Pueblo contains one of World Travel Journal's Food Pilgrimage™ sites - the very authentic and pristine -- Gagliano's Italian Market. Gagliano's makes, by hand (actually the owner's hands), a fabulous Stuffed Bread.
This delicacy is made of very thinly rolled pizza dough, roughly 1/8 inch thick, stretched to huge proportions, which is then layered with homemade tomato sauce and piled with mozzarella cheese, Italian sausage and spices. This is then tightly rolled into a 1' by 4' wide pizza loaf and then baked in an oven. The result is a golden brown, deliciously cheesy, peppery, tomatoey, meaty treat.
The scent of these hot, rolled slices is the essence of Sicilian baking tradition. And you know you are approaching a Food Pilgrimage™ when you smell baking garlic wafting out the front door. And that's the sign of great Italian food being prepared.
The Stuffed Bread is cut into 1' thick slices. Bite into one and the first experience is the slight resistance of thin, crispy, brown dough. That is followed by the perfect,salty, succulent ground sausage, and finished with lovely gooey (but not too much) baked mozzarella cheese. All of that commingles offering up a tiny drip of spicy-red, oily juices. Napkins are definitely required.
Make sure to call ahead for this delicacy (and I bet they would freeze one for you, and ship it, if you ask) as Mama Josephine Gagliano's only makes them a couple of days a week, and those are snapped up by Puebloans-in-the-know, and other food-savvy, gourmet travelers.
If the stuffed bread is hot out of the oven, don't let it cool. Cut off a slice and sit on the benches in front of the market, and go at it. It makes a fantastic lunch, afternoon snack, appetizer for guests, or a main course for dinner, along with salad and a hearty red wine.
The shop offers three versions of the bread: Sausage Bread (described above), the Suprimo (stuffed with a variety of Italian deli meats), and the Bada Bing (the Suprimo and Sausage combined.) We tried the Sausage and the Suprimo. Both were fantastic.
Other grocery items sold at the market include fresh baked Italian pastries (try the wine cookies,) homemade sausage, pastas and sauces, imported Italian grocery and deli items, candy from Perugina (Bacci are the best,) and a huge supply of authentic Italian cooking utensils and equipment. I purchased an extra-large, all-metal, dry cheese grater - the one I forgot to buy in Italy last time I was there - 8 ounces of fresh, dry thyme, and an authentic Italian pastry rolling pin.
This is a fun stop, kids will love it, everyone should eat and shop for gifts and items to take home. And don't forget to give Mama Josephine a big hug and a kiss.
Food Pilgrimage™ Item Name: Stuffed Bread - Suprimo Bread (mixed deli meats), Bada Bing (Suprino plus Italian sausage), Sausage Bread (Italian and spices)
Price: whole bread $14 - $17
Serving Preparation: heat and eat
Time in Production: 10 years
Purveyor: Gagliano's Italian Market & Deli (locals pronounce the second G.)
First Opened: 1923
Address: 1220 Elm Street, Pueblo, Colorado, 81004
Phone: 719-544-6058
Hours: Monday-Saturday, 8:30 a.m.- 5:30 p.m.
URL: None
Email: None
