Cuban bread

Cuban bread is a fairly simple white bread, similar to French bread and Italian bread, but has a slightly different baking method and ingredient list (in particular, it generally includes a small amount of fat in the form of lard or vegetable shortening); it is usually made in long, baguette-like loaves. It is a staple of Cuban-American cuisine and is traditionally the bread of choice when making an authentic Cuban sandwich.

History

The origins of "real" Cuban bread are debated, with both Miami and Tampa, Florida claiming to be the home of the best. With regards to where it originated, the earliest U.S. bakery to produce Cuban bread was most likely La Joven Francesca bakery, which was established in 1896 by the Sicilian-born Francisco Ferlita, a Cuban-Spanish-Italian immigrant to the in Ybor City community in Tampa. This bakery sold bread for 3 to 5 cents a loaf, mainly to the Ybor City market.

The bakery was destroyed by fire in 1922, leaving only the brick bread oven standing. Francisco rebuilt the bakery even larger than before, adding a second oven, and it became a major supplier of bread for the Tampa/Ybor area. The bakery also became a place to congregate, drink a cup of Cuban coffee, and catch up on the local news.