My guest this week is Chef Jon Davis, culinary innovation leader for La Brea Bakery.
When the pastry chefs at Campanile Restaurant in Los Angeles could not find artisan bread good enough for the restaurant, they spent a year crafting the perfect recipe, creating bread with a caramelized, golden crust, soft inside and rustic appearance. The signature recipe resulted in such delicious artisan bread that they opened La Brea Bakery on La Brea Avenue. When there were people lined up outside the bakery every morning, and the bread sold out by 11 AM, they knew they had a hit.
Much has happened since the beginning in 1989, the original La Brea Bakery in California has closed, the brand has continued and is now part of Aspire Bakeries. The focus for La Brea is still to provide artisan breads to the nation and beyond and is available at more than 2000 grocery stores, including Dillions here in Kansas.
Jon joined La Brea Bakery’s Los Angeles flagship store as a pastry chef in the early 1990s and has used his deep professional baking expertise to champion La Brea Bakery’s quality and product innovation for more than 25 years.
Just in time to create the perfect corned beef sandwich for St. Patrick’s Day, La Brea Bakery has added a traditional New York Rye loaf to it’s artisan bread portfolio. The hearty bread is crafted on a foundation of wheat and rye flours, known for their health benefits. Caraway seeds, the aromatic hallmark of a classic rye loaf, are baked into the bread and sprinkled on top as a finishing touch.
Chef Jon has curated four delicious recipes to celebrate the launch of La Brea Bakeries New York Rye Loaf. They include an open-face toasted tuna sandwich and a flavorful patty melt, along with classic iterations of a New York pastrami on rye and a Rueben.
La Brea Bakery New York Rye loaf—which launches this week into over 2,000 grocery stores—comes just ahead of March, the biggest time of the year for sales of rye bread. It is non-GMO Project-certified, kosher, and vegan.
Grab a loaf of New York Rye and use Jon’s Rueben recipe for St. Patrick’s Day or any day. While your shopping you may want to consider grabbing a few loaves of Le Brea Sourdough bread at Dillions here in Kansas, Monday April 1st, 2024 is National Sourdough Bread Day.
Good Life Guy’s Wine of the Week:
2015 Bodegas Olarra Cerro Añon
Rioja Gran Reserva, Spain
80% Tempranillo,10% Mazuelo, 5% Garnacha, 5% Graciano aged 6 months In new American oak followed by 29 months in 1 & 2 year oak. Ripe berry and cherry aromas meld with earth, chocolate and leather on the nose. The full-bodied palate is energized by lemon and supportive acidity, with flavors of toast, wood grain and tobacco in addition to plum and berry fruit. The finish is long in spice and cocoa flavors. ABV14% D95, IWC95
This is a first class Spanish Gran Reserva from a great producer, and it’s a relative value!
Perfect with a oak of La Brea bread just out of the oven.