Ship everything

but the grill!

Special Treats
ONLY AVAILABLE
at zingermans.com
or by calling
888.636.8162

Strike up the GrilL

Red Wattle Porterhouse Pork Chops

Heritage pork you can now cook at home
Red Wattles are an old breed of pig that was raised for
flavor, not fashion. A century or two ago youd have
found Red Wattle pork on tables in New Orleans where
they were a popular pig, sporting meat that could pair
well with the regions full-flavored cooking. Today you
might find Red Wattle in a few restaurants in New York
and a couple other lucky cities. There has been almost
no supply for us home cooksuntil now.
Were working with Heritage Foods to get a limited
supply of big, fat, Red Wattle porterhouse pork chops.
These chops have the strip and loin attached, joining
at the bone like a T Bone steak. Each measures an inch
and a quarter thick and tips the scales at fourteen
ounces.

The pork comes from hogs that are raised impeccably.

The pigs are not confined, have access to the outdoors,
and never receive antibiotics or hormones.
The flavor is rich, herbaceous, even a little sweet. It
packs more flavor than Ive ever had in a pork chop.
The crowning glory of Red Wattle pork, however, is its
fat. It marbles the meat and wraps the chop in
a soft, opaque band. When cooked it melts
within the meat and softens its edge to a
luscious, lip-smacking bite. This is meltin-your mouth fat, the kind of succulent
experience you expect in great steaks and
some cured meats. Its never a sensation Id
experienced in a pork chop until I met this one.

Italys famous ice cream, made hEre in ANn Arbor!

Zingermans Creamery Gelato Collection

Thick, creamy, elegant, luscious. Eating gelato is an event, a
special occasion that borders on a religious experience for ice
cream connoisseurs.
At Zingerman's Creamery, gelato maker Josh mixes fresh
milk from Calder Dairyone of the last farmstead dairies in
Michiganwith organic Demerara sugar and an array of other
great ingredients to churn out this Italian-style ice cream with
direct, intense flavors.
Made in small batches, shipped directly from our Creamery.

Six tubs total, twelve ounces each:

Dark Chocolate

made with Scharffen

Berger cocoa

Roadhouse Vanilla

made with Madagascar's

famous Bourbon vanilla
beans

Dulce de Leche

with plenty of Dulce

de Leche caramel from
Argentina swirled in

Frequent Fish Club

Weve just launched a brand new monthly food club!
The Frequent Fish Club features the most glorious seafood you
can find in a tin, jar, or bottle. It's perfect for summer, when most
of us entertain or picnic or laze on the patio with a crisp glass of
ros and a few tasty nibbles.
For those who love tinned fish (and based on how many tins of
Ortiz tuna we sell, I'm guessing that's most of you) this club is the
stuff culinary dreams are made of.

Peanut Butter

made with Koeze Peanut

Butter from Grand
Rapids, MI

Mint Chocolate Chip

with real mint extract

and really good housemade chocolate chips

Raspberry Sorbet

chock full of the best

Michigan raspberries we
can get our hands on

Longtime customers consider the Summer Sale a holiday

and the perfect opportunity to stock up on all their favorite
items at huge discounts. Many of the most popular items,
including tuna and olive oil, are up to 50% off. Order now,
ship when you like, even if you dont want to ship them until
December. Knock out your holiday shopping in the midst of
summer and relax for the rest of the year!

Now thru July 31st

Sale prices at www.zingermans.com, by
phone at 888.636.8162 or stop by
Zingerman's Delicatessen on Detroit Street

WHERE DID THE BIG LIST OF ZINGERMANS EVENTS GO?!

Dont worry. Weve just got so much going on around the Zingermans Community of Businesses
that we needed two whole pages to list everything. Find out whats happening on pages 8 and 9!

ISSUE # 251

JUL-AUG 2015

My favorite brew:
new crop Ethiopian coffee is in!
available at zingermans delicatessen and coffee company

Ive always loved Ethiopian coffee. Ever since I started paying

attention to, and appreciating, the flavors of regional beans,
the nuances of various roast levels, the variations of crop
years and the other elements that make up a really exceptional
cup, Ethiopian coffees have kept their spot at the top of my
personal taste list. Their remarkable, always interesting, winy,
at times blueberry-like, big flavors arent, I know, for everyone, but theyre definitely for me. I love em.
Without question, I drink Ethiopian coffees more than any
other single offering!
Happily, having just been to Ethiopia (see the ZingTrain piece
on page 6) I can see why theyre so special to me. Not only do
they taste great. They have a fantastic history to go with them.
Although not that many folks out in the world know it, Ethiopia
is the literal homeland of coffee. Its where the coffee plant
probably originated, and pretty surely where coffee was first
consumed as a beverage. As the story goes, a young goat herder named Kaldi noticed his goats frolicking more than usual
after eating the berries of a certain bush. He picked the berries and brought them to an Islamic monk who showed his disapproval by tossing them into the fire, from whence the first
coffee roasting commenced. Somehow Kaldi decided to grind
and brew the toasted beans and, apocryphally at least, coffee
was born. Ethiopia is also the place from which Yemeni traders
took coffee to Europe and the rest of the world. All of which is
why coffee means about 88 times more in Ethiopia than it does
anywhere else in the world.
Whats it like everywhere else? In most every other country
in which its grown, coffee was introduced in relatively recent
history, primarily by European colonists, and primarily for
one purposenot to make good mocha available, but to make
money. Coffee was grown, not for personal consumption, but
almost exclusively, for export. Unlike a garden where you grow
your own tomatoes to enhance the excellence of your dining
table, coffee was grown for cash. If someone wasnt making a
living growing coffee, he or she could be just as likely to grow
tobacco, timber or tea. As a result, coffee is generally wellintegrated, and often downright essential, to the economy of
places like Costa Rica, Honduras and Kenya, but its generally
NOT part of the culinary culture. Coffee is important to create jobs, earn income, and pay bills. But brewing and drinking
great coffee is just not that big a deal. While clearly coffee has
grown to become an important part of the culture (probably in
Brazil more than anywhere else) the reality is that instant coffee is still a huge product in most producing countries.
Ethiopia is the exact opposite. Everyone (well, nearly everyone) drinks coffee. Nearly all of it is really good, if not, at
times, excellent. More importantly, the majority of the population (there are exceptions) loveand almost reverethe
stuff. About half of the annual crop is consumed internally.
They appreciate coffee for the income it brings, but they care
about coffee emotionally as much as they do their history, the
culture, traditional dance, and language. Coffee in Ethiopia is
like . . . cheese and wine in France, fish in Boston, rice in Japan, chiles in New Mexico, really wild, wild, rice for the Ojibwe
people here in the upper Great Lakes.
How does that play out? Well, for openers pretty much every
place serves pretty darned good coffee. To be clear, I dont say
that lightly. Honestly, I would really never drink coffee in a hotel, and only rarely in restaurants unless I know who roasted it
and I like and trust the people who run the place. Commercially brewed coffee in those sorts of places is so rarely enjoyable
(the general guideline for me is that bad tea is nearly always
much, much better than bad coffee) so I just order black tea.

ISSUE # 251

JUL-AUG 2015

But in Ethiopia at nearly every single place I ordered it the coffee was good. That alone is an amazing thing, a feat that would
be unthinkable almost anywhere else in the world (including
Europe and the U.S.) And some shops serve some seriously
great coffee.
Some shops even brew beans from specific regionscalled
out by namein Ethiopia. While that might seem mundane
to folks in Southeast Michigan who are used to having access
to regional and estate offerings of various coffee beans from
Zingermans Coffee Company or in other quality focused cafs, its actually rarely seen in producing countries (other than
maybe in a cafs run by growers or government sponsored
coffee boards).
Most all of what I had on my visit to Ethiopia was brewed in
filter pots and a fair few places used French press pots. A good
many others pull shots of espresso (although often much longer shots than were used to here). Ethiopia, of course, is the
only country on the continent never to have been colonized
by a European country. As a result, energy and independence
of spirit seem particularly high. Ethiopia was invaded by Italy
back in the 1930s. The only big legacies of the invasion seem
to be a high affinity for pizza, and the frequent use of Italian
coffee brewing methods. Caf Macchiatothe traditional Italian style, with only a small bit of milk and a shot of espresso
seems to be the most commonly consumed brew.

here, you shouldnt be surprised to learn it was really good.

No, not the single best coffee Ive ever had in my lifebut for
a blind random choice its actually amazing that it was so tasty.
If youd told me it was a sample from one of our high-end brokers Id have told you I really liked it, certainly very respectable. Culture, Ive always believed, is a much better enforcer of
ethical standards than any formal certification. The fact that it
happened the way it did, by random meandering around the
market in Addis Ababa, says a lot. Coffee in Ethiopia is serious
business, so much so that market stalls wouldnt even think of
selling something bad. Coffee drinkers wont tolerate it.
Our current Ethiopian bean from Zingermans Coffee Company
is, as I said in the beginning, at the top of my consumption
list. Its a new cropa 2015 harvest of coffee beans from the
Harar district in Ethiopias northeast. Its grown at very high
altitudesnearly 6000 feetwhich contributes to the quality
and complexity of the beans. The city of Harar, which sits at
the center of the region, was founded between the 7th and 11th

Ethiopians do have a very important traditional coffee ceremony which plays the same sort of role there that the tea
ceremony does in Japan. Green coffee beans are roasted over
hot coals in a metal pan. The coffee is then ground, often with
a mortar and pestle. The new grounds are put into a special
ceramic carafe. Water is added and brought to a boil so that
it starts to rise through the long neck of the carafe. Its then
poured into another vessel to cool it a bit, then boiled again.
To serve, the coffee is poured through a filter into handle-less
cups. Generally the pot is moved back and forth over the series of cups so that the liquid is evenly distributed. Many Ethiopians add sugar. Some in the countryside add the traditional
clarified butter and salt (this version of coffee becomes a bit
of a traditional instant breakfast). The grounds are typically
brewed three times. Teddy Araya told me that, the first round
is called Abol, the second is Tonena and the third is Berk, the
blessing. In some places like Tigrai, they serve to the fourth
round. The best part is the first since it is the thickest. The subsequent ones will get lighter on every round. In Tigrai, they
give the fourth round to kids.
The traditional accompaniment for coffee in Ethiopia? Not a
croissant, not a cookie, not vanilla syrup. Its popcorn. Thats
right. If you order coffee in a traditional setting, say after dinner, it will come with a bowl of popcorn. And while that may
seem odd, Ill tell you that its actually darned delicious. Try it!
For me, heres the ultimate testament to the import and care
that accompany coffee culture in Ethiopia. When you goto the
markets, alongside stalls selling vegetables, fruit, spices, etc.
there are many that are selling green coffee beans. A few sell
already roasted beans but the majority are still in their green,
unroasted state. Everyone here roasts their own at home, a
friend told us. Since our visit was short and I couldnt speak
Amharic to the men and woman working the stalls, I bought
a half-kilo from one woman who seemed nice. She had three
baskets (others had even more) of different green beans on
display. I had no idea really what I was buying but just for fun,
I bought some to bring back to the Coffee Companys managing
partner Steve Mangigian.
When I got back Steve roasted it up. After what Ive written

centuries and over time became a significant center of Islamic

learning and culture. The Harari language is one of over 80 in
Ethiopia! Aside from the excellence of its coffee, the area is
also known for its basket weaving, bookbinding and poetry.
Speaking of the latter, in the late 18th century it was home to
the French poet Rimbaud. More importantly to matters at hand
its said to be the first region in which indigenous wild coffee
was domesticated.
The best Harar coffees, like this one, have wonderful winy,
fruity flavors that remind me of blueberries, or at times maybe
blackberries. It is a natural or dry processed coffee. The
pulp of the coffee cherry is left on the beans in the center
and dried naturally in the sun, which yields a more intense,
fruity, full flavored coffee, which is, of course, the kind that I
particularly love.

Leaves, Loves,
and Little Napoleons
Available at Zingermans Creamery and Delicatessen

As per its name, this is a not a big cheese; physically

theyre only about two inches across and maybe a half
an inch high. Diminutive as they are, Little Napoleons
will never make the sort of huge visual impression that a
wheel of Comt or Parmigiano Reggiano will. Compared
to the giants of the cheese world theyre still barely
known outside of Ann Arbor and in a few of the countrys
best cheese shops.

Big Brew Board Picks

for: ethiopian

Each of our six brewing methods will, of course,

yield a slightly different set of flavors for each coffee,
including, in this case, our Ethiopian.
Here are some of our crews brewing preferences.
pourover press pot syphon clever chemex aeropress

Ari
Stephanie

But size and fame arent everything. Like the French emperor of the same name, the Little Napoleons are winning friends and followers with greater effectiveness
every day. Better still, of late, the Little Napoleons have
been really exceptionally good. And building something
special up to high levels of loyalty isnt an overnight activity. But I believe that Little Napoleonsboth as they
are, and aged in the chestnut leavesare, no exaggeration, some of THE best cheese being made anywhere in
the U.S. right now. Since my next bookPart 4 of Zingermans Guide to Good Leading seriesis about the Power
of Beliefs in Business, you can bet that Im going to capitalize on the strength of my own belief and use it to help
catapult these small but delicious handcrafted delicacies
to the fame they deserve.
Thats no modest vision, I know. But you have to start
somewhere, and Im starting here. In fact, in an informal
and unintended affirmation of the critical nature of word
of mouth promotion and the correlation between it happening and the excellence of the product, sales have already been on the rise. The chestnut-wrapped cheeses in
particular have won particular attention out in the food
loving San Francisco Bay area.
The technique for making the Napoleons is noteworthy
in itself. The Creamerys founding partner, John Loomis,
learned it many years ago from reading it in Jean Claude
le Jaouens excellent little book on goat cheese making.
In her never-ending effort to tweak and adjust
our recipes, co-managing partner Aubrey
Thomason has come upon a few things
that are really working well, like slower sets and longer resting times.
Better flavor is the result.

