26 Sep Baguette-Builds to Maximize Your Menu Refresh
Baguettes have been a quintessential part of the French baking tradition for centuries, although the origin of this long crusty bread’s popularity is disputed. One reigning theory is that its iconic shape (baguette translates to “stick” or “baton”) was developed by Napoleon Bonaparte to make it easier for his soldiers to carry on their march across Europe! No matter how or why this bread was invented, it is still a favorite with modern-day diners and food-lovers.
Tribeca Oven’s line of baguettes combine a light texture with a classic, chewy crust, and are high-impact, efficient ingredients to add to your kitchen’s weekly bread order. The versatility of baguettes is amazing: They can be the carriers for seasonal crostini; sliced and served with soups and dips; toasted and turned into golden croutons for salads; and used for all sorts of sandwiches. Any time your menu could use a refresh, or you need a few inspired weekend specials, baguettes are a smart place to start.
However, we understand that it can be tough for busy operators to innovate new menu dishes, so we called in Thai Nguyen, Culinary Technologist at C.H. Guenther & Son, to develop a few creative, crowd-pleasing baguette-builds. Each of one leverages ingredients you may already have in-house to help keep kitchen prep easy, and food costs down. Give any or all of these a try to delight both regulars and first-time visitors, alike.
Fig and Prosciutto Tartine
This French-inspired open-faced sandwich pairs together a trio of timeless ingredients: sticky-sweet fresh figs, creamy goat cheese and umami-rich prosciutto. Each carefully considered component is layered on toasted slices of Tribeca Oven Sourdough Baguette, then finished with a luxurious drizzle of honey, a sprinkle of pine nuts and a pinch of fresh thyme. This is a lovely addition to a lunch or happy hour menu.
Baguettes belong at brunch, and we’re not just talking about French toast. Swap in a versatile baguette in place of a specialized product like bagels, to create a sophisticated dish that’s both light and satisfying. It starts with toasted Tribeca Oven Harvest Grain Baguette, which features a special blend of cracked wheat, flax, oats, rye and sunflower seeds. The hearty bread is spread with a rich house-made garlic and herb cream cheese spread and slices of smoked salmon.
Whipped ricotta started trending a few years ago, and now it’s a mainstay on cafe and restaurant menus. Its appealing texture and mild flavor complement all sorts of other flavors, both sweet and savory. For example, this tasty toast combines a scratch-made whipped ricotta seasoned with lemon and pepper on Tribeca Oven Ciabatta Baguette with fruity, jammy maple roasted strawberries. A complex, tangy balsamic reduction drizzled on top, with a hint of lemon zest and mint, adds the perfect finishing flair.
Looking for more menu inspiration? The Tribeca Oven recipe collection is full of great dish ideas, ranging from imaginative-and-innovative to tried-and-true. We also invite all industry folks to join our artisan bread community for operators, The Crumb Collective, and to follow us on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn.
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