8 oz jar $8 SHIPS FOR FLAT RATE

Robert Lambert’s Rangpur Lime Marmalade Rangpur limes have a tart, barely smoky aroma hits you immediately. The marmalade is not too sweet, not too bitter, very fresh and tangy, with a smooth texture. Great on toast, or a standout after-dinner treat when you pour some over a wedge of gooey cheese, like brie. From citrus master Robert Lambert in Glen Ellen, CA. P-RGM 8 oz jar $25 SHIPS FOR FLAT RATE

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WHY DOES THIS TIN OF TUNA COST SO MUCH? By Mo Frechette

Take two tins of tuna: one from Ortiz, one typical of the supermarket. They came from the same animal living in the same ocean. One costs twice as much as the other. Why? Open both tins. One smells like the sweet sea, peels off in thick blond chunks and tastes like a fancy dinner out. The other smells like harbor at low tide, spoons out in pulpy shreds and tastes like saltwater. What happened? Here’s the abbreviated tale in five acts.

1. HOW ARE THE TUNA FISHED? Bonito tuna, a common species for tinning, are not big fish. Most are two feet long and weigh about ten pounds. They’re warm-blooded. Taken together that means any bruising or bleeding affects a large portion of each fish and muddies its flavor. That’s rare with Ortiz’s tuna since they are entirely line caught, classic fisherman style, one at a time on a rod. Bruising is much more common with netted fish—the most common way to catch tuna, where hundred-foot-long nets drag the tuna in a thrashing bundle up from the sea.

2. HOW ARE THEY STORED AT SEA? Tuna are stored in a boat’s hold on ice. A more conscientious captain will freight a lot of ice, enough to surround each fish so they don’t touch one another and cool down quickly. After all, no one knows how long they’ll be at sea or how much they’ll catch and the fish starts to deteriorate the moment it’s caught.

3. WHAT HAPPENS AFTER THEY’RE COOKED? Cooking canned tuna is more or less standardized: the fish is boiled in salted water for a couple hours. But what happens next is not at all the same from factory to factory. At Ortiz the just-cooked fish sits out to cool in the kitchen, then gets time to chill in cold storage. The two steps take hours and hog up space on the floor and in the refrigerators. Not all tuna makers choose to take it. Like most food makers who worry about price more than flavor, they cut time out of the equation. What the extra time and care does, though, is critical. It stops the fish from fermenting. Fermenting can be ruinous—a carbonation that makes the tins unsal-

The tuna fleet that catches Ortiz’s bonito, moved in Getonia, Spain, on the Bay of Biscay.

able—or it can be mild. Even mild fermentation has a flavor that, to my taste, is a sour tang that runs throughout most tins of cheap tuna and mars its sea-sweet origins.

4. HOW ARE THEY CLEANED? Another act of grace Ortiz commits after cooking is to clean its tuna by hand. This is as labor-intensive as it sounds (if you’ve ever deboned and skinned cooked fish you know what I mean). It’s not at all standard practice in the tuna world. The women—and I can say from my experience visiting that 100% of the cleaners are women—work meticulously with paring knives, scraping and cleaning every bruise, every discoloration, every chance for the flavor to head south, leaving only pristine fish to find their way into the tin.

5. WHAT GOES INTO THE TIN? Whole chunks of fish and olive oil. That’s it. No flakes, no water. That’s the way you get great tinned tuna. Shredded smaller pieces deteriorate faster and that will show in the flavor. As for olive oil, well, the American tuna industry has pawned off water-packed tuna as healthier but what they failed to mention was that in losing 20% of the calories we lost 98% of the taste. Water leaches flavor from the fish. Ortiz only packs in olive oil, which amplifies the tuna’s flavor and gives it a silky, rich mouthfeel.

