Pappa Al Pomodoro Classic Italian Tomato Soup Recipes

TUSCAN TOMATO SOUP (PAPPA AL POMODORO)

Steps:

• Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat; add chopped onion, chopped carrot, and chopped celery. Cook until softened, stirring often, about 15 minutes. Stir in tomato passata and milk. Season with salt, cover and simmer tomato sauce until flavors are well combined, 20 minutes.
• Combine whole onion, whole carrot, and whole celery stalk in a stockpot; cover with water and bring to a boil. Simmer for 15 minutes. Strain vegetables and keep stock warm.
• Stir 1 1/2 cups stock into tomato sauce. Add stale bread; stir and set aside for 15 to 20 minutes to allow the bread to soften.
• Combine tomato-bread mixture, 1 1/4 cups grated Parmesan cheese, and 1 teaspoon of olive oil in a blender; blend until mixture has consistency of a mousse.
• Ladle soup into bowls and serve with shaved Parmesan cheese and drizzled with remaining olive oil. Garnish with basil leaves.

TUSCAN TOMATO AND BREAD SOUP - PAPPA AL POMODORO

Steps:

• Coat a large wide pot with olive oil over medium heat and add the onions. Season with salt and crushed red pepper, to taste, and cook until the onions are soft and very aromatic, about 8 to 10 minutes. Toss in the garlic and cook for 2 to 3 more minutes. Add the wine and cook until it has reduced by half. Stir in the tomatoes, season with salt, to taste, and cook until the tomatoes are really soft and juicy, about 12 to 15 minutes. Toss in the whole basil leaves.
• Working in batches, carefully puree the tomatoes in a blender*. Return the tomato puree to the pot and add the tomato juice and the bread. Cook the soup over medium heat for until the bread has completely lost its shape and the soup is really thick, about 20 minutes. Taste the soup and adjust the seasoning, if needed.
• Ladle the soup into bowls and serve garnished with grated cheese, basil chiffonade and a drizzle of big fat finishing oil.

TUSCAN BREAD AND TOMATO SOUP (PAPPA AL POMODORO)

Steps:

• If your bread is too hard to cut, douse it with water first. Then remove the crusts and cut into cubes. You should have about 7 cups.
• Heat the oil in a large, heavy soup pot over medium-low heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for about a minute, until fragrant. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar, red pepper flakes, and salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes have cooked down, about 10 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning.
• Stir the bread cubes into the tomatoes. Add the water, half the basil, and about 1 teaspoon salt. Bring to a simmer and simmer, stirring and mashing the bread, for about 10 minutes, until the soup is thick, like oatmeal. Stir in the remaining basil, taste and adjust seasoning. Serve hot, warm, or room temperature.

PAPPA AL POMODORO

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large stockpot over medium heat. Add the onions, carrots, fennel, and garlic and cook over medium-low heat for 10 minutes, until tender. Add the ciabatta cubes and cook for 5 more minutes. Place the tomatoes in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade and process just until coarsely chopped. Add the tomatoes to the pot along with the chicken stock, red wine, basil, 1 tablespoon salt, and 1 1/2 teaspoons pepper. Bring the soup to a boil, lower the heat, and allow to simmer, partially covered, for 45 minutes.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• For the topping, place the ciabatta cubes, pancetta, and basil on a sheet pan large enough to hold them in a single layer. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and toss well. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 20 to 25 minutes, until all the ingredients are crisp. The basil leaves will turn dark and crisp, which is perfectly fine. Reheat the soup, if necessary, beat with a wire whisk until the bread is broken up. Stir in the Parmesan and taste for seasoning. Serve hot sprinkled with the topping and drizzled with additional olive oil.

PAPPA AL POMODORO / CLASSIC ITALIAN TOMATO SOUP

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large stock pot over medium heat. Add the onions, carrots, fennel, and garlic. Cook over medium-low heat for 10 minutes, until tender.
• Add the ciabatta cubes and cook for 5 more minutes.
• Place the tomatoes in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade and process until coarsely chopped. Add the tomatoes to the pot along with the chicken stock, red wine, basil, 1 T salt, and 1 1/2 t pepper.
• Bring the soup to a boil, lower the heat and allow to simmer, partially covered for 45 minutes.
• MEANWHILE: Preheat oven to 375°F.
• TOPPING:.
• In a large bowl, put the reserved ciabatta bread cubes, pancetta and whole basil leaves in the bowl and drizzle with olive oil. Toss to coat.
• On a lined sheet pan large enough for all ingredients, place the ingredients in a single layer, Be sure the basil leaves are flat. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
• Bake until the cubes are toasted, pancetta crispy and basil leaves turn dark & crisp. This may take 15-20 minutes.
• Check on your soup. If the soup is too lumpy for you you can smash with a wooden spoon, potato masher or use a submersion blender to break up the bread cubes. Alternately you can puree in batches in a food processor or blender. Blend to desired consistency. I prefer a more rustic presentation.
• *Take care to only fill the blender or food processor 1/3 when you puree HOT soup.
• Turn up the heat to rewarm if necessary. At this point check for seasoning. Add more salt and pepper as needed.
• Stir in parmesan cheese, top with basil leaf, pancetta and bread cubes.
• Freezes well.

PAPPA AL POMODORO (TOMATO BREAD SOUP)

Steps:

• Place the bread in 1 quart of water until thoroughly soaked. Drain and squeeze out as much water as possible. Set aside.
• Heat the olive oil in a skillet and add tomatoes, carrot, onion, celery, parsley, and basil. Let simmer for a few minutes. Crumble the bread into the skillet, stirring frequently. Add 1 cup of water and let simmer about 25 minutes. Drizzle with olive oil before serving.

PAPPA AL POMODORO (ITALIAN BREAD AND TOMATO SOUP)

Steps:

• Sauté the garlic and onion in olive oil with the chili pepper until the garlic has lightly browned and the onion is just getting golden; add the tomato; season with salt; add half the basil leaves torn into tiny pieces; crush the tomatoes with the back of a wooden spoon and stir; cook until the tomatoes fall apart (about 20 minutes).
• Put the bread into the sauce; the bread will soak up the sauce and it will get quite thick; add enough stock to soften the bread and to make it liquidy; add the remaining basil and cook until the bread becomes a kind of mush (this is called'pappa').
• Serve, sprinkling with parmesan cheese and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil over each serving.