Pane di Altamura

Named after a town settled on one of the Murge plateau hills, pane di Altamura is a country-style sourdough bread that has been traditionally produced in the provinces of Bari and Barletta-Andria-Trani for centuries. It is made only with durum wheat dough, natural yeast, salt, and water. Once the staple food of Murge people, these large loaves of bread were kneaded in Altamura's households, branded with the family name, then baked in community ovens. Since the loaves were supposed to feed whole families for one or even two weeks, the bread of Altamura had to be very durable, which is, even today, one of its most prized features. For a simple snack, pane di Altamura is simply drizzled with extra virgin olive oil and sprinkled with salt or smeared with tomato or olive tapenade. It is also an essential ingredient in many traditional recipes such as the zuppa povera, an aromatic tomato soup with toasted cubes of Altamura bread.