ortiz tunas Bonito Loin P-ORT

112 g tin $9 4 or more $7 each case of 30 $200

Bonito Ventresca (Belly) P-TUN

110 g tin $24 4 or more $20 each

Yellowfin Loin P-YLL

Ortiz Tunas from Biscay Tuna is one of the most popular foods we sell. It may seem surprising because here in the U.S., tinned tuna is a low-end commodity usually sold in supermarkets. In Spain it’s at the complete opposite of the culinary spectrum. Tuna in tins, especially these from the fourth-generation family firm Ortiz, is one of the jewels in Spain's culinary crown. Ortiz's fish are all line caught—not netted—hand filleted at sea and quickly tinned by hand in good olive oil. The olive oil is key. It adds flavor and makes the texture silky over time, unlike water, which tends to leach flavors from the fish. We went to Spain and selected a single great batch of Bonito loin, our best seller, for fullness of flavor, silky texture, and lingering sweetness.

220 g jar $20 2 or more $18 each

Yellowfin Ventresca (Belly) P-YVT

110 g tin $16 2 or more $14 each

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counterintuitive LUxury

Salt Cod in Olive Oil

It seems a little odd that the seafood-loving residents of Spain and Portugal love salt cod so much. In fact, the closer to the water they live, the more salt cod they seem to eat. These people, who have access to the best fresh seafood in the world, on any given night you’ll find them cooking slabs of preserved salted fish. It stymied me until I married into a Portuguese family and started eating more salt cod. Then I realized that salted cured fish has about as much in common with fresh fish as cured ham does with a fresh pork chop. They're two completely different things. People who raise pigs like fresh pork and they like salted cured pork like ham. Why wouldn't the same be true for people who fish? The salt curing and cooking—which, here, happens as a slow confit in olive oil—creates a cod fillet that’s almost creamy. It may seem counterintuitive but salt cod is one of the most luxurious fishes you can eat. That's the main reason Iberians spend hours—and I mean hours—soaking and cooking it. The salt cod in this jar, on the other hand, takes all of two seconds to prepare. Turn the lid, turn out the fish, feast. P-COD 200 g jar $20

Oil Packed Anchovies Rizzoli is a fifth-generation fish curing firm in Parma, Italy. Rizzoli buys Mediterranean Engraulis encrasicolus anchovies in the spring, when they’re fattest. They’re caught in traditional net circles which keeps them from being bruised. The attention Rizzoli gives to details throughout the entire process is clear when you see their tin. It’s a gorgeous gold box that looks like a jewel case more than a fish tin. The care is clear when you taste a fillet. These are not the putrid little fish you find scattered on pizza. Rizzoli’s anchovies are consistently plump, meaty, never mealy, with the clear, crisp, deep flavor of the sea. Rizzoli anchovies are excellent for snacking and quick meals. Store in your fridge. P-OPA 90 g tin $8 P-OPA-10 case of 10 $65 SHIPS FOR FLAT RATE

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WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN A GOOD VARIETAL HONEY By Ari Weinzweig

Excerpted from Zingerman’s Guide to Good Eating

FLOWER VARIETAL & GEOGRAPHY Although most people think of honey as a homogeneous substance, there are more than three hundred varieties in the world. Every blossom, so to speak, begets its own “brand,” a honey that’s based on the floral source in the same way that wines depend on the grapes they’re made from. The beekeepers set their hives among particular flowers in bloom. Take note, though, that very few honeys actually taste like the flower or the fruit. Geography plays a part in the taste of honey as well. The same type of blossom in two different parts of the world will yield honeys of varied texture and flavor. The vintage also makes a difference. Like every other natural food, varietal honey will be different each year, depending on changing climatic conditions.

LIT TLE HANDLING AND HEAT The less honey is handled after it’s been taken from the hive, the higher the quality is likely to be. Other than a very gentle warming used to loosen and remove honey from the hive, most other heat is likely to be harmful.

NO EXTRA FLAVORS There should be no added fruit flavors, colors, or additives of any sort. Good honey doesn’t need any. Don’t make the mistake of confusing authentic varietal honeys with commercial clover honey that has been flavored. Most of the time Blueberry Honey Creme on a store shelf is made by bees that have never seen a blueberry blossom. It’s nothing more than standard-issue honey with a dose of blueberry extract.

