Today I felt led to write a blog post in tribute to a woman though I never met personally (only through a few emails) who has deeply impacted my life. Carla Bartolucci co-founder of Jovial foods left this earth on Saturday May 22, 2021. According to their Facebook page her death was the result of a brief illness. She died according to their post surrounded by her family. The pain being felt in the loss is immense I am sure having lost a child in miscarriage, my own mother, father, father-in-law, two sisters not to mention two brother-in-laws in the span of my lifetime. All 61 years of it. Her death will be felt for years to come. Our prayer is the God of all comfort will comfort their hearts.
Einkorn is an ancient grain of wheat, and about 6 years ago or so I discovered this wheat for the first time. Now anyone who has baked with einkorn knows that this is no conventional wheat. I consider myself an experienced baker but einkorn certainly humbled me to novice status for sure. At the time there were limited recipes or even worthwhile cookbooks dedicated to this wheat variety. Shanna & Tim Mallon published their cookbook Einkorn in 2015. I immediately purchased it and began baking my way through. My research continued and I came across Carla’s book Einkorn also published in 2015 so again I ordered it immediately and received a signed copy which is a blessing to this day. Carla and her family have really taught me so much about how great einkorn is and how to make some absolutely fabulous food using this ancient wheat. Today I bake almost exclusively with einkorn, there are rare occassions when einkorn just won’t work but these times are rare indeed. Jovial Foods is my number one source for organic All-purpose Einkorn flour. Throughout the corona virus plague Jovial did their best to get their products to America. Italy was hard hit and their country suffered greatly as did ours. Einkorn AP was in short supply but thank the Lord that American growers of organic einkorn were there to rescue me! I was deeply indebted to their hardwork and products. I bake the majority of time for others. So I had to get creative and from the teaching of Carla and the proper way to handle einkorn I was able to keep making delicious products for my customers.
So I end this post with a heartfelt “thank you” to the Bartolucci family. Your loss is great and we feel it to and we trust that the God of all comfort comforts your hearts deeply and grants grace to continue on. Guilia you will do well following the path your mother walked before you. Do not lose your focus and remember that life is worth it.
Elizabeth