David
Steve

July

COLD BREWED COFFEE

We call it the velvet hammer for its
generous caffeine content and easy-todrink character. This chocolatey elixir is
produced by steeping coffee grounds in
cool water for almost 24 hours.

August

ZAMBIA MUNALI
Grown on the family-owned Mubuyu
farm about 50 miles south of the capital
Lusaka. An exceptionally balanced, crisp
cup of coffee.

Available at Zingermans Coffee Co.,

Delicatessen and Roadhouse

To make the Napoleons the milk

is set for 18-24 hours (thats a
long set) with kids (goat) rennet,
cultures and Geotrichum mold. Much
as it does with the traditionally leavened breads from the Bakehouse,
the luxuriously long set adds to cost
but enhances quality significantly.
(Bigger cheesemakers will always go for
speed to save money but give up complexity in the process.) The next morning the curd is drained for eight hours,saltedand then
hand ladled into forms. The cheeses are flipped in their
molds the next day and then the following day unmolded
and moved on to a maturing room.
The young cheeses are turned every day until theyre
sold in order to keep the ripening and moisture evenly
distributed through the cheese. At about five days they
start to show signs of a little bit of natural Geotrichum
mold that leaves a rind the color of well-worn ivory, with
smallish bits of white mold (and at times a bit of blue). At
that point theyre ready to enjoy! Thats a lot of work to
do for a cheese thats maybe the size of a silver dollar.
The goat milk flavors are gentle but more pronounced
and more attention-getting than in the very lovely, light,
fresh City Goat chvre.

And by the way, there really is a Napoleon, Michigan, for

which this cheese is named. Its about 25 minutes west of
Ann Arbor, just south of I-94 before you get to Jackson.
Only about 1300 people live there. Maybe we should set
a sales goal of 1300 Napoleons this yearone for each
resident?
But wait, thats not all. Theres more to this story!!! The
Creamery crew have added a new and perhaps even
more delicious chapter to this already tasty story. Weve
started to wrap some of the Little Napoleons in Michigan
chestnut leaves and age them that way. Leaf-wrapping is
an old technique. Traditionally, whatever leaves were
locally available made a good way to naturally protect
ones cheese from drying out. The leaves protect the texture, but also, in the process, impart a subtle but meaningful flavor. The French Banon and Spanish Valdeon are
two of the best known in Europe; here in the States the
amazing Rogue River Blue from Oregon works the same
way. At the Creamery were using chestnut leaves from
Michigan growers (Michigan is leading the way in the revival of the American chestnut). The leaves are soaked
in Michigan wine before we use them to wrap one week
old Napoleons which are then allowed to age for another
four weeks. As they age, they gain flavor and a bit of an
earthy, but still accessible, funk. The older they get, of
course, the more leaf and the wine impact the flavor.
Part of what I like about the Napoleon right now is that
its got a very thin, unobtrusive rind. Like a little light
windbreaker of a coat, not heavy or chewy. It doesnt
dominate, but only subtly adds to the flavor and fun of
eating the cheese. Another reason I love the Napoleons
is because theyre so full-flavored, yet not strong at all.
Many folks who claim to hate goat cheese do a double
take when they try these. In fact Ive seen many people
change their beliefs about goat cheese after trying the
Creamerys offerings. And that very gentle goat nuttiness
that I like in the really fresh cheeses is accented more in
thesea few more bass notes, a bit of bassoon to make
you take notice.
These Napoleons are the sort of cheese Iand, maybe,
you?can just eat as is. You dont need to do anything
other than let it get to room temperature. Stick em next
to a nice green salad, some fresh fruit and a thick slice of
French Mountain Bread or Roadhouse bread, or a nice
bit of baguette from the Bakehouse.

ISSUE # 251

JUL-AUG 2015

GREEK MOUNTAIN TEA

available at zingermans coffee company and zingermans delicatessen

Sitting in a caf in the town of
Metsovo in northern Greece
many years ago, I innocently
ordered tea. I was expecting
the usual uninteresting bag
of commercial black tea that
Ive come to expect almost
everywhere in Europe. But
before the waiter could
leave the table, my late
but much-loved friend
Daphne Zepos (see the
Epilogue in Part 3 of Zingermans Guide to Good Leading for much more on this amazing
woman) asked me if I wanted regular tea or mountain tea?
Never having heard of the latter, but ever the inquisitive eater and drinker, I shrugged my shoulders and said, Why not?
Ill try mountain tea.
A few minutes later it arriveda bouquet of long light green
stalks with tiny flowers and buds attached steeping hot water. Its aroma was excellenta little sweet, a touch of mountain meadow. It has light amber color and a compelling,
sweet perfume and a lovely, light, naturally sweet flavor that
hints of thyme, lemon and anise.
In Greek the mountain tea is known as tsai tou vounou. After
literally months of trying to find out the English name Ive
gotten that what they serve is called Diktamus. Others have
said its actually called Sideritis or ironwort. Its a hardy,
flowering perennial thats well suited to survive with only

Knishes are Coming

Available at Zingermans Delicatessen

Knishes! I love them. I didnt grow up with them. I never even heard
of them as a kid. My loss. Theyre a part of Jewish culinary tradition
that no oneyoung or old or elegantly in betweenshould have
to live without. Comfort food, grounded, delicious, simple, Eastern
European culinary excellence at its down to earth best.
At the Deli weve been taking our knishes up a couple notches,
starting to make our own special pastry. Butter, cream cheese
from Zingermans Creamery, sour cream, and the secret ingredient, a bit of Rayes stoneground yellow mustard from Maine. The
filling? Weve got three options: Mashed potatoes and caramelized
onions; Kasha, aka, buckwheat; and chicken with potato. All are
excellent. Eat em out of hand for a super snack! Great for lunch
with a salad or for dinner with a salad a couple of scrambled eggs.

New Deli
Crumb Cake

Get it? New Deli as in New Delhi for a butter crumble-topped coffeecake spiced with an array of Indian spices. New Deli in honor
of the new Deli space. Get it? Its a really excellent new offering
from the Bakehouse! And because puns and geographical and historical connections can only get you so far, let me say quite simply
that this stuff just plain tastes really great.
If you think about it, what could be bad really? Its made with lots
of butter, a bit of coconut oil, plenty of real vanilla, and a modest but very effective dose of old school Muscovado brown sugar
along with fresh eggs. And most importantly the green cardamom
that the folks from Montreals pices
de Cru conjure out of the Cardamom Hills in southern
India. Like all of the
dozens of spices we
score from them,
the cardamom isnt
just goodits really exceptional.
Amazing. Worldclass. And its particularly good for
baking.
Green cardamom, in
case you dont know it, is
known as the vanilla of Indian

ISSUE # 251

Our terrific Greek mountain tea is coming through our newfound food friend, Vivianna Karamanis, whos got an eye and
a palate for extremely excellent products (try some of the
roasted pepper-tomato sauce were getting from her at the
Deli). This wild Greek Mountain tea is from the Pindos mountains in northwest Greece, where its gathered by hand over
3000 feet up. Only the flowers and the small bit of the most
tender stems are used. More commercial brands will include
much longer pieces of stem which also tend to woodiness
and are less sweet.
It brews up into a light golden liquid that has a naturally
sweet flavor. In Greece its consumed as much for health as
for pleasure. Its an old school remedy for colds, muscle pain,
and more. Wild grown herbs like this are generally acknowledged to be more potent in that regardthe cultivation of
plants doesnt quite replicate what happens when nature is
left to her devices. The high altitude growth tends to concentrate essential oils even further. Viviannas mountain tea is
also certified organic. Many Greeks like to add a bit of thyme
honey to sweeten it further but I drink it as it is. Great with
a bit of a biscuit from the Bakehouse or some toast and jam.

baking. This particular offering is about 88 times more excellent

than your more mundane versions on the market. Neither we at
Zingermans, nor the pices de Cru crew, are very into average. If
were going to use something in our cooking or baking we want
big, complex, delicious flavors. Oh yeah, add in some toasted pistachios and ginger and their special selection Indian cloves and
its just over the top. The cloves are particulary amazing, very
carefully hand picked, one ripe bud at a time (unripe buds in this
process are left on the treecommercial clove producers pull
them all off regardless of ripeness).
All in all, its a really wonderful taste of Asian-American excellencethe best of Indian spices and the comfort-inducing, buttery goodness that Americans everywhere quickly associate with
crumb cake. Excellent, of course, with a cup of Ethiopian coffee.

Old School Champagne

Vinegars from France
Available at Zingermans Delicatessen

Available at Zingermans Bakehouse,

Delicatessen and Roadhouse

minimal water and rocky soil. Whatever it is, its worth trying
if youre looking for an herbal brew to experiment with. To
brew it, you simply break up the branches, then boil them for
about 5 minutes in water, then strain and serve. Like some
green and oolong teas, you can get more than one brew from
each bunch of buds.

JUL-AUG 2015

This exceptional champagne vinegar is well ageda good 12

months in oak. But thats a
mere drop in the bucketor
I guess should say, barrelcompared to the company. The Pouret family has
been making vinegar since
1797. Thats right, the family
business is only thirteen years
younger than the United States.
Talk about built to last!
A huge part of the Pouret clans success is that theyve stayed with
the old school methods of vinegar making throughout their twoplus centuries of production. To my knowledge theyre one of the
last of the French vinegar makers still sticking to the traditional
Orleans process, and as far as I know the last active producer in
the city of Orleans itself. For that alone Pouret vinegars are worth
checking out. The business, as I said above, was founded in 1797
by a wine merchant by the name of Pouret, whose first name is
unknown. It became Martin-Pouret after Jeanne Pouret married
Robert Martin in 1910.
The firm is run today by Jean-Francois Martin, the fifth generation
to forge traditional vinegars from Loire valley wines. The wines of
the area are traditionally light, and so are the resulting vinegars.
They can bring a clean, uncluttered, well-made flavor to your salads. The whole point is to let the character of the base wine show
through, Mr. Martin said in the New York Times a few years back.
Orleans vinegar is not a product that dominates. It throws things
into relief in a subtle way.

And Some Marvelous

Whole Leaf Greek Mint Tea, Too
Available at Zingermans Delicatessen
and Coffee Company
Were also getting an amazing wild mint tea that
also comes from the Pindos Mountains. Its whole
leaf and bud mintwhen you open the tin (or before we brew it for you at the Coffee Company)
youll be able to see the lovely purple flowers and
take in the terrific aroma while the leaves are in
their dry state. Again its certified organic. Vivianna says that this particular mint is Mentha Aquatica, which has all the positive elements of mentha but without the negative effects of menthol.
Again, I drink it straight but many in Greece would
happily add a high quality
honey (you can really taste
the differenceif you
use varietal honeys in your tea
the
complexity and character
will come through
loud and clear.)

The city of Orleans has long been the Frenchand more profoundly, probably the worldcapital of vinegar. At the least its
on par with the Balsamic business that goes on in Modena, Italy.
The production methods havent been altered much over the
centuries. A small amount of vinegar along with some mother
culture are set in barrels to gradually ferment. At three months
some is drawn off, the rest remains and is later blended with new
vinegar again. In this way, the old educate the young. Mr. Martin
sums it up beautifullyNothing has changed for centuries, he
says. We do everything the same way we always have. Its simply
a matter of wine, temperature and time.

