Pappa al Pomodoro
Posted on October 7, 2009 by Leslie Blythe No comments
Under the Harvest Moon
My husband and I were invited to an amazing “Under the Harvest Moon” wine tasting dinner the other night. It was held at a beautiful house in La Canada, California. It was one of the first real chilly evenings here. There was a long table set for 30 people on the back patio – absolutely gorgeous.
The host and his friend made the meal, except for one course, which was Pumpkin Tortelloni in a Beurre Noisette from Zucca Ristorante. Joachim Splichal, was meant to be there, but couldn’t make it, so he delivered this course instead – delectable!
Anyway, one of my favorite courses was the first. They made Pappa al Pomodoro, which, is an Italian soup made from end of the season tomatoes and stale Italian bread. Instead of serving this hot, they served it at room temperature with a dollop of crème fraîche and fresh basil. All I can say is OMG!
The following recipe is from Sting and Trudie Styler’s private chef – the chef that works in their Italian Villa – oh, to be them!
I haven’t even mentioned the wine we had – J Vintage Brut Russian River Valley, 2008 Cakebread Sauvignon Blanc Napa Valley, 2002 Hanzell Chardonney Sonoma Valley, 2005 El Molino Pinot Noir Rutherford and 2007 Justin Obtuse Port Paso Robles.
Enjoy!
Pappa al Pomodoro
Serves 6
5 lbs tomatoes
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
1 large onion, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
Pinch of crushed red pepper
Salt
1/2 lb stale, crustless, 1-inch Italian bread cubes (4 cups)
1 cup basil leaves, torn
Crème fraîche, for serving
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Fill a large bowl with ice water. Cut a slit in the base of each tomato. Add the tomatoes to the boiling water and blanch just until the skins start to split, about 10 seconds. Transfer the blanched tomatoes to the ice water to cool.
Peel and halve the tomatoes crosswise. Working over a mesh strainer set over a large bowl, pry out the seeds and press the tomato juice and pulp through the strainer. Discard the seeds. Coarsely chop the tomatoes.
Wipe out the pot and heat the 1/2 cup of olive oil. Add the onion and cook over moderate heat, stirring, until softened, about 6 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and crushed red pepper and season with salt. Cover partially and simmer over moderately high heat until the tomatoes have cooked down, about 30 minutes. If you want to make this the day before, the soup can be refrigerated at this point overnight. Reheat before proceeding.
Add the bread and the reserved tomato juices to the soup and cook, mashing the bread until fully incorporated, and season with salt. Stir in the basil leaves.
Spoon the soup into shallow bowls, drizzle lightly with olive oil, top with a dollop of crème fraîche and some basil for garnish and serve right away.
