You may or may not be in the same boat I am, but I’ve reached the point in the summer where some of the plants in my garden are spent and ready to be pulled to make space for my Fall planting and others are making me work to figure out enough recipes to use them in. Insert tomatoes. I’ve made sauces, bruschetta, salads, salsas, soups, etc. I’ve eaten them cooked. I’ve eaten them raw. Heck, I’ve eaten them the same way others eat apples. I love them. And because I love them, I don’t want to waste them. So. If you’re also looking for a way to use up your garden tomatoes (FYI – canned tomatoes work just fine too) then consider this as an option: Pappa al Pomodoro.

I had never heard of this dish until I lived in Italy. This is one of those recipes that was created out of necessity during a time when conflict caused some areas of Tuscany to have their supplies cut off from the coast. It’s incredibly cheap, filling, and uses up ingredients that would otherwise go bad. In my experience, these types of recipes tend to be the best. They’re flavorful and they just feel good.

Because Pappa al Pomodoro is made from only a handful of ingredients, it’s very important that those ingredients be of good quality. If tomatoes aren’t in season, then use canned tomatoes. I’ve included instructions for both in the recipe below. And you’ll want to use fresh basil and fresh garlic. Trust me on this. You do not want to settle for less.

A couple of quick notes:

1. When I make this dish I make a big pot of it. Four people could easily eat off of it for about three meals. You can scale this recipe down if you’re cooking for fewer people or if you don’t want leftovers. Although like most soups, this only gets better as it sits.

2. You need your bread to be stale for this to turn out right. This was originally a recipe devised for using up old bread, rather than throwing it away. If you’re making the full recipe below you’ll need two good sized baguettes and enough time to let them go hard. We usually buy our baguettes about 2-3 days before making Pappa al Pomodoro, tear them into pieces while they’re soft and easy to handle, and then lay them out on a baking sheet covered with a towel.

3. The consistency of Pappa al Pomodoro is almost porridge-like. The stale bread soaks up the cooked tomatoes and their juices like a sponge.

4. This is a very kid friendly meal. Hurray! No crying at the table! So try it out on your littles. You can easily sneak some other veggies into this if you wanted. Everything gets blended right before the bread goes in, so your kids would never even know they’re there.

Okay, onto the reason you’re reading this. The recipe!

Pappa al Pomodoro

Serves 8 – 10

Ingredients:

6lbs ripe tomatoes, peeled and seeded (roughly 18 medium tomatoes)

2 C tomato juice

9 cloves of garlic, minced

2 T sugar

Salt and pepper to taste

1 C lightly packed basil leaves (chop after measuring)

1/4 C olive oil, plus more for garnishing

2 stale baguettes, cut or torn into chunks

Note: If you’re not using fresh tomatoes, then replace the first two ingredients with one 6lb can of whole peeled tomatoes.

Steps:

1.) If you’re using fresh tomatoes, cut an “X” into the flesh on the bottom of each one.

2.) Bring a large pot of water to a boil and then place the tomatoes in using a slotted spoon. Cook for about 45 seconds – 1 minute and then remove and set aside to cool.

3.) Once the tomatoes are cool enough to handle, you should be able to peel the skins off easily. Then cut each tomato in half and remove the seeds with your finger.

4.) Empty the water from the pot and dry it. Then return it to the stove and reduce the heat to medium. Add in the olive oil and allow it to warm. Then add the minced garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, for about a minute. Don’t allow the garlic to burn!

5.) Add in the tomatoes and tomato juice and stir. If you are using canned tomatoes, then just open the can and dump in the contents at this point. Bring to a low boil and cook for approximately 20 minutes.

6.) Stir in the sugar and basil. Using an immersion blender, blend the contents of the pot until mostly smooth. If you don’t have an immersion blender, you can use a regular blender, returning the tomatoes mixture to the pot when done.

7.) Add salt and pepper to taste. You can also add in 1/4 – 1/2 t. of red pepper flakes if you like. This isn’t enough to make the dish spicy. It just pulls out flavors. If you feel that the soup still tastes too acidic at this point, then add in a bit more sugar. Tread lightly though! You can always add more if needed, but you can’t take it back once it’s in.

8.) Finally, stir in the bread chunks a bit at a time, stopping when it seems like the bread has absorbed the liquid and filled the pot. The same principle above also applies here.

9.) Top with a drizzle of olive oil, cracked pepper, fresh basil, and a bit of fresh Parmesan cheese. In Italy, as in most areas of the Mediterranean, they use far more olive oil than we tend to use in the U.S. Olive oil is a GOOD fat so a nice drizzle of it here gives you a serving of those monounsaturated fats we’re all supposed to be getting.

And there you have it! A delicious, simple meal. Because this is a filling dish, I would suggest serving it with a simple salad, or a shared plate of charred vegetables. Let me know what you think! Buon appetito, friends!