Uncle Joe Burroughs Whole Fried

Catfish Platter
Available at Zingermans Roadhouse

Im not sure where to start this story but since I have to start
somewhere Ill just begin it with the opening of the Roadhouse in
the fall of 2003 since thats the first time we served catfish here
at Zingermans. Its a classic American dish so it makes sense that
wed put it on the menu. That said, we knew that (like pretty much
everything we serve or sell) it could be better, so I started asking
all sorts of people I knew for their views on the subject. Northerners generally had little to say, but Southerners often went on at
length. One response came from someone I didnt expect to hear
from on the subject.
I knew Peggy Markel only from her modern life in Boulder and
from our travels together in Europe. But somehow, we got a conversation about catfish and out came a whole plethora of stories,
emotions and culinary tips. While she and I had mostly talked
about traveling and tasting in places like Tuscany, Liguria and Sicily it turned out that she was actually born and raised in northern
Alabama. And much to my surprise, it turned out that she grew up
eating down home stuff like hush puppies, grits and catfish, not
the pasta, Gorgonzola and caciocavallo that she and I had shared
in Italy.
Anyways, it happens that Peggys dad, Uncle Joe Burroughs,
had cooked catfish almost every Friday night in the small town
of Albertville where Peggy grew up. He always wanted his own
fried catfish joint, Peggy told me years ago when we got into
this conversation for the first time. He was famous down there.
People came from far and wide to our house for some of Uncle
Joes famous catfish. It was a hot ticket. My dad had a bar-b-q pit
in the back yard that he rigged to a gas line to. He would heat a
deep, oblong cast iron skillet full of Mazola oil. Soon after, those
delectable filets lightly dusted with corn meal from being shaken
in a paper sack would be sprinkled with the secret ingredient,
and expertly slipped into the simmering hot oil. We never had
enough money to realize his dream of his own Catfish Caf, but

we had one anyway, every Friday night at our house

with people going crazy over crispy fried catfish,
hushlittlepuppydogs (aka, hush puppies), slaw
and hot pickled jalapeno peppers that my
dad grew and pickled himself from 12 different varieties. This all went down easy with
a few beers (home-brewed by my uncle
Charlie) from one of the outdoor fridges
behind the bar-b-q pit.
You might have noticed the phrase secret
ingredient back in that really nice description she gave. The secret, it turned out, is garlic saltcertainly not something that I typically use
much of in my cooking these days. But, if Peggys dad
was doing great catfish with that much success for so long it seemed sort of silly not to try his
tip. Roadhouse Chef Alex Young and I tested it and, sure enough, it really did liven up the flavor
of the fish.
Its really a pretty darned good-looking platter. The fish comes out to the table looking really
great, the kittys crisp, cornmeal-crusted-tail curled around a side of those amazing Anson
Mills country style organic slow cooking grits. In honor of Joe, my friendship with Peggy, his
long standing if unfulfilled desire to open his own restaurant, we named the dish on the menu
after himits been called Uncle Joes Fried Catfish Platter ever since we opened.
As I said, above, Peggys dad passed away a few years ago. While its sad, and Im saddened for
Peggy and her family, Joe lived a good life. Born in Alabama in 1917, he started college at Auburn.
He stayed just two semesters, but, Peggy said, he liked to tell people that, he was smarter than
most folks, because he finished in a year. From there he went into the army and served in the
signal core in Italy and North Africa during WWII. He came back to Alabama and lived the rest
of his life in the town of Albertville, where his family had been for four generations (if I have the
genealogy right), working most of his life for South Central Bell Telephone.
Since I never met him in person, Ill share with you some of what Peggy wrote me about him.
His story strikes me as so much of the essence of what we do herethe connection between
good people, good food, community and caring about those around you. In this case, it was a
lot about catfish.
Anyways, to quote from what Peggy told me:
My father was creative and artistic. He expressed himself best as a gardener and cook.
He took over for my mother on the weekends and it was always a party. Fried catfish on
Friday night, steaks on Saturday, and omelets on Sunday night. My mother only made
Sunday lunch which was always fried chicken.
My father was a master pepper pickler. He grew 12 different varieties and pickled them
in jars with a decorative design. A slice of carrot fit in the center of an onion slice to
look like a sliced boiled egg. Carrots would be carved to say a name or phrase. They
were spicy, from jalapeo and habanero, and sweet from carrot, onion and the piece
dresistance, small cauliflower flowerets. Pickled peppers eaten with fried catfish and
hushpuppies, pickled peppers and sauce over black-eyed peas and cornbread, sauce
over collard greensthose taste memories linger in my mind and on my palate. My sister Joanna has taken over the pepper-pickling legacy, as she was the one who helped
him the most. Shes got it, I dare say, but my Dads touch was in growing them too. He was
playful with his garden, calling the neighbor ladies or friends who came by to come and
check it out. They would find drawers on the cucumbers and bras on the tomatoes.
Beanpoles were reversed, tall with wagon wheels on top, with string running to the
ground. This way the bean, planted always on Good Friday, which would grow outside
of the inverted pyramid, making them easier to pick.
I mentioned he had a passion for frying catfish. The Tennessee River was a stones
throw away and he was often down to visit his good friend we called Uncle Charlie.
Uncle Charlie had a boathouse on Pole Cat Hollow, an offshoot of Guntersville Lake,
where the TVA created 800 miles of shoreline around the foothills of the Appalachian.
We grew up swimming in the river, boating, waterskiing and chowing down on catfish,
hushpuppies and home brew. After all, we lived in a dry county. My Dad liked his beer
and we had to drive to the next town to get it. We had two refrigerators out back by the
bar-b-q pit. One was for beer and the other was a smoker. If you got it mixed up, youd
open the fridge door and find catfish hanging upside down by their tails. Other than
looking Sci Fi, it was a delicacy to be appreciated with his pickled peppers.
I really appreciate Peggy for sharing these stories, and for sharing her dads secret a dozen
years or so ago. I made a donation to the Southern Foodways Alliance in Joes memory when he
passed away, and I hope that everyone here will think good thoughts for and about him every
time someone orders the catfish. He is what really good American food is about.
To quote from Peggys nice eulogy:
Gone are the days when my heart was young and gay, gone are the years of the cotton
fields away, gone from this earth to a better place I know, I hear the gentle voices callingold...blackJoeIm a comin, Im a comin for my heart is young and gay. I hear the
gentle voices calling...old...blackJoe
This was a song our daddy used to sing to us at bedtime. When I got old enough to
understand the words, I registered then and there how sad I would be when that time
came around. Life without daddy Joe would be real sad. That time came Saturday, July
the 12, 2008, when at 90 he took his last breath. It is as sad as I always imagined it to be.
But I feel better about it than I ever thought I would. To reach 90 having had a good life,
no sickness and die in ones sleep from old age and no regrets is cause for celebration.
Shifting back from sadness to sunny memories of fish fries, she went on:
I can still remember how proud I was as a kid to learn how to take my fork and go up
the spine of a freshly fried fish, still steaming, filet it and dab it into some homemade
goush; an equal mix of catsup and mayonnaise. It was so good, my sisters and I would
turn on Elvis Presley and do the mash potato. It became a regular theme.
Im sad that I never got down to Albertville to meet Uncle Joe in person. Peggys tales will have
to suffice. That and the taste of this not-particularly-fancy but darned-good fried whole catfish.
If youre into fish, give it a shot next time youre in, and make a toast to Uncle Joe. I make one in
my mind every time one of great looking catfish platters goes out to a table.

Francois Vecchios

3 Rules About
Eating
Cured
Hams
(Plus One Of My Own)
Francois Vecchio is one of the most knowledgeable
(and nicest) folks in the world when it comes
to the subject of cured meats of any sort.
He happened to share this list with me a
while back, and Ive found it very helpful in assisting everyone I know to gain
more enjoyment out of eating cured hams
and salumi of all sorts. Although #1 and #2
were long familiar to me, #3, although
incredibly obvious once he said it, was
something Id never thought of. Well call
these Francois 3 Rules Not To Break When
It Comes to Serving Cured Ham. Being more proper and of Swiss-Italian origin, he
calls them, reprehensible activities. He brought them up in the context of Prosciutto
di Parma but theyre totally true for good cured hams (with bad cured hams, its not
really worth worrying about.) So . . . if you want to get the most out of your investment in any cured ham (and who doesnt want to get a good return on investment
these days!)Prosciutto di Parma, Jamon Serrano, acorn fed (bellota) Iberico ham
from Spain, Herb Eckhouses, Newsoms or Edwards Country Hams, etc.dont do this
stuff, ok?!

1. Dont trim the fat off the Prosciutto

Francois and every other European ham aficionado will tell you the same thing. The
fat isnt a bad thingits THE most prized part of the product. I always come back to
the story of one ham maker in Spain who was showing me how to trim a ham. You
do remove the fat on the very exterior of the ham, which has yellowed and turned
slightly rancid. But thats itthe rest of the fat is to be left alone because that is, of
course, where the best of the flavor is at! If you take away the fat, the Spaniard said,
smiling (sort of) I will have to kill you! I know this is a bit like pushing dark crustsit
runs so counter to most peoples mindset that not everyone is going to be receptive.
And of course we dont ever want to lecture a guest or come across as preachy about
this stuff so we need to say it gently, or better still, in the right setting with humor. But
really, the fat is where its at. I guess, now that Im thinking about it, its akin to cutting
the crusts off the Farm Bread; not inherently evil but sort of misses the mark in terms
of getting the full eating experience.

2. Dont hold sliced Prosciutto

for any time in your fridge.

I guess the model for ham buying would more akin to buying fresh fish than to aged
cheese. While cured ham wont go bad in a day (it really wont likely literally go bad
for weeks or even months), good cured ham is definitely more something youd want
to eat the day you buy it, maybe at most the day after. Once the ham has been cut its
exposed to the air, it starts to lose aromatics and flavor. Nothing inherently evil about
it, its just if youre going to spend good money to get really good ham, why not eat it
at its best? With that in mind, I encourage you to just buy a little bit at a timeeven an
ounce or two at time is fineand then come back and buy a bit more.

3. Never wrap Prosciutto around melon

This is the one of Francois rules that got my attention. It makes perfect scientific
sense but since I dont really have a science mind, I just never thought about it. But
once Francois put it in my mind a few months ago Ive started to spread the good
word. And this column will, I hope, help to do that. So heres the dealif you wrap
cured ham around slices of melon (the way they do in all those fancy food magazine
photos) the water in the fruit will naturally pull the salt out of the ham. Which completely degrades the careful curing done by the ham maker and throws the flavor totally out of balance. That doesnt mean that ham and melon (or figs or whatever) dont
go well togetherthey certainly do. Just, as Francois says, Just use both handsone
for the Prosciutto, and use the other hand to pick melon, pear, grape or fig bites. And
he adds, Drop all for a wash of sweet Orvieto!
To Francois list Im adding a fourth point:

4. Always eat cured ham

at room temperature

When it comes to serving cured ham follow the same

guidelines as you would with cheeseget the ham to
room temperature before you take a bite. If you doubt
the value of this small step, taste a piece of the same
ham right out of the refrigerator and another thats at
about 65F. I think youll find that the former is missing about 65% of the flavor. Since
the cost to the consumer is the same in each instance, its strongly in everyones interest to serve at the warmer temperature. It wont fix the economy overnight but it is a
way to increase value significantly without adding cost in the least.

ISSUE # 251

JUL-AUG 2015

SHARING ZINGERMANS
UNIQUE APPROACH
TO BUSINESS

FROM ANN ARBOR TO ADDIS ABABA

resources play in our success and were humbled by the honor
of being able to contribute to such great work. What follows
is a distillation of that conversation that could have gone on
for days.
_____________________________________________________
Gauri: What were you doing in Ethiopia?
Ari: We were teaching ZingTrain content in collaboration with
the Center for International Reproductive Health Training
(CIRHT) and the Center of African Leadership Studies (CALS).
We did 3 sessions at St. Paul's Hospital Millennium Medical
College-SPHMMC and one session for the directors of all
the Ethiopian government ministriesfrom Agriculture to
Transport to Health.

In May, ZingTrain had the privilege of being invited to teach in

Ethiopia. And were not using the word privilege lightly here.
Dr. Senait Fisseha is an inspiring and inspired doctor. Among
the many roles Dr. Fisseha plays at the University of Michigan
is the Executive Director of the Center for International
Reproductive Health Training (CIRHT). And it was in that capacity that she asked ZingTrain to be part of the life-changing work
she is doing in her native Ethiopia. To quote from a University
of Michigan press releases:
Dr. Fisseha has learned that well-trained OB-GYNs
work as leaders in the health system and generate
positive public health impacts including increased family planning provision, better pregnancy management,
more facility-based deliveries, and better surgical
outcomes.
Our center will help empower women to make their
own decisions about their own reproductive health,
thereby choosing whether and when to start a family.
Our ultimate goal is to help train future generations of
capable and competent health care providers in many
parts of Africa and South Asia who can deliver com-

When we presented Visioning, they

said the same things people say here.
It changed my life. Nothing will ever
be the same again. I cant believe I
got this far without it. I can use it for
anythingeven my personal life.
prehensive reproductive health services, and also be
advocates for the safest and best healthcare possible at
every stage of a womans life.
Today, our center begins its new role in the developing world as we work with our partners in Ethiopia
to ensure that incoming doctors, midwives and other
health professionals are equipped to provide comprehensive reproductive health care that will save womens lives, says Dr. Fisseha.
Our contribution to Senaits amazing work was to share our
thoughts on Leadership, Change, and Organizational Culture
with the visionary and determined healthcare professionals
she works with in Africa. It is our hope that we contributed in
some small way to their massive and much needed undertaking.
I interviewed Ari and ZingTrains Ann Lofgren who traveled
to Ethiopia to teach. It was clear to me as we spoke that our
conversation could have gone on for days. They were teeming
with recognitions and realizations that came from this amazing opportunity. They saw how cultural differences play a role
when you are training in a different nation, and came to understand the challenge in translating our values and techniques
across that difference. They recognized the role that access to

ISSUE # 251

JUL-AUG 2015

On Day 1 we taught Zingermans 12 Natural Laws of Business [for

more on the Natural Laws check out our pamphlet series on
the next page] to about 35 members of the St. Pauls Leadership
team. On Day 2 we did 2 sessions on Servant Leadershipone
for all the head nurses and the second for members of the
hospital administration. What we presented to the directors
of the ministries was a mix of the 12 Natural Laws and Servant
Leadership.
Gauri: How were those training topics chosen?
Ari: Well, the answer begins a while ago. Teddy Araya, who
founded and runs the Center for African Leadership Studies,
came to the U.S. as a part of his work with the University of
Michigan. This was about a year and a half ago. He attended
my ZingTrain Speaker Series session on Creating Creativity and
after the session we got to talking and Teddy said to me, One
day I will get you to Ethiopia. And he did.
Teddy teaches Leadership and has been working with the
cohort at the hospital on Leadership. He is an incredible
teacher and trainerhe practically co-taught the session with
me. And hes doing great work with the team at St. Pauls
Hospital. Recognizing that the team he has been working with
has not had the opportunity for extensive Leadership training,
Teddy wanted to widen the range of Leadership ideas and concepts that they were being exposed to, he wanted to bring in a
new perspective. And thats the role we were playing.
Teddy is very committed to serviceboth internal service that
co-workers give each other and external service to customers.
The Ethiopian economy is booming and Teddy believes that for
it to keep growing in a meaningful way, the next focus has to
be on Service. Being a visionary, he is also very bought into the
idea of Visioning and how we apply it to projects of all scales.
Thats how Zingermans 12 Natural Laws of Business became
part of the training we delivered. Because they touch on everything from Visioning to Service to Organizational Change.
Ann: I would reinforce that an important aspect for Teddy was
to bring in someone from the outside because people listen
and accept differently when they hear a fresh perspective from
what theyve been hearing over the years.
Gauri: What resonated the most with your audience?
Ann: Going in we were just not sure how our ideas would
translate across culture and language. We know that the way
we use Visioning here at Zingermans is a pretty radical thing,
Even when we teach it here in the US, with no cultural or language differences, we present the idea, we talk about how we
do it, we set it all up and then we kind of hold our breath and
wait.
We did the same at St. Pauls. Ari explained it to them. Teddy
translated it into Amharic and helped with some of the cultural
differences. And then we held our breath and waited, unsure
that it was going to work at all.
But it did! Visioning was definitely what resonated with the
group the most.
Yemisratch Abeje is a lovely woman who was in our training
session on Day 1. On Day 2 she stood up and said to the team,
Yesterday changed everything. And then she explained what
she meant. She explained Visioning to her team. It was all in
Amharic and we couldnt understand a word she was saying
but we all had goosebumps. She was almost crying. We were
almost crying.

