zingerman's newsletter march-april 2011

1ISSUE # 225 MARCH-APRIL 2011

www.zingermansroadhouse.com

“Second Saturday”Tour! March 12 & April 9 • 11am to noonJoin us monthly for an open-to-the-public, no-reservation-required cupping. Sit down with Coffee Company managing partners Allen and Steve to sample some new offer-ings, some old favorites, some experimen-tal batches and learn how to discern the subtle distinctions among the world's cof-fees.

Join us the second Saturday of each month, 11am-noon.

American CookiesTuesday, April 12 • 5:30-9:30pm • $100Learn to make the Zingerman's Bakehouse whoopie pie recipe seen in the New York Times! In addition, we'll make and taste some other American classics- like chocolate chip cookies, no bake cookies and snickerdoodles.

Wholey Whole Grain BreadsThursday, April 21 • 5:30-9:30pm • $100We know that whole grains can be good for us but that’s not the only reason to eat them. With the right recipes and techniques they can taste great, too. We’ll teach you to make whole wheat cinnamon raisin bread, whole-grain rye bread, and masterful multi-grain bread. Learn the benefits of using the whole kernel of grain and how to unlock its full potential!

422DetroitStreet,AnnArborMI48104Deli:734.663.3354(DELI),

NextDoor:734.663.5282(JAVA)

RoadhouseSpecialDinnersare5-coursefamily-styleaffairswithalittlehistoryandaLOToffoodfeaturingwriters,chefs,authorsandmorefromourowncommunityandallaroundthecountry.

Mardi Gras DinnerTuesday, March 8th • 7pm $45/dinner If you can’t make it to New Orleans for Mardi Gras, celebrate with the Roadhouse! A longtime favorite dinner of many, Chef Alex shares his love of Cajun and Creole cooking with a menu sure to rival that of one found in the Big Easy.

3723PlazaDrive•734.761.7255

1

For reservations to all events stop by 2501 Jackson Ave. or call 734.663.3663 (FOOD)

Check out the full schedule and register for classes at

www.bakewithzing.com

Meet Bo Burlingham! Small Giants Dinner Companies That Choose to Be Great Instead of BigMonday, April 18th • 7pm • $45/dinner

It all began when Bo Burlingham and Inc. Magazine named Zingerman’s the Coolest Small Company in America and continued when Bo’s book, Small Giants, featured the Zingerman’s Community of Businesses as a com-pany that chose to be great, instead of big. With those prinicples now formalized in a two-yearly ZingTrain seminar, Bo is back in Ann Arbor sharing the mojo of what makes a Small Giant.

Chef Alex has explored America, finding new and exciting culinary Small Giants throughout the country for the menu of this special dinner. For more information about ZingTrain seminars,

including the Small Giant Seminar, April 18-19, visit www.zingtrain.com.

StopbytheCreameryCheeseShop734.929.0500•3723PlazaDr.www.zingermanscreamery.com

CheEse TaSTingsGet Your GoatSunday, March 13th • 4-6pm • $25 per personWe’ll open up the fine and various world of goat cheese as we taste samples both soft and hard, tangy and smooth. We’ll learn all about the properties of this milk, our relationship with the farmers who tend the goats, and the complex story be-hind goats' milk scarcity during Michigan win-ters. Come celebrate our favorite rambunctious ruminant and gain new appreciation for the whole range of their delicious cheese! BONUS: We'll be featuring the winning entry in our January City Goat Recipe Contest: Goat Cheese Truffles!

Rinds of All Kinds! Sunday, March 27 • 4-6pm • $25 per personIn this cheese tasting, we'll tackle the age-old question: can I really eat that rind? Quite often, the answer is an emphatic "Yes!" We'll talk about the various types of rinds, their functions, and the many ways cheesemakers encourage rind growth on their cheeses. And most im-portant, we'll taste 'em! Discover how the rind is cheese's most deli-cious built-in accompaniment.

Cheeses for SpringtimeSunday, April 17 • 4-6pm • $25 per person Celebrate the return of sunshine, green, and growing things to the earth (calves, kids, and lambs too!—with a fresh and springy cheese tasting. We'll pair early Michigan-grown veggies and herbs with some of our lactic favorites: luscious burrata atop spring greens, double-cream manchester and sprout sandwiches on toast, braised cabbage with goat cheese and walnuts - yum! We'll also taste our Pashka, an Easter classic and decadent Russian cheesecake of sorts, made with fresh farm cheese, eggs, butter, candied orange peel, raisins, vanilla, and lemon zest! Start planning your picnics; spring is here at last!

Our annual olive oil sale gives you a chance to stock up on your favorite ol-ive oils and get great deals on some that you may not have discovered yet. All of the 2009 oils from Italy, Spain, France, and California will be on sale until we run out, so be sure to come in soon!

Sandwich of the month

3723PlazaDrive734.929.6060

#101

#102

April Spring Oil Change at the Deli

Learn to Make Fresh MozzarellaSaturdays Sept-May • Noon-2:30pm • $50 Reservations requiredMaking your own mozz in your own kitchen is fun and easy and after spending a day with us, you’ll have the know-how to do it yourself every time you want the rich, milky taste of really fresh cheese. Don’t wait for tomato season! Spots are limited. Reserve today!

Hands-On Baking ClasSes

MarchHeinz's Bottom Line As a salute to our dear Deli, we present the sandwich that originally carried the #29. While Jon P. currently assumes the badge on our menu board today, the number was once held by a sandwich named after one of the Deli's first ac-countants, Heinz Schmidt. Heinz's Bottom Line showcases Arkansas peppered ham, Switzerland Swiss cheese, lettuce and spicy Dijon mustard on Bakehouse pumpernickel bread. Happy 29th Birthday Zingerman's! $11.99/one size

AprilThe Cat Mack App AttackWe're not a BBQ joint, but we did think some of the pulled protein we present on several sandwiches deserved a chance to shine solo. Four ounces each of barbecue chicken, beef and spicy shredded pork, surround a pile of toasted & buttered Bakehouse white bread with which to dip, soak, or sandwich! Served with our old fashioned potato salad, which joins the party as a palate cleanser. $11.99/one size

St. Patrick’s Day Corned Beef & CabbageThursday, March 17th • 11am-7pm • $14.99/person We’re serving up a hearty plate of traditional Irish fare—hand-sliced Zingerman’s Corned Beef (with a side of our extraordinary hot mustard), potatoes, carrots and cabbage, and a wedge of Zingerman’s Bakehouse Irish Soda Bread with farm butter. No reservations needed for this family-friendly St. Patrick's Day feast!


The Deli Build-Out is underway. It’s already been a four-year process, and the project, as per the Zingerman's way, has only become smarter and more inspiring over time. Every obstacle has been parlayed into an opportunity for innovation. Each Tuesday morning Deli partners, architects, contractors, consultants and staff work collaboratively to hone all the details of the design, the construction plan and the timetable. Deciding where to place a bathroom can take three hours because every impact is consid-ered. What we will achieve, in the end, is an expansion of the his-toric Deli building that will retain all the best of our quirky, Zingy features, while becoming a better place to work, shop and eat. Our goal is to become a model of resource efficiency and sustain-able building and working practices. And our vision is a building destined to serve and sustain, come what may, for the next 100 years! We’re super excited that the Deli’s expansion will be a LEED-NC (that stands for “new construction”) certified green building! Woot! Woot! This is big news! It means we are committed to factoring in the environmental impact of the Deli Build-Out into every decision we make, from sourcing through construction, in daily use and into perpetuity. We are making a profound and meaningful investment in our future well-being, a commitment to living and working with intention, foresight and a positive outlook... Plus we are taking a giant step towards fulfilling the sustainability pledge at the begin-ning of the 2020 vision for the Zingerman’s Community of Businesses. What is LEED anyway? The acronym LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. Basically, it’s serious third party verification “that a building or community was designed and built using strategies aimed at improving performance across all the met-rics that matter most: energy savings, water efficiency, CO2 emissions reduction, improved indoor environmental quality, and steward-ship of resources and sensitivity to their impacts.” In a nutshell, it labels a new project as an environmentally responsible, profitable and healthy place in which to live and work. The US Green Building Council developed the LEED points system to make it possible for building owners and operators to identify and implement practical and measurable green design solutions to issues in construction, operations and maintenance. The choices we make will garner points that when added up will accredit us with a level of LEED cer-tification—certified, silver, gold or platinum—based on an accumula-tion range of 1 to 100 total points (with 10 bonus points available). What exactly does LEED measure? To give you an idea of LEED speci-fications we’re examining and weighing as appropriate and feasible for us, take a look at the six main categories where the build-out plan aims to receive credit points:

1. SustainableSites: To get these credits, we minimize our building's impact on ecosystems and waterways. It covers everything from encouraging downtown density and managing stormwater runoff to edible landscaping and responsible construction site management.

2. WaterEfficiency: To get these credits, we implement smart water use inside and out.

3. EnergyandAtmosphere (read 'carbon footprint'): This is the big opportunity category for us because restaurants are energy intensive buildings. In the U.S., buildings use 39% of the energy and 74% of the electricity produced each year. Restaurants, per square foot, con-sume nearly three times more energy than the average commercial building. So our Build-Out has got to use a variety of integrated ener-gy strategies. Efficient design and construction is a start. Purchasing energy star-rated appliances and lighting helps. Recapturing and reusing waste heat and installing water-cooled refrigeration systems means very little energy gets lost. We’ll also hire folks called commis-sioning agents who vet and balance our systems to monitor energy performance for years after we’re up and running. They make sure our systems operate as efficiently as designed.