SOLID OR SMOOTH: BOTH ARE OK The majority of good varietal honeys are cloudy and naturally crystallized and thick to almost solid, often completely opaque. In much of Europe, these honeys are the preferred model. Good lavender honey can be creamy white. Honey is primarily made up of relatively equal parts glucose and fructose. The more glucose, the more likely the honey is to be crystalline solid.

HONEY SERVING SUGGESTIONS Drizzle it on hot toast or cool yogurt. Lay a bead line of honey on cheese. You can experiment here for different combinations. Personally, I think chestnut honey goes especially well on blue cheeses—particularly Jasper Hill’s Bayley Hazen (find both the honey and cheese at zingermans.com). Serve olive oil and honey together and sop them up with a bit of Paesano bread (page 20). Use honey in a marinade. Try honey mixed with apple cider on lamb, or blend honey and black pepper as a glaze for pork loin. Bake with it. Make a honeycake (or try ours, on page 47). Or, you can substitute it for regular sugar (but be sure to lower the total amount of liquid in the recipe by ¼ cup for each 1 cup of honey used).

GRANULAR TEXTURE CURE If you don’t like granular, set the honey in a pan of warming water and it will turn liquid.

RECIPE: HONEY BUTTER Mix 4 tablespoons room temperature butter with 3 teaspoons of your favorite varietal honey, using a back of a wooden spoon. Lasts for two weeks in the refrigerator.

STORING HONEY Honey almost never spoils. You don’t need to refrigerate it. Store in a cool, dry place.

Ari Weinzweig is one of the co-founders of Zingerman’s. He loves bacon so much he wrote a whole book about it. Ask him about his favorite bacon trivia—or about anything else—at ari@zingermans.com.

HONEY POP-UP SHOP

For a short time only, we’ve jam-packed our shelves with all manner of varietal honeys. From cornsilk yellow to deep auburn in color, from smooth and syrupy to thick and crystalized in texture, and from sweet to bitter flavor, these honeys cover the wide range of flavors derived from all manner of flowers. Quantities are limited and won’t last long, so stock up quick.

Ona misSIOn for flavor Michigan Star Thistle Honey

Joel and Susan Schaeffer retired to one of the prettiest pieces of land around: a farm on the Mission peninsula of Traverse City, Michigan, which they appropriately named Ona Mission Farm. It’s the perfect setting for Joel to indulge his love of bees. He manages twenty-five hives and during the summer, the bees feed exclusively on the purple flowers of the star thistle growing in the sandy landscape. Light in color, thick in texture, long on flavor with soft hints of anise in the finish. But just a little. P-MST 8 oz jar $16 SHIPS FOR FLAT RATE

brazilIAn BeautIEs

Brazilian Aroeira and Quince Honeys The team at Bee Seasonal is passionate about working directly with beekeepers to source unique, sustainable, delicious varietal honeys from around the world. These two Brazilian honeys are prime examples. First, the Aroeira honey comes from aroeira trees in southern Brazil’s cerrado savannah. The honey is super silky, with a deep amber color and a flavor hinting at toasted marshmallow with just a smidge of a bitter, burnt sugar edge. Next, the Quince honey comes from Marmeleiro-do-Mato trees in northeast Brazil’s arid Caatinga region. It’s a sunny golden color, with a velvety texture and a bright, citrusy, floral flavor. P-ARH 4 oz aroeira $8.50 P-MRH 4 oz quince $8.50 SHIPS FOR FLAT RATE

