One thing that always reminds me of home is the smell of oregano bread baking in the oven. My grandmother used to make it and now my dad makes it all the time, but always on Christmas Eve. When it’s not Covid, my family hosts a huge Christmas Eve bash and Mama Nona’s Oregano Bread has become a staple.

Who was Mama Nona (pronounced, “Mumma Non”… you don’t always say the last sound in Southern Italian dialect)? She was my great, great grandmother who immigrated from Italy in the early 1900s. My dad grew up knowing her well, even though she didn’t speak much English. She did know the ever-important word, “ice box,” though! Mama Nona sounds like an interesting woman. My great grandmother (her daughter) became a widow in her 20s after her husband was murdered.

She and her four children (including my grandmother) moved in with Mama Nona and Bubba Nono (“Bubba Non”) and they lived as one family for years to come. My great grandmother was the breadwinner of the family and there are stories of her picking up extra shifts to pay for prom dresses, etc.

Even though Mama Nona is long gone, one tradition of hers that has lived on is her oregano bread. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. First I’ll describe the original recipe and then I’ll add the modern spin I put on it at the end. You’ll notice that I don’t include measurements here. This is intentional.

Ingredients:

• White bread dough, homemade or store bought (I use THIS recipe), risen
• Dried Oregano
• Garlic Powder
• Salt
• Olive Oil

Start with risen bread dough and roll out the dough to about 1/2′ thickness

I use a rolling pin for this but you can also flatten it with your hands or stretch it like pizza dough

Give it a few splashes of olive oil and spread it around with your hands

Don’t go too nuts with the olive oil because you don’t want it to leak out when you roll it up. You’ll probably want to wash your hands after this step but it’s up to you!

Then cover it with salt

This is a matter of taste.. My dad likes a lot of salt. I don’t.

Add your garlic powder

I try to use approximately the same amount of garlic powder as I do salt. My dad often uses garlic salt in lieu of my salt + garlic powder so this is an option as well.

Add as much dried oregano as your heart desires.

And then add more.

Roll in to a snake shape.

Some of the filling might ooze out a bit and that’s OK!

Then coil it!

And pinch the end to get a good seal.. or don’t. The seal doesn’t make much of a difference.

Add a bit more oregano on top

Taa daaa!

Cover it with a damp kitchen towel and let it rest in a warm environment.

If you don’t mind your oven being on for a while, start preheating it at this point to 450. Set your bread on a baking sheet on your stovetop so it’s near the warming oven. If olive oil starts to leak out, wipe it up as well as you can. This can burn in the oven and it’s not a fun situation when that happens.

Wait an hour or so and pop your oregano loaf into the oven at 450.

Each oven is different so keep an eye on your bread! I always check at about 20 minutes and again every five minutes thereafter. It’s done when it’s slightly golden brown.

Let it rest when it’s out of the oven for at least half hour and enjoy with warm tomato sauce!

It also makes a good neighbor gift, as it’s not sweet.. There are so many sweets at Christmas time, righ?

Modernized Spin

(You’ll Use the Same Ingredients + Tomato Sauce and Pecorino Romano Cheese)

Roll out a golfball-sized clump of bread dough

Add your olive oil….

Spread your olive oil around and add your salt, garlic powder and oregano

Flip it over and add a spoonful of tomato sauce and cheese to what will be the middle.

Fold it in half in to a half moon-ish shape. Squish the dough together as best you can. Set it on your baking sheet and let it rest in a warm area (near your warming oven ideally.

Bake at 450 for around 20 minutes until golden brown!

Is there a taste or smell that reminds you of the holidays? This certainly is mine and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!