4. Materials and Resources: This credit category makes us focus on what’s out there product-wise and material-wise that’s grown, harvested, produced and transported in a sustainable fashion. From framing (FSC certified lumber and concrete block made with fly ash) to finishes (countertops made of recycled paper pulp, old linoleum flooring), the Build-Out will end up with many smart, high perfor-mance, easy on the environment materials. We also know that the reuse of any salvageable materials and the responsible disposal of all construction waste earns additional points.

5. IndoorEnvironmentalQuality: To earn these credits we have to consider all the strategies that give us top quality indoor air, maxi-mize the use of natural light and make us all acoustically comfy!

6. Innovation and Design: This last category provides bonus points for innovative site-specific solutions that go the extra mile. It recognizes projects that use creative technologies and strate-gies effective above and beyond the LEED standards. Sounds very Zingy so we’ll see what we can come up with to earn points here. If your curiosity is peaked, check out credits and the project certification process on the USGBC’s LEED website: www.usgbc.org. You’ll learn everything you want to know about the intent, the requirements, and the strategies for getting those credits. How will LEED certification impact our look, feel and function? Honestly, most of the differences will be invisible or super subtle. It’s a no brainer that improving indoor air quality and scrutinizing mechanical systems will make a more comfortable work environ-ment. And we believe that taking full advantage of available natural light will have a positive impact on how we feel throughout our workday. Some of the mechanical and refrigeration systems are downright cool—doing amazing things like recapturing the heat from our ovens and compressors to use elsewhere. Other solu-tions, like adaptive re-use of materials and rainwater collection, are simply old fashioned thrift, harkening back to an older, less resource-intensive time. Green building is really just design that makes sense. It works well, and it works well for the long haul. Won't a green Build-Out be unbelievably expensive? A LEED certified project often (but not always) costs more up-front, but.... B-U-T, the beauty is that it should quickly pay for itself in reduced utilities expenses and greater productivity—of the build-ing, of the staff, and in sales. When the Build-Out Team considers an option, they look at the initial, up-front costs as well as the costs over time to run, maintain, repair and replace a piece of equipment or materials. The story again and again is that well-planned, green initiatives end up saving money overall... and a lot faster than you'd think. In part, this is because so much is looked at, measured and considered that otherwise gets overlooked. Like all positive change, there's a lot of up-front work and time-consuming consideration and planning involved. But Zingerman's was never afraid of a little hard work or a new idea. These are exciting, inspiring times at the Deli. Hold on to your hard hats, it's going to be a great, cool, fun ride!

The Deli's NeedsMeet with LEED

Build Up to the Deli Build-Out

The Deli will be open for business as usual throughout construction!WhereToGetBuild-OutInfo• Visit www.zingermansdeli.com/deli-con-struction-news for the latest news, architectural drawings, photos!

•NextDoor’s2ndFloorBuild-OutBulletinBoard

Check it out near the top of the Next Door stairs (adjacent to the men’s bathroom). You’ll see updates on architectural plans, FAQ’s, and find out what’s coming next!

OurTimelineWe break ground in early 2011 and aim to wrap up construction by mid 2012.

OurFunNewLook!The Deli’s entrance will remain the same! A 2-story glass atrium will connect the rear of the historic Deli building to a new 2-story brick structure (about 10,400 sq ft) to stand on the site of the fire-damaged Kingsley St. structure. The historic “orange house” will be architec-turally integrated into the new brick structure and aid guest flow inside the Deli.

On the patio, an open-air pavilion will replace our well-used big top tent surrounded by lots of outdoor space and edible landscaping.

WhyWe’reSoHappy!The 1st floor of the new building will house a bigger kitchen, our sandwich line, and improved delivery and storage systems!

Both the 1st and 2nd floors of the new building will offer more guest seating options and new restrooms!

We’ll have more retail space in the old Deli for the wonderland of foods we showcase!

By regrading the site, all our buildings will be more accessible to our guests with wheel-chairs, walkers and strollers!

We have the chance to become a greener busi-ness. Our project is a LEED-NC (new construc-tion) certified green building! The LEED point system, developed by the US Green Building Council, measures the environmental sustain-ability of a project’s design, construction, operations and maintenance.

The Deli Build-Out is all about a better Zingerman’s Experience to be enjoyed by many more people for generations to come!

Announcing Zingerman’s Events on FourthinKerrytown,415N.FifthAve.,intheformerlocationofEveThis charming space is now avail-able for reservation by Zingerman’s Catering customers (734-663-3400 for information) and its convenient kitchen will support the Deli during the build-out

period. We take our hat off to our friend and fellow restauranteur, Eve Aronoff, for her unique and significant contribution to our food lives and applaud her new Cuban venture, Frita Batidos.


You know you have a good job when homework means studying donuts, right? But I really was doing homework on donuts, when I happened to stumble over this quote from the Simpsons:

"Donuts. Is there anything they can’t do?”

At first I paid little attention to what Homer Simpson had said. He is, after all, only a cartoon character. But the more I’ve conversed with people about donuts, the more I’m starting to think that the Simpsons are really on to something. If I’ve learned one thing from having been making donuts at the Roadhouse for the last four or five years and now at the Bakehouse for the last year or so, it’s that, at least around these parts, people totally love donuts!!! Honestly I don’t think I’ve ever seen more peoples’ eyes get so wide over a single food than when I’ve told them that we’re making donuts at the Roadhouse. I mean caviar, balsamic vinegar, oysters, dry-aged steaks and cold-smoked salmon get people thinking but the response to donuts seems to be sort of intensely visceral, almost instinctive, intuitive, uncontrollable response. It’s as if they don’t even have to think about it—I say “donuts” and they just start smiling. Something connects, clicks, ignites, . . . almost erupts. Donuts really do seem to do it all!

While the recent buzz about them may seem sudden, donuts are an American tradition that dates back to the early 17th century arrival of the Dutch on East Coast. The original idea of the American donut may actually be tied to a New Year’s Eve tradition in the Netherlands. The “oliebol” is a yeasted batter with raisins that’s fried in hot oil and could be light and fluffy or denser with powdered sugar. (The name means, literally, “oil ball.”) One Dutchman I talked to said with a broad smile, “We eat piles of them for New Year’s Eve in Holland.” The origin of the American name "donut"? Of course no one really knows but it could well be that early recipes suggested that the cook make up little “nuts” of dough to fry.

Here in the States, donuts were pretty much exclusively a home cooked food up until the early years of the 20th century. Large scale commercial production probably started in the 1920s, at which time they were most popular for taking to movie theaters. At about that time, to satisfy the growing demand for donuts, one inven-tive Russian Jewish immigrant named Adolph Levitt created the first donut machine. By 1934, the same year that the World's Fair in Chicago declared the donut "the food hit of the Century Of Progress," Levitt was pulling down twenty-five million dollars annually for the sale of his donut machines to bakeries. (You can see the small metal salt and-pepper shaker souvenir set from that same 1934 World’s Fair in the hallway case at the Roadhouse.) His daughter Sally Levitt Steinberg put together the Donut Book to tell his story and that of donuts in general—it’s highly recommended if you’re into donuts.

The donuts at the Roadhouse are, I think, really darned good. They’ve been written up in a fair few places in-cluding the Travel + Leisure and Maxim magazine and they’ve made the Serious Eats National Donut Honor Roll over at seriouseats.com. John T. Edge wrote about them in his book, Donuts: An American Passion. The Ann Arbor Observer ran a piece by Bix Engels about the new All-American brunch: “. . . The real showstoppers,” she wrote, “are the house-made donuts, adapted by Roadhouse chef Alex Young from a traditional Dutch American recipe. World’s apart from the standard sugar-flour-grease bombs of chain fame, Roadhouse donuts are full flavored, with hints of molasses, lemon zest and nutmeg in a rich buttermilk batter, deep fried but not greasy, and dusted with a dark brown muscovado sugar. Everyone at our table (which included some hard-to-impress New Yorkers) was utterly bowled over.

Amy EmberlingBakehouse Managing Partner

Every culture loves fried dough and sugar! Lagaymat, koeksister, youtiao, vada, bamiyeh, suf-ganiyah, kachori, fritter, smoutebollen and krofne—are a few versions of dough fried in oil and usually glazed or filled with something sweet. The beloved American donut is actually a world-wide treat as ubiquitous as its savory cousin the dumpling.

Personally, I’ve loved donuts since I was a child. My earliest donut memory is the chocolate-covered donuts from the Woolworth’s 5 and 10 on Charlotte Street in Sydney, Nova Scotia. I remember them as real donuts rather than mass-produced artificial imitations. They were kind of irregular, the dough was chewy and satisfying and the icing was real chocolate icing, not taste-less, brown-colored paste. After I left my hometown I sought out donuts wherever I went. There was VJ’s north of San Diego that my brother proudly took me to while he was in graduate school. The bite of the dough was perfect. There was a shop on the UCLA campus that bedazzled me with different shapes and colored sprinkles, definitely more about display than flavor. I ate sfenj, a Moroccan fried dough, in a market in Rabat in 1989 that I can’t forget about. I succumbed to the allure of Krispy Kreme when I lived in New York in the late 90s. It was during the company’s first foray into national distribution and they were sold in a Gourmet Garage I passed when I walked from 95th to 116th street on my way to business school. I always promised myself that I would buy just one but then when I saw the choices two were in my bag and….they never made it back to my apartment. Since then? I’m sustained by our hometown favorites at Washtenaw Dairy, fancy donuts on menus of high-end restaurants, and, most recently, the donuts we’ve been making at Zingerman’s Bakehouse.