Ari: That moment really reinforced the statistic that over 90%
of what we hear and learn is not the words. It really was pretty
great when we presented Visioning, they said the same things
people say here. It changed my life. Nothing will ever be the
same again. I cant believe I got this far without it. I can use
it for anythingeven my personal life.
Gauri: What resonated the least? What was hard to translate? Where did you have to change how we typically teach
something?
Ari: The hardest thingand it wasnt that different from teaching in Slovakiais that the audience all speak English but they
understand it better than they speak it. Learning new ideas in a
group is awkward anywhere. Learning in a language that is not
the language you speak in is more so. And on our end, teaching
in a culture that is not our culture is challenging. Metaphors
dont translate well. Youre concerned about being respectful
in a culture you dont understand, even if you studied it. And
the humor, the humor doesnt translate well!
Ann: The way we introduce the Zingermans 12 Natural Laws of
Business is by talking about the Energy Crisis in the American
workplace. The Energy Crisis was a challenging idea to convey.
The great thing was that when they got it they totally got it but
we had to go about it a different way.

Yemisratch Abeje explained

Visioning to her team. It was all in
Amharic and we couldnt understand
a word she was saying but we all
had goosebumps. She was almost
crying. We were almost crying.
Ari: Theres also this. In any place that has a lot of poverty, the
notion of Energy Crises and choosing to do good work is hard
to translate because the opportunity for people to create good
work for themselves is much smaller. Sheer necessity plays a
much bigger role in your choice of work. Our support systems,
our opportunities, our advantages here are just so much more
significant. And consequently you find a lot of good energy
being directed at the infrastructure rather than creating good
work.
Ann: I think that despite the lack of resources, despite the
language barrier, despite the cultural challenge, what came
through to us was their determination.
They truly appreciated the opportunity to be at the training.
Because their resources are limited, I sensed that they appreciated the opportunity far more than their American counterparts might have. And that was big. That made what they were
hearing even more important and it is clear to me that they are
going to do something about it!
Ari: The truth is that they are trying to change the face of
healthcare in Ethiopia. Senait is an awe-inspiring person,
a testimony to the what one single person can achieve with
vision and determination and drive. As I was prepping to teach
the Natural Laws, the obvious dawned on me. Senait is a living example of all the Natural Laws. She is living in harmony
with all of them. She provides Vision. She does the hard work
no one else wants to do. She envisions and values and brings
together the contributions of really diverse resources. Under
her leadership, they are clearly building a cathedral, not just
laying stone. They are changing the quality and focus of healthcare in terms of both content and attitude. They are trying to
treat patients with respect and competence.
And that is what we were contributing to.

2015-2016

TRAINING SCHEDULE
August
17-18
24-25
31-1

The Art of Giving Great Service

Creating a Vision of Greatness
Leading With Zing!

September
17-18
28-29

Managing Ourselves
Bottom-Line Training

October
5-6
19-20

Creating a Vision of Greatness

Open Book Management

November
9-10
16-17

Working With Zing!

The Zingermans Experience

December
3-4
10-11

Leading With Zing!

The Art of Giving Great Service

January
18-19
25-26

Open Book Management

Creating a Vision of Greatness

THE POWER
OF PAMPHLETS
or small booklets, big ideas

We all have a special place or two. You know, those semisecret spots that we return to now and again to reconnect with meaningful experiences in our past. For me, the
Labadie Collection, up on the 7th floor of the University
of Michigans Graduate Library, is one of those spotsmy
secret garden of anarchist intellectual activity. Back in my
student days, I used to spend a fair bit of time sitting quietly
at the long wooden tables there, pencil in hand (no pens
are allowed), looking lovingly through the countrys leading
collection of anarchist and other radical writings.
I was particularly drawn to the old pamphlets: small booklets put out a century or so ago to convey the views of anarchist writers like Emma Goldman, Peter Kropotkin, and Jo
Labadie, the man who donated the original contents of this
special collection. There are over 30,000 pamphlets in the
archive (along with many thousands of books, posters, and
other printed materials). Back at the turn of the 20th century, pamphlets served much the same role in society that
the Internet does today. They gave writers a way to share
strongly held views, quickly and at low cost, with a large
number of people, many of whom had neither the time nor
the means to buy an entire book.
In the spirit of those anarchist publications that I love so much, weve decided to print the individual
Secrets from the Zingermans Guide to Good Leading series as pamphlet-sized publications. While of
course I love it when you buy a whole book, Im honored to make the essays available in this form. Though
these booklets are small, I hope the ideas inside provoke big thoughts for you as you read in the same way
that Emma Goldman and her compatriots did a century or so ago.

HERE ARE THE FIRST PAMPHLETS

COMING OUT FROM ZINGERMANS PRESS:

February
1-2
15-16
29-1

I dont read that many business tomes, but I

have to say that reading the Zingermans Guides

The Art of Giving Great Service

Bottom-Line Training
Leading With Zing!

has proven to be an invaluable aid in running

Serious Eats. Ed Levine

SECRET #9

March
7-8
21-22
31-1

The Zingermans Experience

Open Book Management
Managing Ourselves

April
11-12
18-19

Creating a Vision of Greatness

Bottom-Line Training

May
2-3
16-17
23-24

The Art of Giving Great Service

Working With Zing!
Leading With Zing!

The recipe that weve used here at Zingermans

for over twenty years and taught to thousands
around the country and the world.

SECRET #19

The Zingermans Experience

Open Book Management

Fixing the Energy Crisis

in the American Workplace

SECRET #1

How working in violation of the Natural Laws

of Business has created an energy crisis in the
workplace and what we can do to help restore
the natural human energy, creativity and intelligence of everyone in our organizations.

The Twelve Natural Laws of Business

The keys to running your organization in harmony with human nature.

SECRET #6

Revisiting the Power of Visioning

An in-depth look at just how amazingly powerful
the Zingermans visioning process can be.

SECRET #7

Writing a Vision of Greatness

The basics of our approach to vision writing,
including the four elements of an effective
vision at Zingermans.

June
6-7
13-14

An 8-Step Recipe for

Writing a Vision of Greatness

I bought multiple sets of pamphlets for my

staff. They are a great way to learn about some

SECRET #29

Twelve Tenets of Anarcho-Capitalism

A look at my views on how the tenets of
anarchist thought can be put to work in the
world of progressive business.

SECRET #35

The Power of Personal Visioning

An in-depth essay on how to take Zingermans
approach to visioning and put it to work to help
you create the life you want to lead.

of the most important topics that Ari teaches.

VISIT WWW.ZINGTRAIN.COM

or call 734.930.1919 for more information

Patrick Hoban, Probility Physical Therapy

Pamphlets in the series are available at Zingermans Roadhouse, Coffee Co., and ZingTrain
or order online from zingermanspress.com or zingtrain.com

ISSUE # 251

JUL-AUG 2015

BOOK A SPOT AT ANY ZINGERMANS EVENT

3723 Plaza Drive

734 929 0500
zingermanscreamery.com

Cheese Classes, Tastings & Tours!

Our events are intimate affairs where our cheesemakers and cheesemongers share their passion for great
cheese and great cheesemaking. We hold these classes right next to where we make our cheese and gelato, and
sometimes bring in our favorite food makers from around the area to share their stories with you. To get the
inside scoop on all of our events, sign up for our e-news at zingermanscommunity.com/e-news.

FIRST SUNDAY TOUR

WHITE WINE & CHEESE PAIRINGS

Join our cheese and gelato makers on an hour long adventure of how we transform local milk into delicious cheese
and gelato. Observe Mozzarella stretching and experience
truly fresh gelato, as well as taste some of our cows milk
and goats milk cheeses while learning directly from the
makers. After the tour, make time for tasting our selection
of American cheeses and provisions, as well as house made
gelatos and sorbets in our cheese shop.

Join us as we explore the beautiful variety of white wines

produced in our great state of Michigan! From light, dry,
crisp Pinots to sweet, full-bodied Gewrtztraminers, we will
taste through some of our top white wine picks and pair
them up with cheeses from the shop.

CELEBRATING
THE FARMERS MARKETS!

You might not think of tea as being a typical pairing for a

slice of cheese, but the two can be quite good together.
Much like wine, certain teas contain tannins that are
released once the tea leaves are exposed to
hot water, giving it a full-bodied taste and
making it a perfect accompaniment to cheese.
Our cheesemongers have teamed up
with the experts next door at the
Zingermans Coffee Co. to choose
some of our favorite teas sourced
from Rishi Tea and picked some
perfect cheeses to pair up that will
make you look at tea time in a
whole new way!

Sunday, July 5 AND August 2 2pm $10

Friday, July 10 6-8pm $30

This tasting highlights the best of the Farmers Markets produce, simply prepared and combined with cheeses we love!
Fresh herb goat cheese, green salads with all the fixins,
and with any luck, the first luscious heirloom tomatoes of
the season! Through the evening well feature items from
producers that weve met through the markets and discover
delicious ways to combine fresh flavors with your favorite
cheeses, and well end with a sweet treat of seasonal gelato
made just for the tasting!

Friday, July 24 6-8pm $35

TEA TIME WITH A TWIST!

Friday, August 7 6-8pm $30

LAGER LOVE

Friday, August 21 6-8pm $35

Americas beer sweetheartlagers! From crisp, clean and
pale to malty, roasty and dark, this family of beers represents the most ubiquitous style of beer consumed in the
U.S. Cool fermentation is the hallmark of lagers which
hail originally from Germany & Eastern Europe. We will
gather up some tasty ambassadors of this style and choose
cheeses and treats from the shop that highlight the great
diversity of lagers!

Hands-on Baking Classes

3723 Plaza Drive 734.761.7255

bakewithzing.com

BAKE! is our hands-on teaching bakery in Ann Arbor, tucked between

Zingermans Bakehouse and Creamery. At BAKE! we share our knowledge and
love of baking with the home baker community, seeking to preserve baking
traditions and inspire new ones. We offer dozens of different bread, pastry and
cake classes in our very own teaching kitchens. All of us at the Bakehouse know
the joy and excitement of baking something really good and sharing it with
friends when its hot out of the oven. Youll leave BAKE! with the food you made
in class and the inspiration and skills to bake at home!

PICNIC DESSERTS

Saturday, July 11, 8am-12pm $125

Well make tender Bakehouse sweet cream biscuits, golden
vanilla pound cake and pavlova, a crisp sweet meringue. What
do they have in common? Theyre all delicious vehicles for your
pick of ripe summer fruit and whipped cream. These simple and
scrumptious treats are real crowd pleasers. Once word gets out
about the desserts youre making, summer picnics and barbecues might turn in to block parties. Youll leave BAKE! with our
recipes, the knowledge to recreate them at home, all the food
you made in class and great coupons.

GERMAN BREADS

Come and learn three breads our friends from Dredner Backhaus
taught us: Dinkelbrot, a spelt bread and sunflower loaf;
Wurzelbrot, a rye and wheat baguette; and Vinschgauer, a savory
seasoned mountain roll delicious with ham and cheese. Youll
leave BAKE! with our recipes, the knowledge to recreate them at
home, 2 baguettes, 2 loaves, 6 large rolls, and great coupons.

SOFT PRETZELS

CHOCOLATE FIX

Calling all chocoholics! Lets bake some of our favorite treat

recipes for your daily chocolate fix: cream-filled chocolate
whoopie pies, rugelach filled with chocolate ganache, and heavenly cheesecake brownies. Its gonna be chocolate-covered fun.
Youll leave BAKE! with our recipes, the knowledge to recreate
them at home, all the food you made in class, and great coupons.