PrIckLy, piney, perfect Greek Pine Honey

Earthy, thick, slightly spicy with a toffee type of sweetness, Greek Pine honey is a rarity in the food world. The bees collect their nectar not from flowers, but from the “honeydew” of the pine, a sweet, sugary source of energy. A different insect eats the sap of the tree, then secretes the honeydew, which the bees gather and turn into honey. It makes for a darker, complex honey that tastes as much of the forest as it does sweet. Incredible stuff. P-GPH 14 oz jar $27

acorn juice hONEy Holm Oak Honey

Holm oaks are an evergreen oak native to the Mediterranean region. In the fall, they drop the boatloads of acorns that feed Spain’s famous Ibérico pigs. But pigs aren’t the only animals the acorns feed. When grown at higher altitudes, on cold autumn nights the acorns secrete a bit of sap. Bees love this sweet oak sap, and the honey they make from it has notes of caramel, blueberry, and toasty tones. It’s silky, and almost never crystalizes. P-HOH 9 oz jar $22 SHIPS FOR FLAT RATE

minNesOta miracle

Basswood Honey

The honey honchos at Ames Farm in Delano, Minnesota pride themselves in this single source, single hive honey made exclusively from the nectar of the Basswood tree (also known as the American linden). When the tree is flowering, they relocate the hive to be right next to it. The bees love a short commute and happily gather the nectar that’s close by. The result is a pure, light, delicate honey with notes of citrus in the finish. A quintessential honey for every occasion. P-BAS 9 oz jar $16 SHIPS FOR FLAT RATE

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THE TURBAN CHALLAHS OF ROSH HASHANAH By Brad Hedeman

Zingerman’s Bakehouse has been making challah for more than a quarter of a century. In addition to the classic challah we bake everyday, each September we break out these special edition loaves for Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. Though there are some stark differences between the (often) alcohol saturated New Year celebrated on January 1st and Rosh Hashanah, one of the holiest days of the Jewish faith, there are similarities: specifically the idea of making resolutions. Reflecting on the year that was and planning for the year to come has always been the most powerful aspect of flipping the calendar page, no matter your religious affiliation. This year Rosh Hashanah lasts from September 18th to the 19th. The holiday is marked by certain foods like honey and apples as well as these special challah breads. Jews from different countries developed different approaches to the holiday. It became traditional among Eastern European Jews to bake challah in round, turban-like loaves. The shape is said to signify the desire for a full, complete year. It’s also made richer and sweeter than plain challah, part of an annual effort by Jewish cooks to bring home a better, sweeter, more fruitful year. Towards that end, bakers add more honey, raisins, additional eggs, and liqueurs—sometimes even saffron. We add a generous portion of extra large Red Flame raisins that we first soak in ultra-rich Myers® Dark Rum before folding into the dough. The Moroccan Jewish community developed another special holiday challah called “Pain Petri.” It’s a beautiful, fivebraided loaf whose shape is meant to symbolize the ascent to heaven. Sensually spicy, it’s a rich, egg-based dough sweetened with honey and rolled in magnanimous amounts of anise, poppy and sesame seeds. To some, the seeds represent the manna that fell from heaven while the Israelites wandered the desert after the Exodus from Egypt. These once-a-year challahs make any gathering special, regardless of your religion or traditions. Gather round the table, break bread and celebrate all life has brought you and what’s to come. We hope each loaf will bring a deliriously sweet and complete new year to you and yours.

Unlike most of our other breads, challah doesn’t revive well in an oven, where it tends to dry out. You’ll probably enjoy this loaf with your holiday meal, but to have it stay as fresh as possible keep it in a sealed plastic bag on your counter (not refrigerated or frozen).

l’shanA tovah! Rosh Hashanah Gift Boxes Ring in a sweet new year with challah, apple, and honey. Each collection of Rosh Hashanah treats comes packed in a colorful cartoon box. The Classic Rosh Hashanah Gift Box includes a plain round Challah, a jar of Coriander Honey from California, and a jar of Apple Cider Jelly from Vermont. G-RHH classic box $60 FREE SHIPPING

The Deluxe Rosh Hashanah Gift Box includes everything in the classic box, plus a raisin-studded round Challah, a jar of Star Thistle Honey from Michigan, and a Buckwheat Honey Cake. G-RHH-D deluxe box $120 FREE SHIPPING

ROSH HASHANAH BEGINS THE EVENING OF Order by Tuesday, September 15th and we’ll ship your challah to arrive by the start of Rosh Hashanah on Friday, September 18th. Reserve even earlier to guarantee your loaf.