So how can it be that my donut-loving self owns a bakery that specializes in American and International favorites, and yet, until last spring, we never made them? Some of what happens at the bakery is about team and timing and in the last 9 months the team has emerged to make the timing just right for us to venture into the world of fried dough. We needed a few things before we could really get going. #1. Leadership Support: I love to eat them and make them. Frank’s a willing taster. Check. #2 The Tools for the Job: We bought a small fryer to make cannoli. This allowed us to experiment with donuts without making too much of an investment. #3 Confidence-Building Small Steps: Alejandro Ramon, one of our BAKE! instructors has been making donuts since he was a child and we created a BAKE! class to teach them. #4 Bold Entrepreneurial Steps: Shelby Kibler, our BAKE! Principal, created a daring bacon-apple donut to honor Ari’s bacon book. Nina Huey, our, pastry kitchen manager had built a great team and they were game to have

the kitchen make them on Saturday mornings for all of you to enjoy. #5 Expert Knowledge and Enthusiasm: Randy Brown, one of our sales team membersgrew up working in bakeries and spent many hours making donuts. He was excited to teach us what he knows, help us purchase the right equipment, and to encourage us to make more donuts. The stars came into alignment and off we go into the world of donuts.

What can you expect from us in the world of fried confections? We are going to focus on two areas: Full-flavored versions of American standards and foreign favorites. Come to the Bakehouse on Saturday mornings now and you can have two great American Standards: a tra-ditional early American cake donut made with buttermilk, flavored with nutmeg and lightly glazed with a Michigan honey, and an apple frit-ter made with large chunks of fresh (not dehy-drated) Michigan apples and Michigan apple but-ter, plus flavorful Indonesian cinnamon. Over the coming months we will change the offer-ings and feature flavorful traditional American donuts – historical and current. On Friday at lunch time we are making Moroccan sfenj. These are large, irregularly shaped pieces of dough, with large holes on the inside, fried and rolled in Demerara sugar. On Fat Tuesday we’ll venture into the world of traditional Polish Paczki. Later in March keep your eyes out for an authentic French Cruller.

Have favorite American donut types and foreign treats? Write to me and let me know [email protected]. We can start working on them.

An International Fascination Finally Arrives At Zingerman’s Bakehouse

Go Nuts for Handmade Donuts from Zingerman's Roadhouse

A Different Donut Sundae for Every Day of the Week! Each sundae features the Roadhouse's traditional Dutch-American cake donut.

at SundaeEvery Day is

Mondae

Everything is Better with Bacon Sundae Bacon chocolate gravy, apple-wood smoked bacon, vanilla gelato, bour-bon-caramel sauce, whipped cream, Virginia peanuts and a cherry. Tuesdae

Dulce DonutDulce de leche sauce, dulce de leche gelato, whipped cream, Virginia peanuts and a cherry on top. Wednesdae

Chocolate, Chocolate, Chocolate!Chocolate sauce, chocolate gelato, chocolate shavings, vanilla gelato, whipped cream, Virginia peanuts and a cherry. ThursdaeNuts about NutsVanilla gelato, bourbon-caramel sauce, whipped cream, loads of Virginia peanuts and a cherry.

Fridae

Double Donut Our classic Donut Sundae sand-wiched between two donuts. SaturdaePBJ & DKoeze peanut butter, fruit preserves, vanilla gelato, whipped cream, Virginia peanuts and a cherry. Sundae

Ari’s Original Donut Sundae A housemade Dutch donut smoth-ered in bourbon-caramel sauce, vanilla gelato and whipped cream with a cherry on top.

5SpecialFlavors!• traditional powidla (plum jam)

• rosehip jam• raspberry preserves

• vanilla custard• sweetened cream cheese

Read more about the packzi tradition on page 11.

PACZKI!MARCH 8 ONLY

Order ahead from Zingerman's Bakehouse or Zingerman's Delicatessen.


Fixing the Energy Crisis in the American WorkplaceOr, Why Ignoring The Natural Laws Of BusineSs Is A Recipe For Big Trouble

Join us for this fun, informative ZingTrain seminar, guaranteed to get you thinking about running your organization in new ways that can help to increase job satisfaction, reduce the burden on managers, cut back bureaucracy and build up better bottom-line results so you can outperform those competitors!

At Zingerman’s, we shake up the old approaches with wackily sound ways to manage an organiza-tion. We share concepts like Servant Leadership (where the bosses serve the staff); the power of Visioning (where you actually figure out what you want your organization to look like before you write the strategic plan); Bottom-Line Change® (our very workable recipe for organizational change that gets people at every level of the company helping to make change happen).

Visioning helps a ton! It keeps us focused clearly on where we’re going — even if we make short-term strategic adjustments to account for what’s going on around the world, our vision for 2020 doesn’t change. And similarly our guiding principles keep us anchored by talking about how we’re going to work together and with the world around us while we’re doing this. These tools and tech-niques all focus on ways to build more effective, lasting and rewarding relationships with staff, peers, bosses, customers and community. Everyone can use these tools: people who are brand new to management as well as people with 40 years of experience. It’s a much cooler way to run a com-pany – and have fun in the process.

Cost: $975/person

Includes- Tuition- Instructional materials- Plenty of product sampling- Breakfast and lunch

By the end of this seminar, participants will:1.Learnnewskillsandknowledgethatcanimprovetheirbottom-lineperformanceasamanager.

2.ExplorethemanagementphilosophythathasbeensuccessfulatZinger-man’s.

3.Developanetworkofpeerswhofacesimilarchallenges.

All of our seminars & workshops are held in our dedicated training space at Zingerman's Southside: 3756 Plaza Drive, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48108. For more information and to register visit us at www.zingtrain.com or call 734.930.1919.

Zingerman's Leading with Zing! SeminarMarch28-29,2011•June2-3,2011•$975

Ever found yourself frustrated, wondering almost aloud:

-What’s wrong with all those employees? Why don’t they get it?

- Why don’t more people start to innovate?

- What’s keeping employees from being more creative?

- What’s wrong with the economy? What’s keeping things from getting going?

Some obvious answers spring to mind—“employees just don’t get it,” “most people aren’t very innovative,” “creativity is being killed by texting and video games,” “the work ethic just isn’t what it used to be”—but, honestly, I think the answer to these problems, and the solution, starts with a simple, two-letter word: US. Not the “United States.” Us. You and me. No I’m not spoofing, it’s not a typo and I haven’t tipped over the emotional edge. I’m talking about the people in leadership roles in any business, organization, or for that matter, country.

To my sense of things, there’s actually nothing wrong with most employees—they’re more than capable of “getting it” and also of getting it done. Most people, I think, are actually very innova-tive and they have been all along. Pretty much all humans are born creative and are capable of using their creativity regularly. So, I really don’t think the problem is with employees. So maybe can blame the economy for our problems? I know the economy is obviously not at its best, but I’m not too big on waiting around for it to get better. In my humble opinion, we have the power to pick up the pace right now, without waiting for Washington or anyone else. But we won’t do it as long as we’re running our organizations in violation of the Natural Laws of Business (or more on the natural laws, see the sidebar on this page or email me at [email protected]). When you work in opposition to nature I’ll just politely say that while you might do alright for a while, in the long run you’re in trouble.

Although I’ve pretty regularly put big ideas into print in the last ten or twenty years, the truth is that I continue to think about them and learn from them long after I’ve formally released them to the world. The Natural Laws of Business is one of those ideas that has kept going and grow-ing long after I originally put it into print. The original essay on the Natural Laws was one of 18 “secrets” that I stuck into Zingerman’s Guide to Good Leading, Part 1, which came out last year. But the idea goes back a lot farther than that . . .

I can remember Paul bringing the Natural Laws up at one of the first ZingTrain seminars (www.zingtrain.com/our-seminars), a good fifteen years ago or more. And, I think we’ve been operat-ing in sync with them for a long time (or at least trying to). But even fifteen years out, the idea of the Natural Laws is still making its way through my mind. Having the Natural Laws out and about in the book, being read by people all over the world has brought me a host of new insights, one of which is that their import is a lot bigger than I thought it was when I first had the idea to write the piece, probably five or six years ago. What’s become especially obvious of late is that while the positive part of this equation—living with the natural laws in mind and adhering to them most of the time—is a very good thing, the inverse is an invitation to big trouble. NOT following the Natural Laws, it’s now very clear to me, can very seriously screw up a company, the lives of all the people who are part of it and the community in, which they work.

I don’t want to overplay the point. I’m not big on preaching doom or gloom. Nor, as you probably know by now, am I ever very big on telling others what they ought to be doing. What follows isn’t an admonition, merely an observation that one may, or may not take heed of. But not saying what I see as clear as clear can be isn’t helping anyone. So . . . I’m just gonna say it.

By operating in violation of the Natural Laws of Business the country’s workplaces are suffering a very serious energy crisis.

Although I do like to have fun, and I do probably laugh more than most serious CEOs (#12 on the list of Natural Laws is that successful organizations have more fun), this is not a joke or just some catchy play on words. I’m very serious about this energy thing. I’m not saying that the world is

coming to an end. The world will wake up tomorrow just as it always has, lots of companies will continue to make money, lots of others won’t, politicians will still be trying to prove themselves right, and the weather in Michigan will still be weird. I’m also not saying that some cataclysm is coming.

I think that it has actually already arrived.

I could, I suppose, put this into good news/bad news terms. The bad news is, honestly, the sky’s kind of already fallen. Over the course of the last century or so it’s settled slowly down on our heads, so steadily and so long ago that no one’s necessarily noticed other than when we have big “crises” like the economic insanity of the last few years. I think we’ve grown so accustomed to working with it that hardly anyone even notices any more. Well, I take that back. We notice by bitching and being frustrated, and by asking those four questions I posed up front, often over and over (and over) again. Although there are certainly many exceptions, I think that this energy crisis in the work place is endemic.

To steal the late Vic Chesnutt’s song title, the gravity of the situation really only came clear to me when I went to DC last September to speak about these self same Natural Laws at the annual Inc. 500 conference. Before I got up to present, I had the chance to hear Gary Hirshberg, founder and CEO of Stonyfield Yogurt, give what I thought was a pretty great keynote. He talked at length about the impending environmental crisis we’re confronted with, about how our ongoing opera-tion in violation of the natural laws of the planet is leading us, inexorably, towards exhaustion of the limited resources the planet has to offer us. He talked about the cost of this activity on the country, on companies, on healthcare and on people’s personal lives.