DINNER SERIES: BRITISH ISLES

Sunday, August 16th, 1-5pm $125

Friday, July 31, 1-4pm

OR Wednesday, August 19, 6-9pm $75
Learn the secrets to traditional German-style soft pretzels
made with lard and dipped in lye. We will teach you how to
form the crossed pretzel shape and tell you the story of why a
monk decided to have this food be in prayer. Youll also shape
the stick or baguette we make at the Bakehouse. These simple
but tasty rolls are sure to become a family favorite. Well also
answer the burning question: Are these dipped in the same lye
used to make soap? Well end class tasting some warm pretzels
with a little mustard and Zingermans Creamery pimento cheese.
Youll leave BAKE! with our recipe, the knowledge to recreate it
at home, a dozen pretzels you made in class and great coupons.

ISSUE # 251

Zingermans Deli tastings are designed to give you

an insiders view of the foods that weve searched
the world for. Youll often meet the folks who
make it and leave with a mouthful of flavor and a
new understanding of everything from olive oil to
sardines, cheese to chocolate.

Wednesday, August 12th, 5:30-9:30pm $125

Friday, July 24, 1:30-5:30pm $100

422 Detroit Street 734.663.3400

www.zingermansdeli.com

JUL-AUG 2015

Our Guinness Beef Stew is so rich and flavorful that Amy says,
Ive since stopped making my familys stew recipe. Beware this
might happen to you too! To sop up the stewy sauce well make
soft and tasty Bapsa dreamy little dinner roll. Need a little
something for dessert? Lets make classic shortbread cookies.
Youll leave BAKE! with our recipes, the knowledge to recreate
them at home, dinner for four and great coupons.

Find more classes & register at bakewithzing.com

or events.zingermanscommunity.com.
Sign up for our e-news to get the early word
about our classes.

11TH ANNUAL PIAZZA

ZINGERMANZA
Sat. Aug 15 and Sun. Aug. 16
11am to 3pm on the Deli Patio

FREE to attend
Our annual August tradition of transforming the
Delis patio into an Italian Street Food Fest is one
of the highlights of the year. There will be good
food, good music, good demos, good deals and good
company. New this year is a kids pasta tasting. Its an
event not to be missed!

Come watch us:

12:00pm-Crack 80# wheels of Parmigiano Reggiano
cheese into 1# sellable chunks.
1:00pm-Turn curd into delectable fresh mozzarella
balls sold by the 0.5#

AT EVENTS.ZINGERMANSCOMMUNITY.COM

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Observatory Dr.

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Washington St.
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2501 Jackson Ave. 734.663.FOOD

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3711 Plaza Dr. 3723 Plaza Dr. 3711 Plaza Dr.

734.277.1922 734.761.7255 734.277.1922

3723 Plaza Dr. 3723 Plaza Dr. 3728 Plaza Dr.

734.929.6060 734.929.0500 734.277.1922

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610 Phoenix Dr. Phoenix

Dr.
888.636.8162

Ellsworth

Varsity Dr.

Price includes food,tax and gratuity. Beverage additional.

One of our favorite dinners of the summer, this year's BBQ dinner will celebrate Chef Alex's favorite dishes from across the
country, focusing on his West Coast upbringing. Highlights from
the menu include Grilled Figs and Country Ham, Spicy Smoked
Almonds, Cedar Planked Salmon and a Beef Brisket Carving
Station.

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W. Huron St.

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Tuesday, July 7th, 2015 7:00 pm $70 a person,

FulLer
Park

Ann St.

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son Ave

Sunday, August 16 or
Sunday, August 23 1-3pm $30

ROADHOUSE BBQ DINNER

N. State St.

Mi

Kingsley St.

Catherine St.

Exit
172

BREWING METHODS

Zingermans Roadhouse hosts regular special dinners that

highlight old favorites, new finds, celebrated chefs and
traditional American foodways. Our dinners are familystyle affairs that deliver really good food with a little
history on the side.

ler

St.
akes

8540 Island Lake Road

Dexter, MI
734-619-8100

Sample coffees from Africa, Central and South America, and the
Asia-Pacific. We will taste and evaluate these coffees with the
techniques and tools used by professional tasters. This class is
an eye-opening introduction to the world of coffee.

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Sunday, July 26 or
Sunday, September 6 1-3pm $30.00

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Fifth Ave.

Fourth Ave.

Ann Arbor, MI

COMPARATIVE CUPPING

2501 Jackson Road 734.663.3663

www.zingermansroadhouse.com

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Whether were pulling a shot for you in our caf on Plaza

Drive or sending you off with a bag of fresh roasted beans,
our passion is to source, roast and brew great coffee. Our
classes are designed for the coffee novice and nerd alike
and aim to help everyone learn about everything it takes
to turn a great bean into a great cup of coffee.

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M-14

3723 Plaza Drive

734.929.6060
zingermanscoffee.com

Learn the keys to successful coffee brewing using a wide variety

of brewing methods from filter drip to syphon pot. We will take
a single coffee and brew it 6 to 8 different ways, each producing a unique taste. Well learn the proper proportions and
technique for each and discuss the merits and differences of
each style.

Po

Map of Zingermans
Community of Businesses

Ellsworth

Farm Tours, Special Dinners and Classes

You dont have to be part of a big corporate event or lavish wedding to enjoy
Cornman Farms (although we certainly host those, too!) Throughout the year we host numerous tours,
dinners, classes and more that allow people to experience our unique event space in Dexter, MI.

8540 Island Lake Road, Dexter 734.619.8100 cornmanfarms.com

COCKTAIL CLASS: AN EVENING

WITH ABSINTHE

COCKTAIL CLASS: FARM TO GLASS

Wednesday, August 19 7-9:30pm $65

Thursday, July 16 7-9:30pm $75

youll make and enjoy three cocktails and munch on snacks from
our farmhouse kitchen
Absinthe is an anise-flavored herbal spirit with a long and
tortured history. Strongly herb-flavored and often very high
in alcohol, this spirit known as the green fairy was the drink
of choice among the Bohemian set in Paris around the turn
of the 20th century. Wrongly labeled as both hallucinogenic
and the cause of many social ills, absinthe was subsequently
banned in much of Europe and the United States for roughly
a century. Recent changes in legislation on both sides of the
pond have resurrected this intense yet delectable liquor.
This evening we will discuss the history of absinthe (and the
wormwood it contains) while crafting three classic cocktails
created around the previously-maligned spirit: the Asylum, the
Death in the Afternoon, and the Corpse Reviver #2. The class
includes instruction and discussion, three cocktails, tasty
snacks prepared in the farmhouse kitchen, and recipes.

EDUCATIONAL TOUR:
WELCOME TO CORNMAN FARMS
Wednesday, June 29
OR Tuesday, August 25 6-7:30pm $20

Our Welcome to Cornman Farms Tour is an idyllic and

dynamic 90 minute introduction to the rich history, agricultural projects and humane raising of animals. Join us for a
look at our vegetable and herb gardens, goat milking operation and historic restored Farmhouse and Barnand enjoy a
meet-and-greet with our visionary Managing Partner, Kieron
Hales. Well even throw in a taste of one of our seasonal
vegetables!

youll make and enjoy three cocktails and munch on snacks from
our farmhouse kitchen
Come join us as we celebrate the peak of the growing season,
with cocktails! Zingermans Cornman Farms is a true working farm on Island Lake Road in Dexter. When not tending
to the goats, sheep, pigs, and cows, the farmers and staff use
traditional, sustainable farming methods to grow an incredible variety of organic heirloom produce, just yards away
from the gorgeously restored centuries-old Barn where this
event will be held. At this cocktail class we will highlight the
fresh taste of summer on the farm, taking advantage of the
delicious abundance of freshly-harvested produce grown
just across the field. We will use heirloom tomatoes, freshlyplucked herbs, and other farm offerings in three special
craft cocktails, all while enjoying fresh-from-the-farm fare
prepared by Cornman Farms talented culinary team. We will
discuss why these ingredients are so special, as well as the
history and stories behind the cocktails well be exploring this
evening. Guests will leave with recipes and the know-how to
confidently recreate all the featured drinks at home.

ISSUE # 251

JUL-AUG 2015

THE FEED
The Secret Life of Amazing Food at Zingermans

COOPS HOT FUDGE

July

Silas Stand Up Routine

Chock full of chunks of local, organic eggs from Grazing Fields
Co-op, our egg salad seeks to redefine the potential bad rep that
plain ol picnic foods hold into something spectacular. We mix
hard boiled eggs together with mayo, the best yellow mustard in
the country, and the zippy pickleiades relish from our pals at the
Brinery.
Egg salad is stacked up on toasted bakehouse white bread, with
freshly sliced tomatoes and lettuce. Silas dad (Sandwich Line
Cook Mike V.) highly recommends you add bacon, for a breakfasty
sandwich, any time of the day!

$9.99

August

The First Impression!

*Design A Sandwich Auction Winner

to Benefit the Ronald McDonald House!*
Sylvia Zannis and her family set to work to craft a sandwich that
was based off their favorite Deli ingredients, but combined in
a way they thought would be a different, delicious spin on our
current sandwiches! Also designed to celebrate the University
of Michigan Dental School graduating class of 2015, and the tremendous accomplishments of the Ronald McDonald house in the
community.
Roasted turkey is enlivened when paired with peppery pastrami.
We add provolone, garlic mayo and sliced tomato, and serve
on toasted sourdough bread. Its a magnanimous summertime
sandwich!

$14.99

A friend and I went to the grocery one evening in search

of ice cream and hot fudge. The ice cream part was easy;
we picked a good one right away. The chocolate sauce was
another story. We spent a lot of time reading all of the
ingredient lists looking for the one with the fewest (and
most pronounceable) ingredients. The one we finally settled on was okay, but nothing to write home about.
When I asked Marc Cooperwho goes by Coopwhat he
was looking for when he created his hot fudge , he told me
he wanted something all natural. Theres no legal definition of all natural but Coops personal definition is that
there are no chemicals used in any part of production, and
all of the ingredients are processed as gently as possible.

Let's start with the chocolate.

Cocoa powder is simply ground up, roasted cacao beans
with most of the fat (in the form of cocoa butter) removed.
To get natural cocoa powder, thats all there is to it. The
flavor ends up being very bitter and pretty acidic, much
like cocoa beans themselves. However, around 90% of
all cocoa used today is alkalized (also sometimes called
Dutch processed, because it was invented by a Dutch guy).
Alkalized cocoa has been treated with chemicals to make
the cocoa less acidic. It has a milder flavor and darker
color. Alkalization also makes cocoa more soluble, so its
easier to mix it into liquids, making it especially popular
for use in ice cream and with dairy products.
Coop uses a natural, unalkalized cocoa powder to avoid
that chemical processing. Each new harvest of cacao beans
is a little different from the one before due to weather and
processing conditions, so periodically hell test out new
cocoas to make sure hes got one that gives the rich, complex, chocolatey flavor he wants. Hes opted for a cacao
from Ivory Coast which is processed into cocoa powder in
Holland. When he tried making his hot fudge with cocoas
from Central and South America a few months back, he
found it created a more fruity flavor that didnt have the
richness he wanted.

Besides the chocolate,

there are only four other ingredients.

July

August

Everyone's favorite tuna is

back, and it's bigger than ever!
Fresh, meaty and delicious,
this line-caught classic from
The Ortiz Family in Spain is on
sale in 12-tin cases. Stop by for
a taste and see why everyone
will be stocking up on what's
sure to become an all-time
favorite!

Whether you get them packed

in extra virgin olive oil or in a
'salsa piccante', the recipe for
which is known only by the
first born of the family, these
anchovies will enhance your
culinary life in ways you've
never imagined. Cook them
down with butter and herbs to
drizzle over pasta, or lay them
across slices of freshly baked
bread rubbed with raw garlic.

Cases of Ortiz
Rizzoli
Bonito Del Norte Anchovies

$48.00 (reg. $72.00)

$8.00 (req $11.99)

The first two are cream and butter. It took Coop a while to
find the dairy products he wanted. Most commercial dairies these days pack the cows in tightly and then either feed
them antibiotics to prevent disease or ultra pasteurize the
milk to kill off any pathogens. (Take a look the next time
you're picking up milk at the grocery; nearly all organic
milk, which comes from cows that havent received preventative antibiotics, is ultra pasteurized.) Ultra pasteurization is different from regular pasteurization in that it
heats up the milk much hotter for a shorter period of time.
The process can make the milk shelf stable for months, but
it changes the flavor and texture of milk. In particular, it
can alter the whey proteins that give milk its creaminess,
requiring the addition of congealing agents like guar gum
or carrageenan to achieve the original texture. Coop uses
cream and butter from a local Massachusetts dairy that
pasteurizes more gently. There are no congealing agents,
nothing added, nothing removed.
The last two ingredients are white cane sugar and brown
cane sugar (which is actually just white sugar with some
molasses mixed back in). Coop prefers to use cane sugar
rather than beet sugar since all beet sugar in the US is GMO.
Hes also careful to only use sugar that is processed in the

For over 30 years, Zingermans has

brought the best and most flavorful
foods of the world home to
America. Now, Zingermans can
take you to the source! To have
an artisan food maker invite you
into their life, share their passion and
traditions, then feed you the food you only
read about in culinary journals this is something few
people get to experience in their lifetime.

www.zingermansfoodtours.com 888-316-2736
foodtours@zingermans.com

10

ISSUE # 251

JUL-AUG 2015

We go behind the scenes in beautiful regions of the world

that have really great traditional food. We visit producers
of artisanal foods in their homes and workshops. They

US because a lot of the cane

sugar processed in other
countries is treated with
charred cow bones (which
help to take out the natural
tan color of sugar to make
it snowy white; Americanprocessed cane sugar uses
charcoal instead). Most
chocolate sauces contain
corn syrup (either instead
of or in addition to sugar)
which helps to keep them
from recrystallizing and
becoming grainy; Coop
uses the molasses in the
brown sugar to achieve
this effect.

