Thirty years ago, when we farmed our land, every farmhouse had a matera (a traditional Umbrian bread cupboard) in the storeroom off the kitchen. This bread cupboard was used for the storing of freshly made bread as well as the huge bags of powdery flour, freshly milled from the homegrown wheat. The flour was kept in the lower part of the cupboard while the bread was kept in the storage area above, covered with a wooden lid which took two hands to lift. The bottom of