Anyways, Gary followed all that by outlining the extensive and creative work that Stonyfield has undertaken to turn things around in their corner of the world—within a matter of years they’re successfully saving on resource use and making more money by doing it. He didn’t just preach about environmentalism being the “right thing to do.” He actually showed how an effective, sus-tainable, ecologically sound business might—and, in fact, can—deliver better bottom line results. That, I think, is a holistic solution that any right-minded organization—regardless of which end of the political spectrum one places oneself on—would want to look at.

As I was listening to Gary, getting ready to go on stage myself to speak about the Natural Laws, I had one of those ideas that stayed with me and has grown stronger every time I tell anyone about it.

As organizations opt to live the Natural laws, energy will go up, and with it will come innovation, creativity and positive performance results!

To get you up to speed here, I should back up and say that I’ve become increasingly conscious of energy in the workplace over the last couple years. My awareness shot up almost overnight when I met Anese Cavanaugh, founder of the small California-based company, Dare to Engage, who does an amazing job of teaching and coaching on the subject. Over the last year I’ve written extensively about it. We’ve actually now formally defined “fun” at Zingerman’s—in the profes-sional sense of the word—as being “positive energy,” and we’ve begun to draft up a recipe and a more detailed definition to use in our training. (Happy to send copies of any of it—email me at [email protected]). It’s pretty quickly become a big part of our culture. Most everyone here can, and will, talk about energy, and it’s being built into our training and operating systems. And it’s working—we’re taking what was already a pretty high level of energy in the organization up to even greater heights.

Just as the corporate world, by operating in violation of nature, had contributed to a serious environmental crisis, the mainstream work world, by ignoring the Natural Laws of Business, has contributed to an energy crisis of its own. It’s that energy (which, as we learned from Anese, describes the way everyone feels and the feeling we get from being around them) that I had in mind while Gary was Powerpointing his way deeper and deeper into the impact of environmen-tal issues.

You don’t need to be an expert to see what I’m talking about with this image; the energy crisis is


about as obvious as anything can be. Go into most any business other than the really great ones and you know and I know that the place is going to feel . . . flat. I’ve shared this image with hun-dreds of people (of all ages and all backgrounds) over the last few months, and they all, almost immediately, get it. Walk into most any mall or call most any mail order business you can see, hear and feel the lack of liveliness in the faces of all too many hard-working people all over the country.

When energy is low, so too is creativity, innovation, engagement and . . . almost everything else.

I’m guessing you know what I’m talking about—employees’ eyes are dull, their voices fall flat. While their work is good enough to get by it’s clearly neither exceptional nor overly inspiring. I don’t mean that they hate their jobs, or that they’re not trying, or that they don’t care. But we know that all too often, they’re watching the clock more than they’re watching the bottom line, “getting by” the way a bad team does late in a game in which they’ve been way behind since midway through the first quarter. You can decide for yourself whether or not you want to call that a “crisis,” but I don’t think anyone’s going to argue that it’s a re-ally great recipe for success. I mean, I’m no economist and I’ve never coached basketball, but I can tell you pretty clearly that neither the company nor that team I just described is going to make much of a comeback when the energy’s that low. It’s hard to get high output out of low energy inputs.

The good news, though, is that it’s actually fairly easily repaired at, believe it or not, almost no cost.

I felt pretty good about this emerging energy crisis idea when I presented it in DC. But a couple days after I came home, my feel-ing got even stronger. I was co-presenting with Bo Burlingham here in Ann Arbor at ZingTrain’s two-day Small Giants seminar. At the end of each afternoon we bring in a panel of assorted front line staff, managers and partners to answer questions from seminar attendees. Across the board that day, the content of the answers the panel gave was great. But what blew me away wasn’t what they were saying—it was all about the energy behind it. I mean literally, when it came time to answer whatever question the audience threw at them, each in their turn would light up. They weren’t just high energy; they were what the sports world would call “on fire.”

I mean, think about the context—this wasn’t like they were ap-pearing in Carnegie Hall or getting interviewed before taking the field to play in the Super Bowl. They were simply playing their daily roles in the story that is Zingerman’s, a successful but still almost-irrelevant-in-the-scheme-of-the-world small food busi-ness in a mid-sized town in the middle of the state that’s had the worst economy in the U.S. for as long as I can remember. I know enough to know that they were probably pretty tired and that they surely had six or seven or seventy other things that needed

to get done besides sharing their thoughts with a little conclave of business people from around the country.

And yet, without fail, their enthusiasm on almost every issue was HUGE. This was no dog and pony show where people came out with all the “right answers” delivered by rote. The content these guys were sharing clearly came from their heads, but there was a hugely positive level of emotional energy emerging from their hearts at the same time. These guys were clearly 9s and 10s on anyone’s energy scale. You probably could have powered a cou-ple sustainable food carts on the emotional wattage they were putting out. It was clear that the overriding reality is that one of the biggest reasons that we—and other good organizations we knew—were surviving the economic nightmare fairly well was because of our high energy.

By living the natural laws of business, we were tapping the full energy of the people who work here, and getting way better re-sults in the process.

Mind you, what I’m talking about here is not “only” energy, and it’s not just some “soft stuff” to slough off to our HR department to deal with. Energy is . . . almost everything. With it comes tal-ent, intellectual ability, innovation, creativity, caring, generosity of spirit, belief, big ideas, and doing all that extra effort stuff that so often makes the difference between winning and losing. I be-lieve we’re getting great energy from most everyone who works here. Before you injure yourself rolling your eyes, let me restate that we’re far from perfect—we still have some cynics, and all of us clearly slack some from time to time. But pretty much across the board, the energy here is on; people care, they’re working hard, they’re having fun, they’re innovating all over the place, and they’re getting better results for it.

By contrast, most of the rest of the world is letting massive amounts of available energy go to waste. Pick your analogy—working in that low-energy way is like filling a bucket that’s got a big hole in its side; like running the AC with the windows wide open; or like trying to drive on the highway while you’re still stuck in low gear. Makes me shiver a little bit just thinking about it. Basically, by not living the Natural Laws, lots of well meaning companies are basically paying people NOT to contribute. When you think about it that way, it’s no wonder we have an economic crisis in full bloom.

Mind you, we’re not the only ones that get this, and I’m NOT say-ing that there aren’t other great organizations doing a similar, or even better, job of this than we are. While they’re not the norm, those good companies are certainly out there, and, by dint of the fact that you’re actually still reading this, the odds are good that you might own, manage or work in one. There are also high energy elements—departments, regions, specific stores, or whatever— of organizations that might otherwise not be at the high end of the energy range. Without knowing much of anything

Fixing the Energy Crisis in the American WorkplaceOr, Why Ignoring The Natural Laws Of BusineSs Is A Recipe For Big Trouble

(from Zingerman’s Guide to Good Leading, Part 1: A Lapsed Anarchist’s Approach to

Building a Great Business)

An inspiring, strategically sound vision leads the way to greatness

You need to give customers really compelling reasons to buy from you

Without good finance, you fail

People do their best work when they’re part of a really great organization

If you want the staff to give great service to customers, the leaders have to give great service to the staff

If you want great performance from your staff, you have to give them clear expectations and training tools

Successful businesses do the things that others know they should . . . but generally don’t

To get to greatness you’ve gotta keep getting better. All the time!

Success means you get better problems

Whatever your strengths are, they will likely lead straight into your weaknesses

It generally takes a lot longer to make something great happen than people think

Great organizations are apprecia-tive, and the people in them have more fun

The Natural Laws of BusineSs

1)

2)

3)

4)

5)

6)

7)

8)

9)

10)

11)

12)

12

Named One of Inc. magazine's 2010 Top Books for Business Owners!

G u i d e to G o o d Lea d i n g, Pa rt 1

Available at every Zingerman’s business and online at www.zingermanspress.com, www.zingermans.com and volume discounts available at www.zingtrain.com

For more on the anarchist approach to building a business, come hear Ari at the Hatcher Graduate Library Gallery (Room 100) on April 6 at 5:30. Ari will discuss anarcho-capitalism and give a sneak peek of the next volume in the Zingerman's Guide to Good Leading Series, due out October 2011.

"Anarchism on Rye"ATalkWithAriWeinzweig


about how those successful companies actually operate, I’ll say that the odds are extremely high that—knowingly or not— they’re living most all of those 12 Natural Laws.

You can see the impact of their harmonious relationship with the world, usually, just by looking into the eyes of the employees. The people who work there are excited—their heads and hearts are all in the game. People look happy. They’re smiling, laughing and learning. It’s not like they don’t have disagreements or short-falls or screw-ups, or snipe at each other, because, of course, sometimes, they do. We’re all human. But nevertheless they’re focused and having fun. More often that not, when the energy feels that good, results are likely good.

It’s funny— the other day I was interviewed by a business report-er who asked me if I thought that what we did here at Zinger-man’s was “almost unnaturally positive.” I thought about it for a minute and then I realized it was actually the opposite. “What we’re doing,” I told him, “is, to the contrary, probably the more natural way to work. It’s in sync with the Natural Laws of Busi-ness. This is the way it’s supposed to be. Look over the list of the laws—things just work better when you share a clear vision of where you’re going, when people believe in what they’re do-ing, when the leaders give great service to the staff.” I paused for a minute to process the idea I’d just put out there for the first time. “It’s actually the other way of working, where people aren’t having fun, they’re not in a great organization, they don’t have clear expectations of what they’re supposed to do, and they don’t know where the company is going,” I said, sort of thinking aloud actually, “that’s the unnatural way to work.” I thought a bit more and then let the rest of the idea emerge. “People are actu-ally supposed to like what they’re doing,” I posited. “That’s truly the more natural way to work.”