Coop is a poster child for small batch production.

A while back, one of those TV shows about how things are
made gave Coop a call. They were interested in featuring
his hot fudge production in an episode. They like to see
a lot of production lines and machinery, Coop told me.
When I told them all I have is two vats that each produce about four gallons
of hot fudge at a time,
Coops Hot Fudge is
they decided not to come
on
sale through July
and film us. Coop and
his three employees pro31 at Zingerman's
duce three or four double
Delicatessen and
batches of fudge per day,
zingermans.com. For
four days a weekthat
adds up to about 1,200
more on our annual
jars weekly. On the side
Summer Sale
of each jar youll find the
see page 1
hand-written initials of the
person who made that particular batch.
Coops hot fudge business was actually an off-shoot of the
ice cream shop he opened a few decades ago. I wanted to
be able to keep my staff busy in the off-season, Coop told
me, so he started playing around with a hot fudge recipe.
His plan worked, and the hot fudge became so popular
that about five years ago the fudge production split off
from the ice cream shop to become its own business.

And how does it taste?

Coops hot fudge is thick, luscious, intensely chocolatey.
Its insanely good heated upmicrowave the whole jar
or a smaller bowlful for a minute or less and youre good
to go. And then what to drizzle it on? Our hot fudge will
make any ice cream better, Coop told me proudly. Then
he added, perhaps a bit apologetically, even Zingermans
gelato.
There are a lot of products we sell that Id say you could
eat on a spoon out of the jar. This one tops that list; I never
put the spoon in the sink without licking it first. Ive drizzled it over coffeecake and strawberries. Its killer slathered on toast. Or chocolate covered pancakes?!

Val Neff-Rasmussen writes

The Feed blog at zingermans.com

share their stories and

teach us about the amazing
foods that they make, and
then feed us!

Spain
April 16 - 26, 2016

Tuscany

We keep our group sizes

October 1-10, 2016
small only up to 15 guests
depending on the tour.
Your travel experience will
deposit you home with an understanding of the historical,
cultural, and food uniqueness of the locale, your head full
of the images of the people and places you have visited,
where youve learned about the food and eaten your fill.
&

Zingermans Food Tour Guides

PAUL AND ARIS ADDRESS

AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN COMMENCEMENT - May 2, 2015

This year Zingermans co-founders Paul Saginaw and Ari Weinzweig
were honored to deliver the commencement address at the
University of Michigan graduation. Here are their words of wisdom
for the graduating class of 2015
Paul: When most people think of Zingermans success, they picture a line of people stretching from Detroit St. to Division, a sandwich so big it takes two hands to pick it up. And when you finally
bite into it the Russian dressing rolls down your arms. Reporters
write about our vision, our values, and our marketing skills.
Ari: Theres huge value, of course, to each of those things. But
what very few folks ever ask, what reporters rarely write about,
and what hardly anyone seems to really be all that interested in
is what we believe. While vision, values, quality, customer service,
marketing, and making money are all important, we believe . . .
that what we believe . . . makes a big difference! The beliefs that
we chooseor those we hold, but dont acknowledgewill form
the footprint for everything else that happens in our lives. As
writer Claude Bristol said 75 years ago As individuals think and
believe, so they are.
Paul: To be clear, its not for us to tell you what to do with your
lives once you leave here.
Ari:But we can share with you some of the key beliefs that underlie all that weve done in our organization, beliefs that have laid
the base for us to build a healthy business that provides meaningful employmentto over 700 people. Beliefs that contribute positively to our community in many, many ways. Beliefs about people
and processes that are being adapted in places as far afield as
Australia, Slovakia, and Ethiopia.Beliefs that have helped build a
business that33 years laterwe both stillloveworking in, literally, every single day.Paul?
Paul: I believe its RARELY a good idea to read the comments others make about you on social media, but who can resist? Right after we were named as commencement speakers, I read this post:
WOW, WHOEVER WAS THE FIRST CHOICE MUST HAVE BACKED
OUT. [Laughter.] I laughed, too, but it hit me what an IMMENSE
HONOR and OPPORTUNITY this was. In the interest of reciprocity, I
committed to give to you the BEST of what I have to offer . . . other
than a $16.00 Rueben.
To do that, Class of 2015, mentally pull up your Must Have list for
success and scan it. Really, take it out and give it a good look. Raise
your hand if JOY is at the top of that list? It wasnt on MY list when
I graduated from this fine institution. Joy is not the TYPICAL yardstick of success. Will the bank ask for your JOY QUOTIENT when
you renegotiate your student loans? Not likely. So why would you
want JOY on your list, and what IS it, anyway?
Joy is a feeling so profound that it sits at the top of the human experience chart. Just above love and just below peace and ENLIGHTENMENT. To feel JOY, you dont have to wait until youre old, like us.
I believe you can have it NOW, starting TODAY. HOW? GENEROSITY.
GENEROSITY leads to joy. Its simple and its guaranteed.
Generosity follows the natural law of the harvestyou REAP more
than you SOW. When you GIVE, you get MORE back. Minimally, you
get a joy buzz. Research tells us that generosity kicks off a feel
good hormone in your brain called the helpers high that can
last up to two hours. And its legal, even outside of Ann Arbor.
I am NOT telling you to take a vow of poverty. EARN MONEY, as
much as you like. See the world. Buy a nice car. GET REWARDED for
hard work. Just know that these things dont bring JOY like being
generous does.
Another natural law of generosity is that its SELF-PERPETUATING
just like the yeasty starter the Bakehouse uses to bake zillions of
loaves of Zingermans rye and sourdough breads. What applies to
bread applies to people. The MOTHER STARTER of GENEROSITY is
also passed down through generations. This was proven in a study
by the National Academy of Science where one persons act of generosity inspired others to be generous, spreading to dozens, even
hundreds, of people, known and unknown.
Ive got my OWN proof for you: three true stories from my life illustrating the natural laws of generosity.
Ill begin with MY startermy grandfather, Ben Sherman. We
called him Zadie. Thats Yiddish for grandfather. I think about his
big smile and hearty laugh, how he warmed me with his presence.
I realize now that he was JOYFUL because he EMBODIED GENEROSITY. In my early teens, I worked at his machine shop in a rough
part of Detroit. Frequently, homeless men wandered into the shop
looking for a hand out, and Zadie invited each one to go next door
to Joes Bar and Grille, saying, Get yourself a hot meal and put
it on my tab. Zadie told me two things Ill never forget: Half of
what you have belongs to those who need it, and If youre successful, make the people around you successful. With this wisdom
in mind, Ari and I added the crucial ingredient of generosity into
Zingermans business plan from day one.

My second story has Mrs. Johnnie Mae Seeley as the starter. She
is a tiny, elderly angel in our neighborhood who got the Deli to bag
up our unsold bread and rolls every night for her church to parcel
out. Her generous act inspired Zingermans to found and launch
the nonprofit FOOD GATHERERS in 1988 with a mission to eradicate
hunger in our county. Twenty-seven years later, FOOD GATHERERS
distributes over 6 MILLION POUNDS OF FOOD every year to our
neighbors in need. Everyday I feel profound joy for the work Food
Gatherers does in our community.
My final story demonstrates how Zingermans Community of Businesses, our partnership model based on Zadies advice of making
those around you successful, was put to the test in 2001. Ari and I
had pledged a quarter of a million dollars to build a shiny commercial kitchen inside the countys new homeless shelter. Our funding
was to come from a business venture slated to open at Detroits
new McNamara airport terminal. Several days after 9/11, the airport project folded, and our kitchen funding VANISHED. When I
heard this, I actually had to lie down on the floor of my office for
over an hour. Ari and I had to break the news to all of our Zingermans partners in the wake of the national tragedy. It was agonizing. How were we going to honor our commitment? What happened next would have made Zadie and Mrs. Seeley weep with joy.
Our partners shocked us with their decision to take on the ENTIRE
QUARTER MILLION DOLLARS. I was stunned and overcome with joy.
Our partners had now become the NEXT generation of STARTERS.
Seeded by their generosity, today that kitchen prepares ONE HUNDRED THOUSAND hot meals each year.
So . . . when you leave here today with your Must Have list, I invite
to measure YOUR success NOT so much by what you gain or accomplish for yourself, but rather by what you contribute to others.
I believe practicing GENEROSITY is the way to JOY. Its FREE for the
taking. Or should I say . . . for the GIVING.
Ari? I told them what I believe, what do you believe.
Ari: I believe that active, engaging, interesting learning is very
clearly at the core of a great life. Probably the one thing that this
amazing institutionof which everyone, in this very big emotional
and intellectual house, is a parthas been trained in, more than
any other single thing, is how to learn. The challenge though is
that, when you leave here today, there are no more grades to be
gotten, no more professors to pass judgment. And when theres
no one pressuring us do to it, there are a hundred reasons not
to open a book, not to go to an interesting lecture, not to read
a poem.Working hard at learning doesnt win headlines, but its
clear to me that the people who keep doing it regularly almost always live powerfully positive lives.
I believe that our lives are radically more rewarding when we actively own our choices. I wish Id understood this the day I graduated. Unfortunately it took me another fifteen years to figure it
out. Owning my own choices changed my life. The reality of the
world is thateverything I do, everything you do, is a choice. No
one made us go to school, no one makes us to go work, or read
a book or be kind. No one makes us do anything.We can choose
to be generous, we can choose to care, we can choose to make a
positive difference. Perhaps most powerfully of allif we choose
to pay attentionwe have the power to choose what we believe.
I believe that, although history focuses mostly on the big headlines,
its really the little things that matter most. Your grandmothers hug
today. The notes you took on your favorite book assignment this
year.The small gesture of generosity you did to help someone in
need. A thank-you note to the people who clean the rooms, and
run the phones, and make this university go, so that you and
I could go to class and get grades and graduate. In that sense, I
believe with great strength that everything matters and everyone matters.The people who are least likely to be consulted in a
company, or included in society.The sky. A smile. The stars. Your
mother.This moment.Your dog. The person you walked by on the
stairs on the way in, and the one you walk by again on the way out.
I believe that simple kindness matters more than most people will
admit.That if instead of getting angry at others, we appreciate; that
instead of blaming, we give blessings; that instead of keeping score
we live out the generosity of spirit that Paul just detailed so powerfully. Kindness is free, and kindness counts! We believe what Paul
Hawken wrote: Being a good human being is good business.
I believe thatcontrary to what much of the world would say
hard work can be one of the most rewarding things one ever engages in.Not just any work, but good work. Work you believe in,
work that brings the generosity and joy that Paul just talked about
so beautifully; work that makes a positive difference for you, for
the world; work that matters, work that you care about. Hard work
like that may not get the glamor, but it is almost always exceptionally rewarding.
I believe that perhaps the hardest work we have to undertake is
the work no one else sees, and that no else can ever do for us.
Its the lifelong challenge to manage ourselves effectively, to make

peace with ourselves and turn our natural ability into a positive
and powerful presence in the world. Although it almost never
comes up in post-graduate conversation its at the core of EVERYTHING else we will ever do for the rest of our lives.
I believe that everyoneeveryonein the world is a unique, caring, creative, individual. Walking our own way while still respecting
the world around us is no small feat. Holding our own course can
be uncomfortable, but its essential if were going to truly live lives
that wenot everyone else who has inputreally own. Despite
what higher ups in the hierarchy might tell you, I believe what Rollo May wrote, that The opposite of courage in our society is not
cowardice, its conformity.
It was hard for me to comprehend when I was 21 but I believe, ever
more strongly with each passing day, that every single minute really does matter. Life, when it comes down to it, is very, very short.
There are a thousand reasons to sleep in, to drink another beer,
to put things off til tomorrow or two weeks from Tuesday. But I
believe what author Annie Dillard saidthat, The way we spend
our days is the way we spend our lives. Every minute we spend
worrying, every minute we spend waiting for someone else to improve, is a minute we dont spend doing something meaningful for
the people we care about, for the world, for ourselves.
I believe that going for greatness, greatness as YOUand not everyone else in the worlddefine it, is energizing. I believe that
uniqueness like that is exciting.Empowering. Emma Goldman said
When we cant dream any longer we die. Choosing greatness,
choosing to push your own envelope, to find ways to be more generous, to find more joy, to learn more, study harder, and make a
more positive difference is what leads to a great life.
I believe that one of the best ways to makes our lives into the artistic, positive, amazing existences we want to them to be, is to write
out a vision of what that life will look like when weve successfully
made it a reality. I believe that any one of you who is willing push
pause, and to gently ask the voices in their heads to step aside for
an hour so you can write out that kind of personal vision of greatness, their true dream, can come darned close to making that life a
reality.They may not make the most money, they may not have the
fanciest car, but they will find fulfillment and equally importantly
they will help many others find it as well. The visioning process,
the initial work on which was done here at U of M fifty years ago,
is the single best tool I know to make that happen.And Im happy
though it might take a while if you all take me up on itto meet
with any graduate who wants help with the visioning process. I
believe that anyone who does that work will pretty surely lead an
amazing life.
Most importantly, for todays purposes, I believe in YOUby dint
of the fact that you have done what you have done to earn the
right to be here today, both you and the world know that you have
the intelligence, you have the emotional resilience, you have the
connections, you have the capability, to do great things. To help
make the world a meaningfully better place than it was yesterday.
You have the power. As African American anarchist Ashanti Alston
said: You all can do this. You have the vision. You have the creativity. Do not allow anyone to lock that down.
Paul: Class of 2015, Congratulations. Be generous.
Ari: Be joyful!
Paul: Be great.
Ari: Make a difference!

