Bread, like pasta, is a kind of religion for Italians.
It almost never fails in the house, if it advances it freezes or is recycled in a creative way and absolutely does not throw away.
One rule: never lay it upside down because "the Madonna is crying".
We said it no, it's a religion!

Among grains, flours, chariots and regional recipes

Italian cuisine is beautiful because it varies from region to region and even bread has a thousand variations because from north to south everyone prepares it in their own way, using different grains and obtaining different consistencies, but basically maintaining the union between flour, water and yeast.
Let's see which is the most famous Italian bread in the world, through the most traditional recipes.
Obviously to obtain a result similar to that of the oven you would need to have a wood-fired oven at home, but we will try to give you suggestions to do a good job with the home oven too.
In some of the following recipes you will find long rising times because the doughs of certain breads require the preparation of a biga. Other processes are much simpler and faster.
As for the yeast, we always talk about fresh beer yeast and not mother yeast.

Rustic bread

This bread is the classic sfilatino which can be "bland" that is, without salt, typical of Tuscany, or salty.
To prepare it, dissolve 7 g of fresh brewer's yeast in a little warm water and then mix it with 500 g of 0 flour and 400 ml of water, adding only a pinch of salt at the end if you want.
Once you have a uniform dough, let it rise for two hours covered by a cloth and then knead it again. Give it the elongated shape of a parade or round of a loaf and let it rise another two hours always covered.
Cook it at 180 degrees for 40 minutes and then let it cool before cutting it.

Apulian bread

Apulian bread, also known as Altamura bread, has a softer and slightly chewy texture inside, but a crunchy crust.
The first step is preparing the chariot. Then mix 250 g of 00 flour with 2.5 g of crumbled yeast and 150 g of water.
Form a loaf and let it rise at room temperature for 12 hours or overnight.
The following day, add 50 g of semolina flour, 190 g of water, 3.5 g of fresh brewer's yeast, 5 g of honey and only 5 g of salt at the end.
Once you have a homogeneous mixture, leave it to rise for three hours covered with a cloth.
Then flour a pastry board and roll out the dough. Make a three-fold, that is, bring the upper flap to the center and cover with the lower one. Turn the dough 90 degrees and repeat the operation.
Let rise for another hour, then cut a deep cross with a knife on the surface of the dough and after heating the oven to 220 °, cook it for 50 minutes.
Once ready, take it out of the oven and let it cool before cutting it.

Michetta

The michetta is the typical bread of northern Italy and is easily recognizable for its flower shape.
It is a crunchy sandwich that is made "bubble" inside, thanks to its very long preparation and particularly laborious leavening.
The first step, also in this recipe, is the preparation of the chariot. 400 g of 00 flour are then mixed with 175 ml of water, 4 g of brewer's yeast.
After a leavening of about 20 hours, possibly at 18 °, take the chariot and prepare the dough.
Dissolve 4 g of malt or honey or sugar in 50 ml of water at room temperature and add the biga.
Then add 40 g of 00 flour and a pinch of salt and work everything, preferably in a planetary mixer, for 5-6 minutes.
Transfer the dough onto a pastry board and cover it for 10 minutes.
Pick it up and roll it out slightly with a rolling pin giving it a rectangular shape.
Make a turn of folds as explained in the Apulian bread and then cover for 15 minutes. Repeat the operation three times.
At this point form a ball, lightly grease it on the surface and then let it rise for 30 minutes.
Divide the dough into 8 parts of about 80 grams and form 8 balls. Flour them, cover them with plastic wrap and with a cloth and leave them to rise for 30 minutes more.
With the apple cutter or with the special tool, print the rosettes, being careful not to press too hard and put in the oven

Tuscan bread

Another very famous bread in the world is the Tuscan one which is very good for making the shoe and is also used dry to prepare the classic panzanella with onion and tomatoes.
For the biga, work 175 g of 0 flour with 100 g of water, 1 g of brewer's yeast and a drop of extra virgin olive oil. Let everything sit well covered overnight.
After about 12 hours of leavening, mix this dough with 250 g of flour 0 and 125 g of water, cover with a cloth and let the dough rise for another 6 hours.
After this time, take the dough, make a loaf, fold it in two and roll it up on itself.
Transfer it to a floured sheet, sprinkle it with a little flour and let it rise for another hour.
Then cook at 220 ° for 10 minutes, then lower the oven temperature to 180 ° and let it cook for 40 minutes again. Once cooked, take out of the oven and let the Tuscan bread rest 15 minutes before cutting it.

Rye bread

Rye bread is a very energetic food, has a high fiber content and is rich in minerals and B vitamins.
Rye has anti-arteriosclerotic efficacy and populations that eat rye bread appear to be less prone to incurring cardiovascular disease.
This type of bread is typical of the mountain areas of northern Italy, but is now known throughout the country. Being a bread rich in nutritional properties, it is particularly loved by those who follow a controlled and balanced diet.
To prepare on rye bread mix 400 g of rye flour with 100 g of manitoba flour.
Separately, dissolve 6 g of brewer's yeast in 50 ml of water and then add the yeast, another 300 ml of water and a teaspoon of sugar to the flour.
A pinch of salt and the dough is ready. Let it rise for two hours covered by a cloth, then transfer it to a pan after having worked it again, give it a shape and let it rise again for two hours. Then cook it at 220 ° for about 35 minutes.

Carasau bread

The pane carasau, or carta musica, is the typical Sardinian bread.
It is a very thin and crispy pastry that can be used both as a bread and as a base for the preparation of quick lasagna without cooking.
To prepare the carasau bread, make a fountain with 500 g of durum wheat semolina flour. Dissolve 5 g of brewer's yeast in a little water and add it to the flour.
Start mixing with 300 ml of water and finally add the salt. Knead the dough for about ten minutes and then divide it into 16 balls.
Arrange them on a floured surface at a short distance from each other, cover them with a cloth and let them rise for at least 3 hours.
After this time, flour them with a little semolina flour and roll them out with a rolling pin.
Overlap two at a time and pull again with a rolling pin trying not to make folds.
Place them at this point on a baking sheet that you will have left to heat in the oven at 220 °.
Cook for 15-20 seconds, until they are swollen and then immediately remove them from the oven and separate them in two. When you have done this with all the sheets, arrange them individually on other trays and bake again for 8 minutes at 170 °.
When they are golden brown, remove them and let them cool.

Bread without yeast

Unleavened bread is simply prepared with water, flour and salt and can be cooked both in a pan and in the oven.
It is a cross between a flatbread and an unleavened bread, but it is an excellent solution for all the times when there is no bread at home because it is prepared in an instant and without yeast.
Just mix 400 g of 00 flour with 200 ml of water, a pinch of salt and if desired, for a slightly more intense flavor and greater crispness, 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil.
Once the dough is prepared, let it rest for an hour and then make some balls. Roll out a little, but not too thin, and then cook them two-three minutes per side on a non-stick pan or in the oven at 180 ° for about 15 minutes.