Inside those organizations that don’t live the Natural Laws the people working are severely energy deficient. The good news is, I think, that the crisis is actually not all that hard to turn around. I know half the country is waiting for Capitol Hill to come up with a way out of the hole we’re in. I’m here to suggest that it’s time to stop waiting. Subsidies are fine and tax breaks, I’m sure, sound as appealing as a candy bar would to a kid (nothing against great candy, mind you—we have a company that makes it every day!), but the real answer, the sustainable answer, the answer with the energy source that’s endlessly renewable, is right here in the hearts and minds of the people we’re already paying to do the work. If low-energy businesses just bought into and lived those darned Natural Laws they could probably up their emotional and intellectual ante like ten fold without spending a dime.

If you doubt my doom and gloom, energy crisis assessment, take a look at this data from a Harris Poll cited in Dean Tucker’s great book, Using the Power of Purpose. Seriously—check this out. Of those surveyed:

Only 37% of employees clearly know the company’s goals

Only 20% are enthusiastic about those goals

Only 20% could say how they could support those goals

Only 15% feel like are enabled to work towards ‘em

Only 20% fully trust the company they worked for

Pretty dismal, don’t you think? No wonder nothing seems to get done these days. But thanks to Dr. Tucker, I realized it was actu-ally worse than I thought when I read the polling numbers the first time through. He had the deft wisdom and wit to suggest that one translate that workplace data into what it would mean for a football team. Of the eleven players who get sent out onto the field:

Only four actually know which goal they’re going towards

Even more depressing, only two of them actually care

Only two know which position they’re supposed to be play-ing when they get on the field.

Only two guys on the team feel like their efforts on the field could actually make a difference.

And all but two players would be just as likely to be rooting for the other team as their own.

Hello! OMG! Insert all the expletives you’re comfortable compos-ing, and then add a couple more for good luck. *!@#&*!!! Is that an energy crisis or what? Remember, this isn’t just me making

this stuff up while holed away in the slightly strange version of reality that is Zingerman’s here in Ann Arbor. This is Data with a serious, corporate, official “D” that’s as big as the one in “Dallas.” American business is paying people (often with lots of benefits) to work at somewhere between 15 and 37 percent of capacity. They show up, they get paid, they do work, but the truth is that they’re operating as if their batteries were on low. You can deny it if you want—belief, I know, is a powerful thing. But I’m telling you it’s true.

Mind you, here at Zingerman’s we screw up regularly and we want to improve most everything we do (that’s actually Natural Law #8). But, the energy level here at Zingerman’s is high and our bottom line results and savings levels, knock on a lot of very natural, traditionally hewn, wood, are also healthy. I’m getting similar reports from friends and colleagues across the country. The headlines are still horrific, and I know, many people are still suffering, but the companies that are living the natural laws are doing pretty darned well. (Like I said, knock on wood! I don’t want to jinx anything!)

Our job, the way I see it, is to help keep it that way. Or actu-ally, more accurately and more appropriately, to raise it all even higher regardless of which direction others’ economic winds are blowing. Although I think we have a lot of good hiring and training techniques to teach (see Zingtrain.com), honestly I don’t think the people who work here (me, Paul, the other partners or anyone else) are ten times better than people everywhere else. Don’t get me wrong—I love our people. I just think that I’d probably grow to love a lot of the people who are out there even though many of them—working as they are at about an eighth of their full energy—have probably made me crazy when I was one of their customers.

To be clear, again, I’m not here to tell you what to do. My intent is simply to share my observations in the hope that they help oth-ers who are ready to help themselves, not to lecture other lead-ers into some sort of grudging submission to nature. In the same way, I’m sure, that Gary Hirshberg, the Stonyfield CEO, hopes that others of us will learn from and adapt the ideas that they’re implementing so that we all have a more environmentally sound world for our children to live in.

I hope that everyone else gets going on this stuff the way we and other successful organizationsalready have and starts to mind-fully live the Natural Laws of Business.

It does seem a bit odd, I guess, to “give away” our natural ad-vantage in the market place. If everyone else in our area or our industry catches on and they all start to live and lead according to the Natural laws . . . that will, I suppose, sort of make it harder for us here at Zingerman’s to stay successful. But you know, that would—as per Natural Law #9—be a really, really good problem to have. As a big believer in sustainable business, it’s very clear to me that the better everyone around us does, the better our town’s going to do, the better we’re going to do too. So please, go for it—eat away at our current natural advantage by living the Natural Laws for yourself. It’s pretty much free, and I think it’s a lot more fun.

I know that, for folks that have been doing business differently for a long time, starting to live the Natural laws might be easier said than done. It’s not just some switch you throw, or a new sup-plier to simply start buying from. But, emotionally challenging as it may be, I truly believe from the top of my head to the bot-tom of my heart, that that is the solution to the energy crisis in the workplace. Anyone who’s interested, who’s ready to do some reflection and willing to change the way they lead and run their organizations can get the work going in the right direction. And, so too can anyone else—leadership work isn’t limited to people whose names show up at the top of org charts.

While it is work, the truth is that it’s mostly about an intellectual and emotional commitment to introspection, better communica-tion and living in harmony with nature. The more effectively we live those Natural Laws, the more mindful we are of them, the more the energy in our organizations is going to go up. You’re certainly welcome to slough off that statement off as overly sim-plistic. But it makes it no less true! The thing about the Natural Laws is that . . . they’re natural; they don’t disappear whether we believe them to be valid or not. What changes are the results we get.

By living the Natural Laws we develop a very different—and radi-cally more rewarding—way of relating to work, to the world, to our organizations and to ourselves.

If that sounds grandiose . . . maybe it is. What I think starts to hap-pen when all this works in harmony is that people make the tran-sition that one of my favorite writers of all time, Wendell Berry, describes simply and insightfully as going from “bad work” to “good work.” Good work leads to good energy. Berry argues elo-quently that, “The old and honorable idea of ‘vocation’ is simply that we each are called, by God, or by our gifts, or by our prefer-ence, to a kind of good work for which we are particularly fitted. Implicit in this idea,” he adds with a bit of well grounded cynicism and I’m sure a sparkle in his seventy-six year old, rooted-in-the-Kentucky-countryside-eyes, “is the evidently startling possibility that we might work willingly, and that there is no necessary con-tradiction between work and happiness or satisfaction.”

While that seems like a shocking idea, I’m sure, to many, to me it seems . . . totally natural. Raise the quality of people’s work experience by living the Natural Laws, and we raise their energy. Raise their energy and we raise the quality of their work. Raise the quality of their work and we raise their energy again. You get the idea. If you think that won’t impact GNP, product quality, ser-vice scores, fun factors and fifteen hundred other things, think again! I don’t want to get carried away here, but think about what happens to the energy that we all take with us when we leave work and carry it into everything else we do. It’s kind of obvious. The energy with which we emerge from our workplace is going to impact the way we deal with our kids, our companions, other service providers when we’re customers and pretty much every-thing. Like I said,I don’t want to sound grandiose here but . . .

The reality is that this energy crisis—and the natural solution to it—are a very big deal.

On the odd chance that you’ve read this far but still want to roll your eyes at me, the last story here goes to Sharon Compton. Sha-ron’s worked at Zingerman’s Mail Order for nearly seven years now. She’s not a manager nor is she on the fast track to being a Zingerman’s partner or trying to take over the corporate world. She’s a very kind, very skilled, very caring and very thoughtful person who contributes positively to what we do in many, very meaningful ways. I like her a lot, and, so too, does most everyone who works with her. Anyways, the other day Sharon stopped by where I was sitting in the Mail Order service center and asked if I had a minute. Which, of course, I totally did. She wanted me to know how much she appreciated being able to work here. Before coming to work here, she went on, she’d retired from her “real career” after 25 years on the job. And she wanted to share with me that having worked here, in a positive and rewarding setting, one in which she was having fun at work, appreciating and being appreciated at a really high energy level every day, well, she’d started to realize that her entire first career had been almost, what she called, “a waste.”

Before you feel bad for her, I’ll add that she was smiling when she said it, and she said straight off that this revelation wasn’t really bothering her. She told me that it’d come clear to her early on when, six months into working here, her husband had said some-thing like, “What’s up with you? How come you’re not complain-ing about work any more?” And the deal was sealed not long ago when an old friend they hadn’t seen for a long time came to visit. When he was leaving to go home, he stopped her, smiled and said, “Wow. You sure don’t complain like you used to.” So take Sharon’s story and add back the positive energy lost dur-ing her 25-year career at wherever it is she worked all that time. Eliminate the 25 years of negativity that, almost needless to say, she also, unwittingly sent out into the world. Multiply all that by however many Americans are in the workforce, less those who work in the really great, naturally oriented organizations, and the equation is rather . . . overwhelming.

Put that power back into our economy and . . . just think how many great things could get going.

(If you want to look them all up, the Natural Laws essay is in Zing-erman’s Guide to Good Leading, Part 1, and, honestly, if you don’t want to buy the whole book, email me at [email protected]).

TheEnergyCrisisintheAmericanWorkplace(cont.)

Legacy Land Conservancy’s 40th Anniversary Celebration

with Roadhouse Chef Alex YoungJune9,2011,6-10p.m.•MistyFarms,8040ScioChurchRd,AnnArbor•Cost:$125($90taxdeductible)Tickets are limited—please reserve early. Call 734-302-5263 or contact Susan Cooley at [email protected]

Join Zingerman’s Roadhouse chef Alex Young for a fundraising farm dinner in honor of Legacy Land Conservancy’s 40th anniversary. As Michigan’s oldest land trust, Legacy Land Conservancy has preserved 4,579 acres of farms, fields, and wetlands. Legacy’s 100-year vision is to protect 25,000 acres — from picturesque rivers and lush forests to working farms that are engines of local prosperity.

