Bolillo Rolls

Any boat is only as good as it's hull.  And Globe Cheese Boats are no exception.  Globe Cheese Boats have floated their way into the Hearts of Legions of Devoted Fans on the strengths of bolillo rolls. 

Chances are pretty good the Original Globe Cheese Boats born at the Apache Drive-In Theater were made with Old School bolillo rolls.  Today's bolillo rolls are a faint shadow on their Old School predecessors.  The bolillo rolls you see in stores are products of the relentless mechanized- industrialization of wheat-yeast products.  

Back in 1950 when Globe Cheese Boats debuted at the Apache Drive-In Theater, we'd bet the bolillo rolls were lovingly hand-formed and baked by local Globe-Miami artisans.  Bolillo Rolls actually have an outstanding history.  Culinary historians agree bolillo rolls date to when they were brought to Mexico City in the 1860s by Emperor Maximilian's troupe of cooks. Their use quickly spread throughout the country. A true bolillo roll is roughly six inches long, in the shape similar to an American football with a crunchy crust and a soft inside known as migajó. It is the main ingredient for tortas and molletes. It has a slash on top made with a slashing tool or bread lame, which permits the exhaust of steam and the expansion of bread without stressing its skin. (See photo below.)

Today's bolillo rolls are a distant shadow of their Mexican and French baguette brethren. However, Globe Cheese Boat aficionados work with the tools and resources readily available.

We buy store-baked bolillo rolls.  We gently slice off  enough of the top so we can scoop out the doughy interior of the roll.  We want an intact crustal structure.  That's the essence of the hull of the Globe Cheese Boat!  A study Hull!

Here is the Bolillo Roll Wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bolillo

Comments?  Contact: arizonahistorystories@gmail.com