SEPT

FRIDAY

ROSH HASHANAH CHALLAHS Each fall Zingerman’s Bakehouse releases special limited edition challahs for Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. It’s traditional for Eastern European Jews to bake challah in round, turban-like loaves to signify the desire for a full, complete year. Each is baked to order by hand, arriving wrapped in plastic and paper. They’re gorgeous, the color of toasted saffron, and the flavors are rich and sweet— everything the New Year should be.

Classic Turban Challah

Raisin Turban Challah

Moroccan Style Challah

Keeping with tradition, we sweeten all the egg and flour loaves with a healthy dose of Michigan clover honey. B-TP2 1 lb round $9 B-TP1 2 lb round $16

On top of the clover honey we add a generous portion of extra-large Red Flame raisins and golden raisins soaked in Myers Dark Rum®. B-RT4 1 lb round with raisins $14 B-RT3 2 lb round with raisins $25

Braided—not round—brushed with honey and rolled in anise, poppy and sesame seeds. No raisins. B-MOR 1 lb braid $12

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JUST A NIBbLE Rugelach

Rugelach are the royalty of Jewish baked goods: tender, flaky, cream cheese pastry, dressed in cinnamon sugar. You take a couple bites, a shower of sugar and cinnamon fills your fingers and you’re done...until you reach for another. We offer three gift boxes. The first is the most popular: half classic toasted walnut with currants, and half apricot. The second is half chocolate, half raspberry. The third is new: half date cardamom, half almond sesame. P-RUG 8 classic & 8 apricot $45 P-RCR 8 chocolate & 8 raspberry $45 P-RDS 8 date & 8 almond sesame $45 FREE SHIPPING

jEwish new yEar’s cAke Buckwheat Honey Cake

Baked in a traditional bundt pan (the ones used for coffee cakes) from a long list of luscious ingredients including golden raisins, toasted almonds, fresh orange and lemon zest, Indonesian cinnamon, cloves, ginger and nutmeg. The key player is a healthy helping of special buckwheat honey from Michigan. Buckwheat honey is the color of caramel with a bold, molasses-like flavor, making this a rich, deep, lovely cake. Serves 5-7, available starting September 14th. A-BWT-S gift boxed in cartoon box $45 G-BWT-S gift boxed in wooden crate $49 FREE SHIPPING

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ZINGERMAN’S

610 Phoenix Dr., Ann Arbor, Michigan 48108 888.636.8162 • Text me sometime 734.436.2006

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EAT YOUR FLOWERS

Three Varietal Honey Tasting Flight Growing up, “honey” meant just one thing to me: a tan, runny sweetener that always tasted about the same. That’s what you get when honeys from many sources are combined and homogenized, which is standard practice for most honey on the market. But each blossom creates a honey totally unique to the flower it comes from. To get a “varietal” honey, the beekeepers simply set their hives among particular flowers in bloom—there are no extra flavors or additives. The honeys vary wildly. Some are runny, some are so crystalline they’re practically solid. Some are as pale as corn silk, others as dark as roasted chestnuts. And some are sweet as, well, honey, while others are sharp and bitter. This gift box assembles three honeys from opposite ends of the spectrum: classically sweet Coriander Honey from California, darkly bitter Chestnut Honey from Italy, and thick, crystalline Star Thistle Honey from Michigan. We also include a bit of information about each honey and what makes all three so different. G-HY3 3 honeys, boxed $70 FREE SHIPPING

ROSH HASHANAH GIFTS, PAGE 47

EXISTENTIAL FOOD QUESTIONS ANSWERED,

VARIETAL HONEY POP UP SHOP, PAGE 45

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