Come and savor all that makes southern Michigan delicious: local food, beer, and wine. The Roadhouse’s Chef Alex will cook up the main course, along with contributions from Grange Kitchen and Bar, Sandhill Crane Vineyards, Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales, and Wolverine State Brewing Company.


These favorite gelato flavors make a comeback!

FOOD TOURSVisit Piedmont with Zingerman’s Food Tours!On occasion, I love seriously dark chocolate, big red wines, pasta with fresh herbs, and rich sauces made with really good butter. Nor would I turn down great risotto with white truffle shaved over it. These foods (and so many more) are all part of the local traditional cuisine of Piedmont, a region in the northwest of Italy. Zingerman's has long been sharing artisanal Piedmontese products with our customers here in Ann Arbor, and we decided it's high time to take people to the source.

ComejoinusthisOctoberandyouwill:

• Go behind the scenes and visit a wide range of artisanal Piedmontese food producers, several with products that have been at the Deli or in Mail Order's catalogs over the years. From cheeses to risotto, chocolate and nougat to polenta, red wines, grappa, and white truffles, these producers will share their passion for what they do and their food will delight your tastebuds.

• Explore the delicious Piedmontese cuisine - sophisticated, known for using top-quality fresh ingredients, and with hints of French influence. And, for every dish there's just the right pairing of one of the (world-famous) local wines.

• Stroll the markets and shops of Torino (Turin) and Asti, and pay a visit to Bra, birth-place of Carlo Petrini, the founder of the Slow Food movement and home to his Uni-versity of Gastronomic Sciences.

• Last but not least, you’ll be wowed by the lovely countryside, from the mountains to the lush river valleys.

Come eat, learn, and enjoy your way across Piedmont with us!

Oct 13-21, 2011. Only 15 culinary adventurers, maximum. $5,400 per person, $6,400 per person for solo travelers.*

Please see the Zingerman's Food Tours web site for more information about all of our tours, and to sign up for our occasional e-news. Call or email any time, or find us on Facebook. We’d love to hear from you!

Piedmont, October 2011Tuscany, October 2011Morocco, March 2012

Spain, Fall 2012Sicily, Fall 2012Tuscany, Fall 2012

[email protected]

*Prices subject to change.

AvailableatZingerman'sCreamerycheeseshopat3723PlazaDriveandZingerman'sDelicatessen.

March Cheese Of The Month Specials!

Wemakethesespecialgelationceayearandwhenthey'regone,they'regoneuntil2012.

irisH Brown Bread GelatoMade with caramelized bits of Bakehouse Irish brown soda bread, this annual gelato is sweet and creamy and winning over more fans every March.

GuinNeSs GelAtoOh my goodness, my Guinness! A sweet, malty reduction of this famed Irish stout is folded into gelato for this once-a-year frozen treat. While supplies last!

Manchester onsalefor$9.99(reg $11.99)Serving SuggestionsThe Manchester, when soft, is best on a French baguette with chutney and tomato. Because of the added cream, the aged version is firm and dense but slices very well and can be served with oatcakes or crackers and chutney (particularly Bushe Browne's Banana Chutney). The cheese can also be baked in a puff pastry.

cream CheEseonsalefor$9.99(reg $11.99)Serving SuggestionsCream cheese was the very first cheese we made at the Creamery, crafted much as it was on small dairies a hundred years ago. Made completely by hand with fresh local milk from Calder Dairy it has a deli-cious, fresh milky flavor and a wonder-fully light and fluffy texture. Great spread on a bagel, terrific on toast, and it makes an amazingly good cheesecake.

CofFee minT chip

March Gelato Specials!

FREE GELATOon your BIRTHDAYat the Creamery!

Triumphant Returns!

MarchKenyanPeaberryGreat Kenyan coffees, like this auction lot, have flavors not found in coffees from any other growing region. They taste distinctly of black currant (cassis). It is a lively brightness that has tartness balanced by sweet dark fruits. In this coffee the flavors of currant and prune shine through. It has an exceptional clean and sweet aftertaste that makes you want another sip, and then another.

We were offered a very small amount of this coffee by an importer who, like us, scored this as one of the best auction lots we've tasted in 5 years. It's also the first peaberry Kenyan that we've purchased. The small size of the peaberry requires a very delicate roast and special attention while roasting. We were only able to purchase 2 bags of this green coffee and are offering exclusively at Zingerman's Community of Businesses.

Leave Ann Arbor In Good Taste!Zingerman’s Catering makes it easy to have Zingerman’s famous deli sandwiches or deli trays for your graduation celebration. Simply give us a call and we will put together a feast sure to please everyone.

We deliver your order right to your door or you can pick up at the Deli. No need to leave your car, we will run your order right to you!

Roaster's Picks

AprilWe were too busy trying new coffees to make a choice for April when this newsletter went to print. Stop in or give us a call to see what we liked best! Was it the Tanzanian? A Rwandan? Did our homage to New Orleans with fresh roasted chicory make it?!

GraduAtion 2011!

Give us a call at 724-663-3400. Check out the Graduation Menu at www.zingermanscatering.com


is coming!

OFFER GOOD WHILE SUPPLIES LAST!

AVAILABLE ONLY IN MARCH

SHOP AT ALL THREE BUSINESSES IN ONE DAY & SPEND A MINIMUM OF $20

Zingerman's Southside is our secret little "producer's row" (Zingerman's Bakehouse, Creamery and Coffee Company) where we make and sell the breads, pastries, cheese, gelato, coffee that Zingerman's fans enjoy here in Ann Arbor and all over the U.S. You can buy great tasting food right where it's made and meet the folks who make it! Follow the map on this page or just point your GPS to Plaza Drive, Ann Arbor and then look for the bright orange roof!

And get a free set of 5 limited-edition Zingerman's notecards!

SOUTHSIDE SHUFFLE!

•WanttothesupporttheSouthernFoodwaysAllianceandtheWasht-enawCounty4-HClub?

•Wonderwheretogotolistentoatango-dancing,Plato-quotingpigfarmertalkbacontoanationallyrenownedculinaryhistorian?

•WanttolistentobaconlorefromTennessee’sAllAn Benton,propri-etorofBenton’sBaconandmakerofsomethiscountry’sfinestcuredandsmokedporkbellies?

•Wonderwhatbaconpoetrysoundslike?

•Dreamofeatingmorebaconthanyoueverdreamedof?

•Lovebaconbutcan’teverquitegetyourfill?

•Wakeupsomemorningswonderingwhyyoucouldn’ttastetendifferentbaconsinaday?

A sneAk peek At our hopes And plAns for the weekend:

Thursday Evening:· Preview dinner with AndreA reusing, James Beard nominated Chef-Owner of Lantern Restaurant, Chapel Hill, North Carolina at the Roadhouse

Saturday’s main event· Bacon curing tales from bacon maker extraordinaire, AllAn Benton

· Conversations with BriAn polcyn, Chef, Restaurateur, Co-author of the best sell-ing book Charcuterie

· and John t. edge, Author, Director of Southern Foodways Alliance, member of James Beard's Who's Who of Food & Beverage in America

·Bacon history, bacon poetry, bacon entertainment, bacon learning,

• And, of course, BAcon!

Sunday Morning· Bacon Street Fair Fundraiser for 4 H

What's your bacon quotient? Do you...

If you answered yes to these questions, you’ll want to come to the 2nd Annual Camp Bacon!

A playground for lovers & creators of cured and smoked pork

sta

te s

t.

airport blvd.

airp

ort b

lvd.

plaza dr.

3711

3723

ellsworth

exit 177

ann arbor airport

exit 177

briarwood mall

e l l swor th

is coming!

Nut your average brittle!

Our latest concoction from the candy kitchen foregrounds the full-flavor of fresh-roasted Jumbo Runner peanuts. “I use cane sugar like everyone else, but we cook to shades of deep gold to bring out all the flavor, and the peanuts are in there long enough to roast perfectly,” notes candyman Charlie Frank. Once the brittle is cooked, Charlie lays it out on a sheet and waits until it hits exactly the right tem-perature before pulling it apart. “You want to see bubbles in the mix and when they get to just the right size, you start pulling. Pull too soon and the and you just get a gooey mess and tiny pieces. Pull too late and you don’t get it to the right thickness. When you pull at just the right time you get the sugar to be that silky, shiny con-sistency and pieces that shatter when you crunch them.”

Available only at Zingerman’s Bakehouse, Zingerman’s Coffee Company, Zingerman’s Roadhouse & Zingerman's Delicatessen.

Do the

Check out our facebook page or go to

zingermanscampbacon.com to see how our plans

are shaping up.


It’s not like farro is new; actually it’s anything but. More than likely it dates back to before the time when modern wheat was readily available. I can’t even say that it’s new to the US—it’s been available here for many years now. But for some reason, it’s only in the last few months that I’ve actu-ally “discovered” what I clearly could/should have known

all along—farro is really good, really easy to cook, really versatile, and it’s

really good for you too.

If you’re like me and you knew next to nothing about farro before finding this

little piece in the newslet-ter, it’s an old grain, like I said, that dates back to pre-Roman times. The

Latin name, if I have my words right, is Triticum

dicoccum. It’s somehow related to spelt but seemingly

isn’t spelt despite the fact that many people present it as such. Glenn Roberts, from Anson Mills, who’s a master of these things, gave me a long discourse on the subject of the sort that only Glenn can give, sharing more tiny details than even I can barely keep track of. Suffice it to say that the man knows his seed history, his traditional grain growing and his milling methods and that, honestly, everything that he grows and grinds—we get grits, polenta, corn meal for mush, Carolina Gold rice just to name a few—is incredibly good. Regardless of family tree and genetic tracing work, the key is that farro tastes terrifically good.