ISSUE # 251

JUL-AUG 2015

11

Summer grillin
JULY

Now in AwEsome
new PackAGing!

THE CITY GOAT

On sale throughout July @ $6.50ea (reg. $7.99)

MILK: Pasteurized Goat RENNET: Animal Rennet
We make these soft, creamy, fresh goat
cheese rounds with the best milk we can
source from small Michigan goat farmers.
Over the years weve been fortunate enough
to build relationships with some pretty
incredible goat dairies, people who are
passionate about the health and long-term
sustainability of their herds, and this kind
of dedication to the animals really comes
through in the quality of the milk we receive
from them. In order to preserve as much of
the depth of flavor in that awesome milk,
we use low-temperature pasteurization, a
method much gentler than the more prevalent short high-temp pasteurization that a lot
of modern cheesemakers utilize.
After that gentle pasteurization is complete
we allow the goats milk to set overnight,
which draws out even deeper and more
complex flavors, maximizing its intensity.
Once the resulting curds have reached a
perfect consistency we do something a little
different here at the Creameryhand ladling.
Each City Goat is hand ladled into separate
perforated forms, which allow whey to drain
at a consistent rate, and this painstaking and
time-consuming process gives this cheese
an amazing, evolving texture, from light and

airy when very fresh to firm and perfect for

crumbling when more aged.
More recently, we found a great way to
package these cheeses. Back in the day wed
wrap them in translucent deli paper and
set them out to continue draining, since
wrapping them in plastic would lead to a less
desirable texture over time. In our quest to
find the best way to present our cheeses, we
started packaging these tasty goat rounds in
a small plastic container with a sealed top,
The cheese features a very bright, clean, and
slightly citrusy taste that pops in a variety of
presentations.
For an easy appetizer, roll in freshly chopped
rosemary, tarragon, basil, or any fresh herb
you fancy. The citrus notes of this cheese
are a perfect accompaniment to a number
of charcuterie or crudits. Slice a city goat
in half lengthwise, then stuff with roasted
red peppers and pesto. For a Mediterranean
experience, try it with honey and toasted
almonds. When the City Goat is a little older
and firmer, it is wonderful crumbled over
salads or in any rich, tomato-based sauce.

AUGUST

THE MANCHESTER

On sale throughout August @ $12ea (reg. $14.99)

A Super-Rich Jersey Cows Milk Cheese
MILK: Pasteurized Jersey Cow
RENNET: Animal Rennet
The Manchester draws its origins from a
soft-ripened double cream cheese along the
Welsh-English border, but through process differences (both intentional and unintentional)
no longer bears any resemblance to its very
distant cousin. By way of gentle pasteurization
and an extraordinarily slow culturing process,
the Manchester fully embodies the intricate
and sumptuous flavors of the extraordinarily
rich Jersey cows milk we use to make it.
Featuring a thin, wrinkly geotrichum candidum
rind and a luscious, tasty creamline just underneath that rind encompassing a dense, slightly
earthy paste, the Manchester varies from a
fudgelike delight when young to an ooey gooey
decadent treat when aged out past 2 months.
Like other cheeses, Manchester is best served
at room temperature, when its full flavor will
come through. Because its so soft, it will ooze a
bit when its warm. Thats normal. Try it dusted
with light muscovado sugar then baked into
puff pastry and served warm for an excellent
hors doeuvre. Or offer it up in wedges, topped
with toasted almonds, hazelnuts or walnuts. Its
excellent spread on ham sandwiches topped
with caramelized onions (see the recipe for our
Hamchester sandwich).
Zingermans Creamery
Wholesale Manager

12

ISSUE # 251

JUL-AUG 2015

Hamchester Sandwich Recipe

Makes 2

1 tablespoon olive oil,

plus a little bit more to grill
the sandwiches
1/2 pound
sweet Vidalia onion
4 ounces sliced good ham,
like the Prosciutto
Americano from La Quercia

4 ounces
Zingermans Creamery
Manchester round
(sliced thin if its cold,
spread if its warm)

4 slices of San Francisco

Sourdough bread from
Zingermans Bakehouse
2 tablespoons chutney,
optional

Heat the olive oil in a heavy skillet over

moderate heat. Add the onions and saut
until golden (about 25 minutes). Remove
from heat. Place a large nonstick skillet
on the stove over medium high heat.
Using a pastry brush, brush 1 side of 2
slices of bread with olive oil, and place
oiled side down in skillet. Top each slice
with 1 ounce of cheese, 1 ounce of ham,
half of the onions, 1 more ounce ham,
and topped with 1 more ounce of the
cheese. Top each sandwich with another
slice of bread brushed with the oil, oiled
side up. Flip the sandwiches a few times
until the cheese is melted and gooey and
bread is toasty and golden.

Our Summer Grillin menu is perfect for

your backyard party or the first tailgate of
the season! Well do the cooking. You sit
back, relax and enjoy the celebration!

Call 734.663.3400 or go to
zingermanscatering.com to order!

Spice of the month

In the last year weve begun sourcing some incredibly flavorful spices and spice blends
from the de Vienne family in Montreal. Theyve spent three decades traveling, tasting,
studying spice traditions and meeting the people who produce these fantastic spices. The
flavors are so profound theyve caused us to rethink everything we believed about spices!
We asked Marika de Vienne to tell us a little about this summers featured spices:

July

CAJUN SPICE BLEND

The real flavor of the Bayou in a can. We wanted to investigate the culinary affinity
between Quebec and Louisiana, the former cosmopolitan centers of colonial New France.
They were delighted to find that New Orleans cuisine indeed delivered a singular combination of old French cooking, African flavors, and American ingredients. This blend emerged,
after years of testing, from the familys desire to capture the excitement they felt on first
experiencing the great cultural crossroads that is Louisiana.
Cajun blend is an authentic passe-partout, or good for everything. Its delicious on meats,
seafood and poultry, lentil soups, meatloaf and even in pasta sauce. Weve found very
few dishes that are not enhanced by a hint of cajun spices. We use our Spanish Special
Selection Paprikaone of the highest rated paprikas on the market (rated 220 on the ASTA
scale, which typically peaks at 180)for a luxurious, slightly smoky pepper base that is
not too hot. This blend is a mainstay in our daily staff lunches, as the spice base for our
barbecue sauce (which ends up in everything from meatloaf to pulled pork), as well as the
base for our Staff BBQ blend.
Flavor Profile: All Purpose (bitter/sweet/hot/aromatic)

August

LUCKNOW FENNEL
This is a really, really good fennel. The story here is not a sourcing story, or a de Vienne
adventure, or a spice history moment. The story here is all about quality: popping flavors,
unparalleled aromas, total versatility. The Lucknow region made a reputation for top
quality fennel in India centuries ago, yet the word is still yet to reach the shores of North
America. This exceptional fennel can be used ground, whole or even grilled. Its suitable
for any recipe that calls for fennel. So dont limit yourself to curry when using this fennel;
it is as spectacular in Italian as it is Indian. You can count on Lucknow fennel to bring more
intensity to your old favorite recipes.
We often use this spice in our shop to discuss terroir. The warm, subtropical climate
of Uttar Pradesh is ideal for growing small but potent fennel seeds. Lucknow fennel is
prized for its particular sweetness and aroma. Compared to other varieties of fennel,
the Lucknow variety is more aromatic and greener in color. Its small, crunchy seeds can
be used as a perfect finishing touch. Its one of our favorites since it has such a familiar
flavour and the higher quality is immediately apparent.
Flavor Profile: Sweet/aromatic
Notes on use: If youre using this in an old recipe for the first time, consider using a little
less since its so potent. Add a little less at first, then add more if needed at the end.

Learning and Growing

A Visit to Anson Mills

Chef Alex Young thinks a lot about Zingermans

Cornman Farms, the farm next to his house in Dexter
where we raise much of the food served at the
Zingermans Roadhouse. He thinks about sustainable
and organic farming practices. He thinks about growing heirloom vegetable varietals and saving seeds to
improve the quality of the yield. He thinks about the
future of the farm, and what that will look like for his
son, Ethan. And he thinks about grain.

In the past year, Chef Alex has welcomed a long list

of special visitors to the Roadhouse kitchens for the
much-lauded special dinners. Most share his enthusiasm for high-quality ingredients, traditional foodways,
and, of course, a full-flavored meal. But two visitors
in particular reflected Alexs commitment to a higher
ideal when it comes to growing food for our tables:
Austrian farmer Sepp Holzer, author, and creator of
the Holzer Permaculture farming method; and Gary
Nabhan, a founder of the modern seed-saving movement, author, and holder of the W.K. Kellogg Endowed
Chair in Sustainable Food Systems at the University of
Arizona Southwest Center. Clearly, its not just about a
nice meal made from high-quality food; its about the
big picture.
Earlier this spring, Alex and son Ethan took a trip
down to South Carolina to visit one of the sages of the
sustainable farming movement, Anson Mills founder
Glenn Roberts. The mill has long been touted as the
epicenter of an heirloom grains revival, and Roberts
its chief evangelist. Alex has been using Anson Mills
grains for over 12 years, and thinking a lot about grain
these past few years. He has a vision of Cornman Farms
heirloom varietals used to create delicious breads at
Zingermans Bakehouse. He wants to grow enough to
feed the animal herds at the farm. And he dreams of
producing enough to sell to Glenn Roberts and Anson
Mills. So they went to the source, and traveled to South
Carolina to meet Glenn at the fabled mill for a tour and
a conversation.
The mill still does things in much the same manner as
it was done a hundred years ago. Glenn takes in grain
from all over the region (and the country!) from farmers who grow his heirloom, or land-raised grains,
as the seed men say. The farmers agree to grow the
grain using sustainable, traditional, organic methods.
In return, Glenn guarantees a certain per-bushel per
yield and price and for their harvest no matter what
kind of year theyve had. In particularly bad seasons,
this has been a lifesaver for some of the growers. Its
an incentive a kind of subsidy which helps balance
out the costlier, more labor-intensive growing criteria
that Glenn insists upon. The result is very good grain,
and a dedicated and loyal community of farmers all
over the country.
On the morning of the Youngs visit, the mill was busy
allocating various land-raised grains to their network
of growers. The allocation process is fairly intensive,
and involves a complicated set of metrics. These
figures take into account such diverse elements as
the system of crop rotation a farmer uses, and the
geographic location of the farm, among many others. These allocation criteria are often crucial to the
heirlooms ultimate survival, and therefore taken very
seriously.
Glenn then walked Alex and Ethan through the milling
process. The grain is offloaded and sucked up through
a complex drying machine which aerates the grain.
The grain is live, which means that its a whole grain,
and still contains the active germ, source of the grains
vitamins, proteins, minerals, and healthy fats. Its
important that the grains temperature not be raised,
as it can cause the seed to germinate or spoil. After the
grain has been aerated, its ground and simultaneously

blasted with CO2 to freeze it. The cooled grain is ground

as close to its harvest time as possible, and kept frozen
all through the packaging and shipping process. This
helps preserve the grains nutritional value and robust
flavor, the very reasons people seek it.
Alex and Ethan spent several hours talking with Glenn
about the growing process, types of seeds and grains,
and what might work best in Michigan, then moved
on to visit a nearby 800-acre farm that sells to Anson
Mills.
The farm was an impressive operation, with a huge
drive-in barn dedicated to grain processing. The trucks
come to the barn from the grain elevator, and the cargo
is pumped to the top of a sorting tower roughly 15 feet
tall. The tower uses gravity and a series of screens with
sized openings to separate chaff from grain. The chaff
goes back out to the field as compost, while the separated seeds go into a huge walk-in cooler filled with
stacked pallets, each containing heirloom varietals
awaiting shipment to the mill.
One of the farming practices that really caught Alexs
eye is Glenns use of polycropping, or polyculture, to
help build and sustain his field soil. Simply put, polycropping is the cultivation of multiple crops in the
same field. As plants use different micronutrients
from the soil, they also create different micronutrients, thereby enhancing the soil with a greater overall nutrient density. Thus, polycropping is a sustainable, organic way in which a conscientious farmer
can improve the fertility of his land without the use
of chemical fertilizers. The result is healthier, stronger
plants with more flavor in the crops themselves.
Alex will use this season to build the nutrient value
of the soil through polycropping with several cover
crops. A cover crop is a beneficial plant used to prevent soil erosion, build up the soil, and eventually act
as green manure for planting season. Alex plans to
use Abruzzi rye, dwarf sunflower, wild flax, native
legumes, and dutch white clover. These cover crops
will help restore the land, which has not been organically farmed for decades. Its a rebuilding year, and
these plants will grow, nourish, and ultimately provide
fertile, organic matter for the soil.
After the farm tour, Alex and Ethan headed over to St.
James Island, part of the Sea Islands archipelago, and
home to the Clemson University Coastal Research and
Education Center. While there, they were introduced
to Dr. Brian K. Ward, a research specialist who focuses
on crop rotations that benefit soils, grains, and vegetables. The research center applies modern science
to help further the benefits of traditional agriculture,
and provide more information about the building
blocks that make up crops. Alex and Ethan were shown
a robot that splices grafts to tomato plants, watched
as scientists freeze-dried a slice of broccoli then analyzed its nutritional makeup, and were introduced to
composter that utilizes bovine enzymes to break down
plant waste into liquid fertilizer.
Then they were treated to a demonstration of a flameweeder, a propane system that shoots a small, directed
flame at the roots of weed plants, but fast and precise
enough not to burn the crops themselves. Next up was a
roller-crimper which is used to flatten, and crimp (or
break) the cover crops into a fertile biomass prior to
planting. The contraption looks like a big steamroller
drum faced with 3-inch zig-zagged pieces of steel. The
farm would then use a vacuum drill to punch through
the green manure and plant seeds in the protected
and nourished soil. The advantages to using this process are the fertilizing aspect, increased water retention for the soil, and weed-suppression. Both Clemson
and Michigan State University are woking to adapt this

