Food

Tomato Bread Soup – Pappa al Pomodoro

September 16, 2014

This recipe for Pappa al Pomodoro (or really, tomato bread soup) is my goodbye to summer.

Now that I’m out of undergrad, this time of year is the most depressing for me. Summer is by far my favorite season, and coming to the realization that my days at the pool are numbered really makes me sad. All you people who are excited about wearing boots and scarves: I hate you. Just remember when it gets into the 40’s and you start losing your tan, you asked for it. And guess what? I hate pumpkin flavored things. (The exception to this is that I do like things made with actual pumpkin.) But those pumpkin spice lattes? They taste like somebody dumped potpourri from a grandmother’s bathroom into my coffee with a bunch of sugar and cream. Sick.

Don’t even get me started on the rumors I’m hearing of pumpkin flavored Oreos. People are out of their minds.

If it weren’t for college football Saturdays, the change in temperature would have zero redeeming qualities. I want hot weather, bathing suits, jean shorts, and the beach. I prefer light foods, fun drinks, boats, and natural light. I do not want pumpkin, sweaters, leggings, or bourbon (contrary to my actions at the last home game). But I guess those things are inevitable, because this week it feels like fall has begun.

Also, my tomato plant died. And my basil is about to follow it to the grave. So in a farewell to summer and in a last ditch effort to make something from my summer issue of Bon Appetit, I cooked this soup for dinner one night last week. It’s light, it’s delicious, and Charlie liked it (a lot) even though it has no meat or cheese in it. They call it Pappa al Pomodoro, but the trolls online have gotten pissed since technically that’s a rustic Italian dish traditionally made with stale bread… which Bon Appetit failed to mention in the recipe. (But really, what do you expect? It’s probably a liability to tell the general public to make their soup with stale bread because some fools would use moldy bread and get sick.)

Pappa al Pomodoro or Tomato Bread Soup (depending on how fancy you are)

Ingredients:

2 pounds of ripe tomatoes (cored, quartered)
4 garlic cloves (smashed)
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds (I picked these up loose at Whole Foods for 29 cents)
6 tablespoons olive oil
kosher salt
pinch of red pepper flakes
fresh ground black pepper
several leaves of basil
1/2 loaf “country style” bread (or if you’re Charlie and don’t know what that means, a loaf of soft French will work too)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450.
Toss tomatoes, garlic, fennel seeds, and 3 Tbsp. oil in a large  baking dish and season with salt and pepper.
Roast this mixture in the oven, stirring every 10 minutes, until the tomatoes are browned and everything becomes juicy, 30 to 35 minutes. (It took me about 33 minutes, but I could’ve gone longer.)
Transfer tomato mixture to a pot; add basil, red pepper flakes, 1 cup of bread torn into pieces, and 4 cups water.
Bring everything to a boil for at least a minute and then reduce heat to a simmer (no lid). Stir occasionally, breaking up bread and tomatoes a little, until bread  is soft and the soup has thickened slightly, about 10 minutes.
Season liberally with salt and pepper. (I almost thought this recipe wasn’t going to be great… but it just takes a lot of salt).
Tear remaining bread into small pieces, drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt. Pop into the toaster or back in the oven to create (not too crunchy) crouton-esque bread.
Serve the soup topped with that toasted bread and drizzled with more olive oil if you like. (I like).

It’s hot and steamy, and the tomatoes are still juicy and tangy. It’s sweet and oily and salty all at once. Some of the bread is so soggy (but not in a bad way) that it’s become an integral part of the soup and the crispy bread on top is, debatably, the best part. Feel free to top with fresh basil too.

Maybe one day I’ll be able to forgive fall, but I’ll never be able to forgive winter.