We’ve been serving a whole grain farro piccolo (the hard to find, smallest size) by Glenn at Anson Mills a lot of late at the Roadhouse. It’s fantastic. Definitely smaller in size,

and I think a bit nuttier and fuller of flavor. At the Deli we’ve got a bigger grained, farro medio that comes from the Gragnano region of Italy, courtesy of the folks at Rus-tichella pasta, who send us pretty much nothing but really good things, and this stuff is no exception.

WithOliveOil,SaltandPepper

It’s not hard to cook—most recipes call for soaking it over-night which you can do in which case the cook time is really no more than a few minutes. Being more of in the moment cook I just boil it straight from the bag with a bit of salt for about 30 to 40 minutes ‘til its tender. You can go to any de-gree of doneness you like; I prefer it a bit more on the firm side, so it’s got a bit of nice al dente chew left in the middle. When it’s done, just drain it and dress it up with really good olive oil, some sea salt, and whatever else you want, and serve it as you would pasta, rice or beans. If you want you can add a bunch of chopped kale or sliced thin collards to the cooking water. If you have a chunk of bacon or a par-mesan rind sitting around you can put those in the cooking water too. When the farro’s finished, just drain, dress and go straight to soup bowl and eat.

FarroSaladwithMozzarellaandRoastedPepper

One salad I came across in my reading suggested serving room temperature farro, topped with bits of fresh mozza-rella and chopped tomato. Given that we’re in the middle of winter, I’ve been using roasted red peppers instead of tomatoes to great effect. Finish it with a lot of good green olive oil (the Pasolivo from California has been high on my list) along with a bit of sea salt, a touch of Marash (Turkish) red pepper and lots of freshly ground black pepper. This dish is actually good as well with the farro hot and the moz-zarella at room temperature—the cheese will get slightly soft when you toss the two but won’t be fully melted down.

RomanFarroSoup

I’m very big on farro-based soups—they’re easy to do, I can use pretty much anything I’ve got at home, and they keep me warm and well fed. Basically the old Roman recipes seem to be what most of the world might know now as “min-estrone,” but they’re made with farro instead of beans or pasta. Saute some chopped carrots, celery, tomato, garlic and onion, along with a good bit of pancetta, then simmer the lot of them in chicken (or other) broth with farro and plenty of olive oil. Chopped greens are always a good ad-dition as well. Add a piece of pork or parmesan rind if you have one laying around to buck up the flavor even further. Finish with ground black pepper and chopped fresh parsley. Serve it with grated Pecorino Romano cheese and more ol-ive oil at the table.

Farotto

You can also prepare farro as you would Italian rice and make it into a farroto. The recipe is really no different from what you’d do to make a risotto. Sauté some onion, celery and pancetta in olive oil ‘til soft. Add the uncooked farro. Sauté a few more minutes stirring regularly. Then add a ladleful of bubbling hot broth—chicken is good but actually any type of broth would work. Stir the farro; when the broth is almost absorbed, do it again. And again. And again. Til the farro is al dente. Should take about 30 minutes or so. Finish it with a bit of added fat—olive oil is great, but bacon fat is a fine way to go too if you have that around. Add some grated cheese. Farotto, like risotto, can be made with most any additional ingredients; mushrooms, chicken, and various vegetables are all high on my list. Nuts of most every sort are excellent—for sure those Freddy Guys Oregon organic hazelnuts would be great! Honestly the point is you can do pretty much anything.

1. Finding Farro: An Ancient Italian Grain Four Ways

2. Pasta with Smoked Spanish Paprika Here’s an incredibly simple way to make a really fast and fantastic meal. It’s a dish I do when I’m really tired and I don’t have anything amazing in particular that I want to make. It’s a great way to get the leftovers out of my refrigerator and into a really nice, spicy, warm, easy to make supper. So easy . . . . I’m actually a bit embarrassed to even include it here. All you do is cook some good spaghetti, drain it and toss with any bits of cooked vegetables, meat or fish you have heated up. Add some good olive oil, a sprinkling of salt. Cooked chick-peas are very good as well. Then add a very generous bunch of the ground smoked Spanish paprika that Iberians know as Pimenton de la Vera. I like the hot version but you can stay with sweet if you want. You can of course adjust the amount of paprika to your particular taste. Toss the paprika and the pasta right in the bowl and eat. The paprika, hot pasta and olive oil form an instant sauce that clings nicely to the noodles. Grind on black pepper, add more oil or salt as needed. I usually forgo cheese on this one as it seems to get in the way of the smoky, very slightly citrusy, intensity of the paprika. But it’s your pasta—put whatever you want on it.

3. Inzimino; Tuscan Seafood StewAlthough almost unknown I’m sure around Ann Arbor, Inzimino is nearly an institution on Tuscany's east coast, especially around the old port town of Livorno. It caught my eye one day while flipping through Micol Negrin’s very nice book Rustico because of her note that it was often served by the Livornese Jewish community for Sabbath, connected, she conjec-tures to the cooking of Tunisian Jews. (It is, actually remarkably close to the Octo-cous stew I learned from the Mahjoub family). I should say that the version in Rustico is made with squid so that wouldn’t have been what Italian Jews were eating (at least not openly), but the same dish can easily be made with fresh fish, or as she says it frequently was, with salt cod. I’ve done it with octopus as well. Micol’s recipe doesn’t call for chickpeas but many others do and I like their meatiness—heavy perhaps for summer but in winter it’s nice to get the warmth and weight that they bring to the dish.

To make Inzimino, saute some chopped carrot, onion and garlic in plenty of olive oil. (I swear by the sun-dried chopped organic garlic we get from the Mahjoub family in Tunisian). Add some chopped fresh parsley, and a bit of red chile flakes (I’m a BIG believer in the Turk-ish red pepper we get from Marash). Add some dry white wine, a can of cooked chickpeas, a can of chopped tomatoes with its juice, a pinch of salt and simmer. If you’re using octopus, add it (chopped) to the liquid and simmer covered for about 45 minutes to an hour ‘til the oc-topus is tender. If you’re using fresh fish or squid, simmer the soup for about 20-30 minutes (before you add the seafood), adding more liquid if needed to keep it from getting too thick. While it’s cooking, sauté some fresh swiss chard or other good greens in plenty of good olive oil, along with a pinch of sea salt, til soft. About ten minutes before you’re ready to serve, add the greens and the fresh fish to the pot, simmer ‘til the fish is flaky. You should have a thick stew like dish—serve it hot with more olive oil poured over top.

4. Orange, Fennel, and Olive saladYou can find versions of this throughout the Mediterranean. Obviously oranges don’t grow around here but at least there’s good fresh citrus coming into the market while we’re in the worst of winter. If you can find blood oranges they’re really good but any good citrus (grapefruit’s good too) is delicious. Slice fresh fennel really thinly, toss with orange seg-ments, pitted black olives (good ones for god’s sake, not the ones from the can—we’ve got great—right now), olive oil, sea salt, black pepper, red Marash chile flakes. Good with toasted almonds, chopped prosciutto or Serrano ham, or even a bit of feta as well.

5. Watermelon, Feta and Arugula saladI have mixed feelings about putting this in here. Truth is I’d rather make it in August when the watermelons are out on the Farmer’s Market. But it’s good to eat some fruit in the winter and if I’m going to eat something that’s out of season around here, watermelon’s are one of the ones that still seem to be pretty good even when they’re coming from far away. It’s actually good with other melons too, but watermelon is what I like best. Although hardly anyone here has had it, it’s actually a classic Greek salad—one of those combinations that sounds very strange to the uninitiated but is actually extremely delicious and very simple to make. Cubes of watermelon, crumble up some of that barrel-aged Greek feta I mentioned above, toss with torn leaves of fresh arugula. Dress with a good fruity olive oil and a lot of freshly ground black pepper. I think it’s an amazingly delicious combination—the sweetness of the melon, the salty tang of the feta, the richness and slight pepperiness of the oil, offset against the slight crunch and slight pepperiness of the arugula. Try in the winter to brighten a dark day, and then, if you like it, do it again in the height of the Ann Arbor summer!


hot crOsS bunsA traditional treat for Good Friday, a soft yeasted bun made with raisins, currants, and candied orange peel, topped with an icing cross. We make ours with

a bit of potato to keep the dough moist and bake them fresh just for Zingerman's locations! Limited time and limited supply! Order yours today!

More Easter Treats!Eastercookie- Egg shaped butter cookies with a hint of fresh citrus zest that are delightfully decorated with our own marbled vanilla fondant. Great in an Easter basket or at each place setting on the dinner table. AvailableApril1-24.

Kulich- A traditional Russian Easter cake with flaky buttery dough, luscious rum-soaked dried fruits topped with vanilla glaze and toasted almonds. A beautiful hostess gift or brunch treat. AvailableApril1-24

Marshmallow Bunny Tails! - Hand-made marshmallows in two delicious flavors: raspberry and coconut. No off tastes from chemicals or flavorings, just clean pure flavor from Italian Agrimontana raspberry preserves or Italian coconut paste and toasted coconut. You could say they're from Italian bunnies! Each half-pound package contains both flavors. AvailableApril1-24.

Say "SomebunNy loves you" with Zzang! Candy Bars for Easter

Our new Zzang! Bar four-pack features each flavor (Original, CaShew Cow, What the Fudge? and the new Wowza!) in a neat little Easter package that comes complete with a greet-ing card drawn by Zingerman's artist Ian Nagy. As if the chocolate wasn't enough of a reason to put this on your gift list, the card is the first in a series of four celebrating Easter, Halloween, Christmas and Valen-tine's Day. Collect them all and put them together for a surprise bit of Zingerman's memorabilia! Easter is April 24.

fulL menu online at www.zingermansdeli.comMacaroOnsCreamy texture and the great flavors of vanilla bean or chocolate. It's impos-sible to just eat one. Get them by the big luscious piece or a dozen petite ones in a tin. AvailableApril1-26.

