About us

Pane neru is a micro-bakery in which I like to work with pasta made exclusively with natural sourdough. 

Simple ingredients

A living bread

Bread has been a staple food for thousands of years. It is made from simple ingredients: flour, water and salt.

At pane neruI've chosen to work exclusively with natural sourdough, so no yeast is used in my bakery.
Natural sourdough is a mixture of flour and water, nourished by micro-organisms present in the environment. That's why each sourdough is unique.

The paste ferments slowly, over several days, to develop all its aromas and numerous benefits.

Natural sourdough bread is easier to digest, has a low glycaemic index, tastes good and keeps longer.

The right thing to do

Manual kneading

At a time when modernity and technology reign supreme, I choose to knead bread in a chestnut kneading trough made by Pantaléon Alessandri. 

Kneading by hand is slow, gentle and meditative. It allows me to feel the texture of the dough and adjust the amount of flour or water if necessary. By using my hands, I can feel when the dough reaches the consistency I want.

This type of kneading also protects the dough from oxidation and overheating to preserve the nutrients naturally present in the flour.

Cooking

The wood-fired oven

Like manual kneading, baking bread in a wood-fired oven is an ancestral art that is well known in our villages.

While the dough rests and ferments, the wood-fired oven is carefully fed with dry wood, slowly heating the oven roof until it reaches an ideal temperature.

Baking in a wood-fired oven is also more environmentally friendly, as it limits energy use and reduces the carbon footprint of bread production, while using a renewable resource.

Acknowledgements

Thanks to...

My farmer, companion and oven builder: Alain Wagner
My daughter's keen sense of smell "Mummy, your bread smells so good": Fiora
My parents for their unconditional support
Those who got their hands dirty: Akak, William and Jérôme
Those who lent the equipment: Lucien and Jean-Michel 
Those who welcomed and inspired me: Jean-François Berthelot - farmer-baker, Sylvain Renouf - La roue du Levain, Gilles Casalta - Le fournil bio, Gilles Mahinga - Alta Spiga, Emma and Matteo - Farina, Simon - Aroma Café, Gilles - baker, Fred Micheletti, Anghjulina Potentini - singer
The woman who accepted the challenge: Charlotte Raffalli - biros artist
The man who gave me my first sourdough: Stéphane
Those who have already placed their trust in me: Jean-Pierre, Pascal, Fanny, Jean-Baptiste, Jérôme, Maurice, Joyce and Angelina.
The person responsible for designing this website: Manon

THANK YOU for supporting pane neru by choosing artisan bread.