LOCALadk Magazine

38 Winter 2020 LOCALadk Magazine LOCALadk The sun has set and the village of Glens Falls, New York, is rolling up the sidewalk after another day of activity. The quiet of a place at rest is beginning to creep into a street lit with a glow that points to empty parking lots and closed shops. This is when the bread crew of Rock Hill Bakehouse, a small cohort of true artisans, is hard at work. Work might be the wrong word, since baking bread is their passion—maybe even a life calling. There is plenty of symbolism around bread and the process by which it is made. "Breaking bread" refers to sharing, con- necting with others, showing respect for each other's beliefs and setting aside the differences people might have. "The staff of life," as bread is often called, relates to the most ba- sic of foods to support life. Ever y countr y and culture has some version of this nurturing food made from the simplest of ingredients: flour, water, salt, and usually yeast or an- other leavening agent. From flatbreads like pita to tortilla and naam; from crusty whole-wheat boules to the classic ba- guette, and steamed buns to Pullman sandwich loaves and chewy bagels, bread is an essential part of mankind's diet. Bread is present in the home, the restaurant, the baker y and even the church as we relate back to bread's symbolic con- nection to family, health, sustenance, faith, and friendship. According to Matt Funiciello, owner of Rock Hill, the first team members arrive around 4 p.m. to build the starters and levans for their rustic, deeply flavored breads reminiscent of breads found in the ver y best ancient bakeries of Europe. By 11 p.m. the mixing crew is combining ingredients, and at 4 a.m. bench workers are scaling and shaping the more than 2,500 loaves that Rock Hill produces each of the five days per week they are open. That's more than 12,000 loaves a week! Breadbaking is both an art and a science. Working with those same four basic ingredients, the baker's craft is mod- eled after a process that dates back hundreds of years. Those ingredients in the right proportions, following a time-tested method, at the right temperature, and timed just right for the oven will produce one of the world's great culinar y trea- sures. The crunch of the exterior, the deep smell of fermen- tation when the body of the loaf is revealed, the chewiness of a perfectly baked loaf and a smear of salted butter that melts from the carr yover warmth of a fresh bake is quite pos- sibly one of the most memorable eating sensations a person can experience. Matt states fondly, " I know that I am not the only one who hears the inner voice saying 'thank you' after some eight-grain, three-seed bread has been toasted and spread with homemade blackberr y jelly or after a chunk of Breaking Bread By Paul Sorgule Owner Matt Funiciello

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