Sommer Organic Rusk
The weather in Europe is characterized by three climate zones: the cool subpolar zone in the north, the moderate temperate zone and the hot southern subtropics. The climatic differences do not only change the mentality of the inhabitants, but even the color of the baked bread loaves. The lower the temperatures, the darker the breads become. Conversely, light-colored bread is more likely to be found in warmer climates. In northern and central Europe with their cold winters mixed rye bread is dominating. South of the Alps, on the other hand, white bread is almost exclusively put on the table. White bread is much airier than its dark relative and thus fits better into the light Mediterranean cuisine. Particularly popular are the Italian variants such as ciabatta, grissini or pizza bread. But Italy is also home of a kind of white bread that you would not associate with the Mediterranean cuisine: namely rusk.
Under the name panis frixus rusk was already known in ancient Rome. There it was primarily used as marching rations for the Roman legions. Baking it twice made this special bread very durable and above all very light. For the legionaries, who had to carry most of their equipment and supplies on their long marches by themselves, that was a huge advantage. When they had set up their camp, the hard bread slices were often soaked in water before eating them. Thus the rusk could be eaten more quickly.
Throughout the whole Mediterranean regions, the Romans built a well-developed road network. In the heyday of their empire you could thus travel safely from Egypt to Britain. Even in the Middle Ages, those roads were still passable. In this turbulent era traveling was anything but harmless, though. Along with the willingness to travel the rusk disappeared as well. It had its comeback not before the New World was discovered. For the long sea voyages sufficient supplies were needed. Rusk was perfect for that. Soon it was found in all European ports, and a short time later even in America and Australia. For the crews of the great sailing ships rusk was vital. On shore the intensively baked bread meanwhile had become a popular snack for the upper class. The royal courts in Vienna, St. Petersburg or Constantinople had the highly demanded ”Zweygeback“ (= old German word for ”Zwieback“ meaning rusk) delivered from Germany. On small porcelain plates it was then served to the royal court together with tea. Even Goethe was a fan of rusk. When the prince of poetry made a break from writing, he liked to dip a piece of rusk into his hot chocolate.
Today every child knows rusk. For many babies rusk is the first piece of bread they can chew on. When the children grow older and like to have snacks, rusk is a real alternative to biscuits. Even when having stomach problems or a loss of appetite, rusk is the first option. Rusk is a timeless snack and popular with young and old alike. With a sweet spread or pure with a cup of tea – rusk is always a great choice! This is also proven by the crispy delicious Organic Rusks of the rusk factory Sommer from Neu-Anspach in the southern Hessian Hochtaunuskreis district. The Organic Spelt Minis Rosemary with virgin olive oil are excellent for warm summer evenings with a glass of wine on the terrace. The Mediterranean mini rusks are also great in addition to olives, feta cheese or ham. The Organic Rusks by Sommer in the varieties Spelt, Spelt Butter, Black Emmer and Wholemeal Wheat are crispy classics. They do not only taste great with butter, jam or chocolate cream, but are also a real enjoyment when eaten pure.
