Pappa al Pomodoro
Tuscan Tomato and Bread Soup
Pappa means mush, and that is the intended result: stale bread cooked into ripe tomatoes with garlic and basil until the two cannot be told apart. It is eaten warm or at room temperature, with a good deal of olive oil poured over at the table.
The Italian recipe read softens garlic in oil, adds peeled chopped tomatoes, then stale Tuscan bread moistened with stock, and stirs for about 15 minutes until thick. Basil goes in at the end and the soup rests for an hour before serving, warm or cold.
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus plenty to serve
- 2 garlic cloves, lightly crushed
- 500 g ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped, or 400 g tin of plum tomatoes
- 300 g stale white country bread, crusts removed, torn
- 1 litre hot vegetable stock
- A large handful of basil leaves
- Fine sea salt and black pepper
Method
- Cook the tomatoes Heat the oil and garlic in a wide pan over a low heat for 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and a pinch of salt and simmer for 8 to 10 minutes until they collapse.
- Add the bread Add the bread and about two-thirds of the hot stock. Cook over a low heat for 15 minutes, stirring and breaking up the bread with a wooden spoon, adding more stock as needed, until you have a thick, soft porridge.
- Rest Take off the heat, remove the garlic, tear in the basil and season. Cover and rest for 1 hour.
- Serve Serve warm or at room temperature in shallow bowls, with olive oil poured over and black pepper.
The bread must be stale and dry or the soup turns gluey.