Chocolate Orange TorteThis is a moist rich cake for chocolate lovers made with lots of dark chocolate, real orange oil, and ground almonds coated in a shiny dark chocolate ganache and toasted slivered almonds. It's a bonus that it's good for Passover because the cake is made from matzo meal. 6” size, serves 6-8. AvailableApril1-26.

Matzo mandelbread“Mandel” means almonds in Yiddish, and these are loaded—not laced, but liter-ally loaded—with toasted almonds. Made with sweet butter, fresh eggs, lots of fresh orange and lemon zest, and scented with real vanilla. Made with Matzo meal instead of flour. AvailableApril1-26.

PasSoVer SponGe CakeA modern twist on a Passover favorite—Sponge Cake! We’ve dressed up this traditionally tasty but sort of plain Passover dessert. Try our light and lemony sponge cake with lemon curd between the layers and a caramelized meringue exterior. A pretty, flavorful and light (and gluten-free) ending to a Passover feast. AvailableApril1-26.

ErevPassoverisApril18thWe've been preparing and serving full-flavored Passover dishes since we opened in 1982. We make everything from scratch in our kitchen and use the best ingredients we can find. Over the years, our annual Passover menu has built up a loyal local following thanks to traditional dishes like our homemade gefilte fish (try it if you think you don't like gefilte fish!), mahogany eggs, and beef brisket. The full menu is online starting March 1. Don't miss out. Call 734.663.3400 to order!

A few favorites on this year's passover menu:

To see the full menu, stop by the Deli or go online at www.zingermansdeli.com | Order ahead at 734.663.3400

Seder PlateCharoset, Mahogany Eggs, Fresh Horse-radish, Roasted Lamb Shank, Passover Greens, Parsley, & Matzo Crackers.

CompletE SedEr MealChoose from roast beef brisket OR whole-roasted free-range chicken, with housemade golden mashed potatoes and gravy, four handmade gefilte fish, potato kugel & passover greens, Jewish chicken broth with Matzo balls, and a 6” chocolate orange Passover torte made at Zingerman’s Bakehouse.

Other menu highlightsCharoset, Fresh Horseradish, Chopped Liver, Jewish Chicken Broth, Matzo Chocolate Orange Passover Tortes, Bakehouse Macaroons and more.

Pleaseorderatleast72hoursinadvancetoensuretimelydelivery

Firstpick-upisApril18th.

Please note: none ofour Passover foods arestrictlykosher.

BakedfresheverydayApril21-24.Wesoldoutearlylastyear.Don'twait!

Easter TREAtS

from

pashkAYou definitely don’t have to celebrate Easter to enjoy this traditional Russian Or-thodox dessert. Very much like an un-baked cheesecake, we start with our fresh cream cheese for this decadent dessert. Fresh eggs and farm butter are mixed in with candied orange peels, raisins, and lemon zest. After setting overnight, we hand-pack cheese molds with the mixture and press it for one more night until they are ready to eat. Note: This product does contain raw eggs. Available starting April 1st, and will be available until April 9 or until we sell out.

Traditionally served with kulich (see Easter treats from Zingerman's Bakehouse, to the right).

paSsover spEciAlS


What’s Bakin’ at

Bread of the Month

Cake of the Month

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 you’re looking for a little bread adventure check out this calendar.

Register at www.bakewithzing.com or call 734.761.7255

Irish Brown Soda Bread 3/1-17After working on this recipe for 13 years, we think we've really created something special using Irish whole meal flour (whole wheat), white wheat flour, stone-milled Irish oats, soured milk, baking soda and sea salt. Ask us for a sample so you can experience the great flavor and texture of this bread.

Potato Dill 3/5 & 3/6Roasted potatoes, fresh dill and scallions mixed up in our chewy tangy sourdough bread. Great on a tuna melt or toasted with soft cheese.

Green Olive Paesano 3/12 & 3/13 Savory green olives stuffed into our cornmeal crusted paesano bread. Makes an instant appetizer.

Loomis Bread 3/19 & 3/20Tangy Farm bread with chunks of Zingerman's Creamery Cheshire cheese (created by Creamery partner John Loomis) and roasted red peppers from Cornman Farms in Dexter, MI. A Zingerman's exclusive!

Alsatian Rye 3/26 & 3/27Chewy rye made with hearty whole wheat and an old world sour tang.

Chernushka Rye 4/2 & 4/3Chewy traditional Jewish Rye with peppery chernushka seeds.

Black Olive Farm 4/9 & 4/10A crusty round of our signature farm bread studded with marinated Greek olives. If there's any left after snack-ing, it makes great bread crumbs for a twist on eggplant parmesan.

Pumpernickel Raisin 4/16 & 4/17Chewy, traditional pumpernickel bread with juicy red flame raisins and a sprinkle of sesame seeds. Great toasted with a schmear of Zingerman’s Creamery award winning cream cheese.

Hot Cross Buns 4/21-4/24A soft yeasted bun made with raisins, currants and can-died orange peel, topped with an icing cross.

Peppered Bacon Farm 4/30 & 5/1Check out apple wood smoked bacon and black pepper lovin' it up in a crusty loaf of our signature farm bread. Nearly a pound loaf. A meal in itself!

MarchHunka Burnin' Love Chocolate CakeOur dense buttermilk choc-olate cake covered in rich Belgian chocolate butter cream. Customers have been known to fall in love with it. Available in 6" and 9" rounds and sheet cakes.

April24 Carrot CakeWe peel and grate 40 pounds of carrots to make one batch of this cake, combined with toasted walnuts and aromatic spices, and covered with a generous amount of cream cheese frosting. Available in 6" and 9" rounds and sheet cakes.

MarchFarm LoafBaked to a nice dark crust, this is Bakehouse co-owner Frank Carollo's favorite loaf.

$4.50 (regular $6.25)

AprilPaesanoThe traditional bread of the Puglia region of Italy. Pass it around the table for ripping and dipping in great olive oil, soup or pasta.

$4.50 (regular $6.25)

Start Planning Your Summer Bake-CationOur BAKE-cations™ are the ultimate experience for the home baker! We guide you through a comprehensive education in bread and pastry techniques in a fun, excit-ing, relaxed and always hands-on classroom full of good humor and expert instruc-tion. You’ll need to bring along an empty suitcase to bring home all the great stuff you’ve made. Includes breakfast & lunch each day.

Bake!-cationsFantasy Camp For Home Bakers

CalL ahead to order your special loaves from: Bakeshop—3711PlazaDr.•761.2095Deli—422DetroitSt.•663.DELI(3663)Roadshow—2501JacksonRd.•663.FOOD

Most of our Special Bakes are available for shipping at www.zingermans.com or 888.636.8162

Every year on Fat Tuesday, guests call us to place their paczki orders. Every year, we’ve hung our heads and explained that we don’t make them. But now, after 18 years, we at the Bakehouse can finally say that we can take your paczki order! It took our sales guy, Randy Brown, who grew up in the baking world, to make this happen.

Randy has us making traditional paczki. That means we’re using a little Spiritus, Polish grain alcohol with a scary proof content, in the dough. It’s flavorless and you probably won’t taste it, but it keeps the dough from absorbing too much oil. (Interesting little baking trick we’re going to experiment with in our other fried doughs.) We will have two traditional fillings: powidla, which is stewed plum jam, and rosehip jam, which is made from the buds of rose bushes. We’ll also have a newer, Polish-American filling of raspberry preserves and vanilla custard. And last we have our own creation, sweetened cream cheese. Let’s call it the Irish paczki (after it’s creator Randy) and celebrate it as a living example of the forces of the American melting pot in action. The paczki will be slightly more spherical (traditional shape) than a jelly-filled donut. Some will be glazed with icing and others will be covered in powdered sugar.

Let me share just a little paczki history with you. It seems that paczki were created in Poland dur-ing the Middle Ages. Some people say that French cooks visiting Poland improved them by making them lighter. In Poland they are actually eaten on Fat Thursday, the last day before Lent. Although we’re usually sticklers for authenticity, we’re going to stay with the thriving Polish-American tradition of Detroit/Hamtramck, Chicago, and Cleveland to avoid unnecessary confusion. Polish Jews actually ate them during Hanukah (fried foods being traditional during Hanukkah) and then took the tradition to Israel where they are now called sufganiyot in Hebrew! So if you like them on March 8th, join us on the eve of Hanukkah, December 20th, 2011 and we’ll make them again!

Paczki will be available at Zingerman’s Bakehouse (3711 Plaza Drive, 734-761-2095) andZingerman’sDelicatessen(422DetroitStreet,734-663-3354)onTuesdayMarch8th. Since this is our first year we’d love if you placed your order before Fat Tuesday so that we make sure we make enough for everyone who wants them!

CelEbrate FaT Tuesday with Paczki

20% OFF whole cakes-of-the-month and

slices at the Bakehouse or Deli Next Door coffeehouse!

The Paczki are coming March 8 only! Call ahead to reserve yours in five great flavors: traditional powidla (plum jam), rosehip jam,

raspberry preserves, vanilla custard, and sweetened cream cheese

BAKE-cation Week: BreadLearn the theory and the practice behind differ-ent styles of breads—chemically leavened, straight doughs, liquid sponges, and sourdoughs.

Jul 26-29 2011 • 8am-5pm

BAKE-cation Week: PastryCome and learn all of our not-so-secret techniques to making tasty pastry. We cover strudel pulling, laminating croissants, perfecting a pie crust and much more.

Jun 21-24 2011 • 8am-5pmAug 9-12 2011 • 8am-5pm

Amy Emberling, Bakehouse Managing Partner

zingerman's newsletter march-april 2011

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