‘Born and Bread in NYC’ is the slogan of Chef Jim Lahey’s operation in the famed neighborhood of Hell’s Kitchen.
Our August DaVinci Master Chef, Lahey himself, originally thought he was going to be a sculptor. After realizing he couldn’t find bread in New York that was reminiscent of the crusty loaves he ate in Italy – while traveling to be an art student – he took it upon himself to recreate what he missed the most (the loaves, that is). And so, in 1994, Chef Lahey opened Sullivan Street Bakery and began baking bread for a slew of NYC’s top restaurants. In 2006, The New York Times published Lahey’s No-Knead Bread method (included below for your cooking pleasure), allowing bakers across the nation to craft bakery-quality loaves from the comfort of their own ovens. To date, the recipe remains one of the NYT’s most renowned recipes, and has revolutionized the way bread makers bake, across the globe. In 2000, Chef Lahey built the Sullivan Street Bakery headquarters in Hell’s Kitchen, where he has become celebrated – not only for his bread – but also for his Roman-style pizza and Italian pastries and cookies. Lahey has also authored My Bread, My Pizza, and The Sullivan Street Bakery Cookbook, and opened up a café in Chelsea. In 2015, Chef Lahey became the first recipient of the Outstanding Baker James Beard Award, followed, in 2016, by an initiation into the foundation’s “Who’s Who of Food & Beverage in America.” Currently, Sullivan Street Bakery delivers bread for more than 300 restaurants in New York. And in 2017, Sullivan Street Bakery spread its roots and officially opened in Miami.
Recently, The Center for Discovery®’s Department of Nourishment Arts’ chefs were able to learn from Chef Lahey as he demonstrated how to make his renowned pizza. Lucky for us, our DNA chefs whipped up a summer vegetable and sweet corn pizza, levering Lahey’s exquisite techniques, which was served in our employee café – for our seventh event, DaVinci Master Chefs Series Presents: the Food of Jim Lahey. This recipe will also soon be made available on our resident’s menu.
A huge thanks to Chef Lahey, as he’s made his famed recipes available for all to try, including: Fresh Tomato and Mozzarella Pizza, Sweet Corn Pizza, and of course…what we’ve all been talking about, Jim Lahey’s No Knead Pizza Dough.
Jim Lahey (if you’re reading this) – thank you for being an incredible supporter and champion of The Center for Discovery and the Department of Nourishment Arts team.
*The DaVinci Master Chef program at The Center for Discovery® invites acclaimed chefs from around the world to engage with our community here, and to volunteer their time to share their knowledge with our own team of chefs in our Department of Nourishment Arts (DNA). Through Chef Cesare Casella, Chief of DNA, this program brings together colleagues and masters in the culinary world, who admire the use of fresh food as a therapeutic tool. Each year, our DaVinci Master Chefs visit The Center to teach their recipes (based on products from our Thanksgiving Farm®), to our DNA chefs. Our chefs learn the recipes and techniques taught by the master chef, which they bring back to the residences to prepare in our kitchens. What happens next? Well, our culinary team enjoys an educational exchange with leading chefs who not only inspire creativity, but a new skillset, as well.
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