Pope Francis agrees with Massimo - Bread is Gold!
We cannot fault the Papal choice of inflight reading - Massimo Bottura's latest cookbook is a great read
Like many people the world over, Massimo Bottura pays attention to Papal guidance. Back in 2015, when the chef set out to open an haute-cuisine soup kitchen, turning Milanese food waste into nutritious, tasty meals for the city’s poor, he sought Pope Francis’s support, and received a little geographical advice in return.
“The Pope said, ‘This is a great idea,” Bottura told the New York Times. “’Let’s do it, not in downtown Milan, but let’s give pride to the poorest quarter of Milan.’”
Since then his Refettorio Ambrosiano has drawn on funding from the Catholic church, enabling the chef’s philanthropic approach to food waste to spread beyond Milan’s poorer neighbourhoods, and out into the wider world. Bottura’s Food for Soul initiative now runs four refettorios around the world, in London, Paris, Rio de Janeiro (and Milan) and has more planned for the future.
However, this advice doesn’t just run one day. The Pope is also willing to take a few culinary tips from Bottura and his famous chef buddies, as can be seen from this photograph, posted recently on Massimo’s Instagram.
This Italian version of Bread is Gold, Il Pane è Oro, has all the same recipes and insight as the English-language version, but is probably a little more useful in the Vatican’s kitchens.
For more on this papal-approved cookbook, order a copy of Bread is Gold here.