Einkorn is just one grain on each side, attaches to the stem, and the grains were about a third of the size. When I picked regular wheat and brought it to the einkorn field, the regular wheat, the grains on top where they attached to the stem were really, really big, and there were a lot of them. What did you discover just by looking at einkorn and other wheat plants?Ī. There is also good information at, the National Association for Celiac Awareness. That number comes from a doctor, Alessio Fasano. It is estimated that 18 million people in America have gluten sensitivity. It is different from other kinds of wheat. If you have a diagnosis of celiac disease, you should not eat einkorn.įor other people who are concerned about modern wheat or have a gluten sensitivity diagnosis, einkorn is a great option because it is lacking certain types of proteins that induce symptoms. This year, we grew about 3,000 acres of einkorn. It is the first seed planted by Neolithic farmers 12,000 years ago they started in the Fertile Crescent. It is the original wheat, the oldest wheat in existence. We officially started growing it in 2008.Ī. When we met them, they had just about enough for 50 acres. They basically collected seeds from different seed banks, had about 1,000 samples, sprouted some of the seeds, then a small group of farmers in Italy who had been growing einkorn started replenishing the seeds. Once they found him, the European Union started researching einkorn. It included einkorn grains, and he had a few einkorn grains attached to his coat. He was 5,000 years old but frozen perfectly, and the food he ate before he died was frozen in his stomach.

He was found frozen in the Alps, a major archaeological discovery. We met researchers in Italy who had been studying einkorn and Otzi. She has symptoms but not the immune response, but it is treated the same way as celiac. Finally, this doctor said she has gluten sensitivity. Nobody could figure out what was going on we never suspected wheat. Very quickly, about two weeks after we got there, my daughter had a very, very bad asthma attack. She cooked, and we just ate what she made: lots of regular pasta. We moved to Italy, and we stayed with my mother-in-law. She basically had food allergies from day one, but I didn't really know. When my oldest daughter turned 6, we ended up moving back to Italy. How did you come to learn about gluten sensitivity?Ī. I majored in Italian in college, spent a year there and met my husband there. When my father was diagnosed, he took us to Italy to visit distant relatives. Both my parents died of cancer when they were pretty young. My parents were first-generation Italian immigrants. What were the experiences that shaped your approach to food?Ī. Jovial Foods recently expanded its line to include einkorn flours and pastas, available at Outpost Natural Foods or order at .īartolucci, her husband, Rodolfo, and their daughters Giulia, 15, and Livia, 12, split their time between Connecticut and Italy. Spending nearly a decade working with einkorn in her own kitchen – starting with a sourdough bread starter - Bartolucci became a champion for this ancient species of wheat.įeaturing 100 recipes, her first cookbook, 'Einkorn: Recipes for Nature's Original Wheat' (Clarkson Potter, $25), goes on sale Aug. Her family now grows 3,000 acres of einkorn in Italy. Dating back more than 12,000 years, einkorn is the only wheat that has never been hybridized.īartolucci was able to get seeds and experiment.

When Bartolucci started exploring the world of ancient grains, she stumbled across scientists and farmers working with einkorn in Europe. The more she talked with farmers and others about wheat, celiac disease and gluten sensitivities, the more she learned.

She and her husband also run cooking classes and weeklong programs in Italy. Their daughter got sicker and sicker, and after numerous doctor visits, she was diagnosed with a gluten sensitivity.īartolucci, the founder of Jovial organic food line and Bionaturae, was already in the food business. When their daughter came along, they didn't give food allergies much thought. Carla Bartolucci grew up eating traditional Italian breads and pastas.

Carla bartolucci