Always Eat the Hard Crust of the Bread
Recollections and Recipes from My Centenarian Mother
by
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As for bread, Mama had a certain way of eating that too. First of all, she didn’t eat much of it. And she didn’t eat the soft white insides, except rarely, when the bread was toasted. It was the hard crust of Italian loaves that she loved to chew on, and that she recommended to all.
“Always eat the hard crust of the bread,” she’d say, “the insides sit on your stomach.”
At least one other centenarian had the same idea about bread. In the late seventies, I was editor of a newspaper in central New Jersey. One day, the city editor sent a reporter to write a story about a local woman, of Italian ancestry, who had just turned one hundred. When the reporter returned, she said she had asked the woman the obligatory question: how do you live so long? To which the woman told the reporter that, when eating bread, one ought to eat only the crust.
As I was writing this account of Mama’s habits, I came across a recommendation from Prevention magazine headlined “Ask for the Heel.” It said, “Bread crust has up to eight times more pronyl -lysine—an antioxidant that fights cancer—than what’s in the center.” I smiled, imagining what Mama would have said about those big words confirming what her own instincts had told her.
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About the Book
Benigna Preziosi Mazzarella led a life that seemed the epitome of ordinariness, except that it also embodied a perfect storm for longevity: amazing genes, adherence to a Mediterranean diet, and almost compulsive physical activity. Benigna imbued her days with an energy all her own. Even more remarkable, she lived to be over one hundred and seven years old.
David Mazzarella, a journalist and the son of Benigna, shares a cooking, eating, and lifestyle guide based on his mother’s philosophies that a lifetime of hard work was not bad, that laughter was even better, and that the only enemy in her life was fat. Known as a wizard in the kitchen, Benigna possessed uncharacteristic dislikes for a lady who exclusively cooked Italian food—she had little use for garlic, oregano, unpeeled tomatoes, wine, and the insides of bread. Mazzarella offers a glimpse into a typical day in his mother’s kitchen along with the recipes of her most sought-after dishes, including one made with a mysterious herb.
Always Eat the Hard Crust of the Bread shares a wonderful tribute to a tough matriarch and inspiring cook through entertaining anecdotes, personal foibles, unforgettable sayings, and practical recipes that share one woman’s secret of how to live a long and happy life.
“A delightful tribute to a long-lived mother and some quirky family members with dozens of Mama’s unique recipes, including one made with an obscure herb that few know how to use.”
—Gwen Romagnoli, co-author of Italy the Romagnoli Way: A Culinary Journey
About the Author
David Mazzarella spent more than forty years in journalism as a foreign correspondent, editor, and publisher. A graduate of Rutgers University, he was the top editor at four daily newspapers, including USA Today, as well as an ombudsman for Stars and Stripes. David lives in Falls Church, Virginia, with his wife Christine and their Chinook dog, Bacio.