Bread

To most Italians, good bread is an essential accompaniment to any dish except pasta and risotto. Bread is served with the meal as opposed to before it. Bread is never served with butter (or olive oil for that matter). Ideally, you would buy it daily from the corner bakery, but that’s not possible for most of us. Unless you are going to bake your own (something few Italians would consider doing), freezing bread is an excellent alternative. Freeze it as soon as you get it home, and it will keep fresh for up to two weeks. When you are ready to serve it, thaw (I find the microwave useful for this), then heat it in a 400° oven for 5 to 6 minutes. It’s the next best thing to buying it every day.