method for widespread use. Alex and Ethan came away

from their day of tours and education with heads full
of ideas for Cornman Farms.
But the time had come to push work aside and enjoy
the evening repast. There are numerous oyster beds
surrounding St. James Island, and as the sun dipped
low over the tidal flats along the coast, the Youngs
found themselves seated in a small shack awaiting the
arrival of the days catch. The boats came in, and delivered their bounty. Bushels of sea-fresh oysters were
pressure-washed on a wide slab, then put into enormous pots to steam-cook. In a little while, the steamed
oysters are spread over another wide slab to cool a
bit, then scooped up with a flat gravel shovel (truth!),
and delivered to the table. Clearly, they dont stand on
formality here.
Alex and Ethan feasted on oysters that had been in the
water an hour before, thinking about what theyd seen
and how it would work at Cornman farms. The ideas
are laudable, a wonderful vision of a self-sustaining
farm, and by extension a community that nourishes
the people, the economy, and the future. Ethan says
he wants Cornman to grow to rival that 800-acre farm
they visited but with the cutting edge research of the
Clemson Coastal Center. Ive got big plans, he says.
And Alex smiles.
E. J. Olsen writes about Zingermans for
zingermanscommunity.com and runs
the @zingermans Twitter feed

Fruitful Farm Meetings

Think Outside the Boardroom
Think Inside the Barn!
An exquisite, out-of-the-ordinary setting and
a nice change of pace from a conference room
or hotel setting. Perfect for a corporate retreat,
board meeting, staff party, client appreciation
gathering, and more.
Modern amenities of WiFi, sound system, ample
parking, beautiful and clean restrooms, adjustable heating/cooling, including the possibility of
a crackling fireplace during the cold months!
Plenty of options for set-up and room layout
either in our gorgeous, sunny farmhouse or our
2-level barn with an outside patio overlooking
our stunning gardens.
Fantastic food provided by either Zingerman's
Roadhouse or Zingerman's Catering.
Great service in guiding you through the process
from determining the best location/set-up to the
food, beverage and other logistics to knowing
you will be cared for from arrival to departure as
if you are a guest at our home.
Rustic yet elegant environment with plenty of
natural light and a comfortable setting that just
might even elicit fond memories (food, herbs,
fresh air, you name it)!

ISSUE # 251

JUL-AUG 2015

13

FRESH SUMMER EXCLUSIVES

AND UNCOMM
ON INDULGENCES
PavloVA

An Awesome Aussie Summer Treat

There are lots of things I love about summer my birthday lands on the first day, June 21st,
flowering gardens, sultry nights with singing crickets. And now I have a new lovethe summer dessert Pavlova!
Pavlova is the iconic dessert of Australia and New Zealand, named after the Russian
Ballerina Anna Pavlova, who performed there in the 1920s. It is a light, luscious, fruity, sweet,
cloud-like dessert. It begins with piping a round of vanilla meringue and baking it until the
exterior is crispy, but the interior remains soft and smooth. Its then covered with a thick
wavy layer of unsweetened whipped cream (plenty of sugar in the meringue for the entire
dessert) and generously decorated with colorful seasonal fruit. In the land down under,
its most popular in the summer, so passion fruit, mango and kiwi are common choices.
Christmas is a summer holiday there and Pavlova is regularly featured
as dessert at the end of the main holiday meal. It looks indulgent
totally fitting for a celebratory meal.
We learned about Pavlova from Kirsty Carre, an Australian
food writer who came to Zingermans Camp Bacon with
her husband last June. While in town she put on a
demonstration class for students at BAKE! where she
taught us about Pavlova. I fell in love with it right
away! We had an extra one and I spent an hour
walking around the bakery, a little reluctantly, sharing samples with everyone. Trust
me, it's good. But you don't have to take my
word for it.
You'll find Pavlova at the Bakehouse this
July and August, made with local summer
fruit. Enjoy them while you can!
Amy Emberling, Bakehouse
co-managing partner

Doughnuts!

Its true.
Were making doughnuts!
Saturday
Mornings

Traditional Crullers
with vanilla bean glaze

Sunday
Mornings

- Sweetened ricotta cheese filled doughnuts

- Chocolate ganache covered donut rings

Get here early.

These are worth getting out of bed for and they go fast!

CocOa VelvEt and the Story of Red Velvet Cake

Here at Zingermans Bakehouse we are proud to sell great tasting food that is traditionally made.
We are constantly working and reworking recipes in an effort to be the best bakery we can
imagine. This commitment to greatness recently took form in our pursuit to find and offer our
customers a delicious, historic Red Velvet cake.
Our research of Red Velvet cake yielded an inconsistent history. A more recent tale of Red
Velvets rise to popularity involves a man by the name of John Adams. Adams was the owner
of the Adams Extract Company during the early 1940s. While Adams and his wife were eating
a beet-colored version of Red Velvet cake at the Waldorf Astoria in New York, he had the idea
to develop a version that used his companys red food coloring. Not only would the food coloring resolve the issue of the cake tasting like beet, it would also boost his companys sales,
which were suffering post-Great Depression. Paired with a cooked milk and flour icing, Adams
promoted his food coloring by offering this original recipe on a card with the dye. It seems
that this is how the modern, very red version of this cake was born. After being featured as the
grooms cake in the 1989 movie Steel Magnolias, Red Velvet quickly rose to fame. Popular wedding planning magazine The Knot lists Red Velvet as one of its top 8 wedding cake flavors, likely
in part because of the romantic red hue.
Looking back further, velvet cakes have much deeper roots. As early as the 1800s, cocoa (along
with almond flour or cornstarch in some recipes) began being added to the flour in cakes to
soften the proteins and create a more delicate texture. Some recipes, like the Velvet Cake published in Montreals The New Dominion Monthly in 1871, paired baking soda with an acid, such as
vinegar, lemon juice or buttermilk to further enhance the smooth texture. The chemical reaction
that occurs when the baking soda and acid are mixed is similar to the action of volcanoeslots
of bubbling and movement. When this happens in a cake batter, it makes for a lighter, smoother
texture. This is why this style of cakes was dubbed velvet.
There are many velvet cakes around. Historic recipes can be found for lemon velvet, pineapple
velvet, mahogany velvet, and brown velvet chocolate cake. The internet is also full of modern
recipes for blue or purple velvets that merely replace the red food dye with other colors. So
where did Red Velvet get its name? There are two popular theories on how velvet cake became
synonymous with the color red. The first has to do again with the chemistry of the ingredients.
The cocoa powder used in traditional velvet recipes was different from our modern, Dutchprocessed cocoa powder in that it still had an acidic pH level. Combining the alkaline baking
soda with the acidic cocoa powder, vinegar, and buttermilk creates a subtle red finish, hence Red
Velvet. Another idea behind the name has everything to do with the sugar. Many traditional Red

14

ISSUE # 251

JUL-AUG 2015

Velvet recipes call for using

red sugar instead of the white
sugar that is commonly used
for cakes. The modern translation for red sugar is simply
brown sugar. So it is possible
that the name of the cake
came from the type of sugar
used in the recipe and not the
cake color at all. Whichever
the case, these traditional
Red Velvet cakes visually
had little in common with
the bright red cakes that are
familiar now.
For months, bakers here at
the Bakehouse have been
working behind the scenes on
many different Red Velvet recipes. We tried cakes using three different types of cocoa powder,
some alkali-treated through the Dutch process and some natural. We have adjusted the acid
level in the cakes. We made versions of Red Velvet that were naturally enhanced with everything
from beets to an all natural food color. Some of our test cakes had terrific texture with no visual
resemblance of red. Some were red, but tasted like beets. Some even turned out red on the
exterior and brown on the inside.
In the end, we feel great about adding a velvet cake to our menu that is completely traditional
and natural. What youll find in our Zingermans Bakehouse Cocoa Velvet cake is brown sugar,
natural cocoa powder, and baking soda reacting with vinegar and buttermilk. What you wont
find is any red food coloring or a bright red color. Youll feel the light, smooth texture that only
can be described as velvety. Youll see very subtle reddish hues. Youll taste full flavor of a madefrom-scratch cake paired with our rich cream cheese frosting. Stop in to the Bakehouse and
experience it for yourself this July and August.
Nina Plasencia,
Bakehouse baker

A big announcement from

CLASSES THRU JANUARY 2016
ARE AVAILABLE FOR SIGN UP!
More than 80 classes. More than 300 dates.

BAKE! is the hands-on teaching bakery at Zingermans Bakehouse. At BAKE! we share our
knowledge and love of baking with the home baker community, seeking to preserve baking
traditions and inspire new ones. Our hands-on classes include our recipes, hands-on practice
guided by our baking experts and you go home with lots of food.

New Hands-on
Baking ClasSes

New Hands-on
Savory ClasSes

Chocolate Fix

Bluegrass Brunch

Baking Pies A Plenty

chocolate cheesecake
brownies, chocolate
rugelach & whoopie pies

home-made sausage,
biscuits, gravy, and
bourbon fruit cobbler

make pie crust and

apple & pumpkin pies

Sweetheart Tarts

Dinner Series: Mexican

cherry almond, caramel

nut, and lemon merenga
tarts

chicken enchiladas,
salsa, and custard flan

Tea Time Cakes

Korean marinades
& sauces with guest
Ji Hye Kim

raspberry ricotta cake,

yeasted tea ring, and
New Deli crumb cake

Korean BBQ

Holiday ClasSes

Thanksgiving Dinner
Demonstration
chef Kieron Hales
demonstrates how to
tackle turkey, gravy
& sides

Buche de Noel
a traditional French
yule log cake

Fancy Schmancy
Holiday Cookies
our most popular
class of the year. The
2015 line up: eggnog
thumbprint, chocolate chili, apricot
linzer & baci di dama
(hazelnut chocolate
sandwiches). More
than 20 dates still
available.

Holiday Sweet Breads

German Stollen,
Hungarian Beigli and
Swedish Limpa

Get all the tasty details on these classes

and more at www.bakewithzing.com

We have made some great specialty breads over the years that
developed their own small followings, so we bring them back
for a weekend here and there just for fun. If youre looking for
a little adventure check out this calendar.

July
Blueberry Buckle

July 2-5
Cranberry Pecan

AugUst
Smore Tarts

Jul 31-Aug 2
Craquelin

July 3-4

Aug 7-9

Somodi Klacs
Hungarian cinnamon
swirl bread

Banana Cream Pie

July 10-12
Cranberry Pecan

July 17-18
Green Olive Paesano

July 24-25
Loomis Bread
with Zingermans Creamery
Cheshire cheese & roasted
red peppers

July 31-Aug 1

Aug 14-16
Pumpernickel Raisin

Aug 14-15
Pepper Bacon Farm

Aug 21-22
Potato Dill

Aug 28-29
Lemon Poppyseed
Coffeecake

Aug 27-30

Bakeshop3711 Plaza Dr. 761.2095

Call Ahead Deli422
Detroit St. 663.3354 (DELI)
To Order Roadshow2501 Jackson Rd. 663.3663 (FOOD)

JUlY

Better than San Francisco

Sourdough Rounds
$4.50/ea. (reg. $6.29)

This loaf has a crisp

blistered crust, a moist
honeycombed interior and
that trademark sour tang
that will tickle your tongue.
It is the star of grilled cheese Wednesdays at
the Bakehouse.

AugUst

Sicilian Sesame
Semolina Rounds
$4.50/ea. (reg. $6.29)

This breads golden color and rich taste

comes from the semolina and durum wheat
flours. The entire loaf is rolled in unhulled
sesame seeds. Toasting a slice really kicks up
the flavor.

Available at Zingermans Bakehouse,

Delicatessen and Roadhouse

20%OfF
OFF
20%

and slices
whole cakes whole
and slicescakes
at Zingermans
Bakehouse and Deli

JuLY

New York Cheesecake

Our cheesecake is a special treat
because its loaded with real vanilla
bean and sits atop a butter pastry
crust, but what really makes it extraordinary is the fresh
cream cheese from our neighbor Zingermans Creamery.

AUguSt

Buttermilk Cake
Soft buttery yellow cake
filled with raspberry butter cream and covered in
vanilla butter cream. The
cake itself has an enticing aroma from the sweet
Wisconsin butter and the Guernsey family dairy buttermilk.
Always enjoy our cakes at room temperature.

Available at Zingermans
Bakehouse & Delicatessen

ISSUE # 251

JUL-AUG 2015

15