Just back from Italy, I could not resist trying a Tuscan recipe I learned from a friend in the “slow food” movement. I learned that most Tuscan recipes came from farmers who used everything they had, throwing away nothing. I use canned pear tomatoes only because fresh tomatoes here in Bali don’t compare to the taste and sweetness of fresh Italian tomatoes. So if I can find them imported from Italy that is what I buy. This is a simple recipe that tastes best when not hurried. Turn on your favorite music, have a glass of something, relax, and cook for the joy of cooking.
Pappa al Pomodoro Serves 2-3
Ingredients:
- 3 Tbl. extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
- 1/2 cup finely chopped celery
- 1/2 cup finely chopped carrot
- 150 grams dry crusty country bread or other crusty bread
- 450 grams canned pear tomatoes with juice - preferably imported from Italy or fresh tomatoes, skinned, chopped, their juices saved
- 1/4 white wine or water
- salt to taste
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
- a pinch or two of cayenne
- 1 small clove of garlic, finely chopped
- 2 Tbl. fresh basil leaves, torn by hand into large pieces
- extra olive oil
- a few sprigs of whole fresh basil leaves
Directions:
Heat 2 Tbl. of the olive oil a medium sized pot. Add the onion, celery, and carrot to the hot oil and cook over a medium to low flame stirring occasionally, until the mixture starts to brown. Don’t hurry this by turning the flame way up. It needs time for the flavors to meld.
While this is cooking, tear the bread up by hand into medium sized pieces. Put the pieces in a bowl and add 1 1/2 -2 cups of water tossing the bread around with your hand to make sure it all soaks well. Set aside but give it a toss now and then.
When the mixture in the pot starts to brown, add the tomatoes and their juices. Cook mashing the tomatoes into small pieces with the back of a spoon. Add the white wine or water, plus salt, and freshly ground black pepper to taste along with the cayenne. Stir this mixture well and let cook over a low flame for 20 minutes. You may need to add water to keep it from sticking but it should be somewhat thick at the end of 20 minutes.
Now take handfuls of the soaked bread and squeeze out as much water as possible. Add the squeezed bread to the tomato mixture and the remaining tablespoon of olive oil. Stir well to combine, adding water as necessary, so the pappa does not stick. Taste for salt and pepper and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally and adding more water if needed.
Turn off the heat. Add the garlic and torn basil leaves. Give it a good stir and set aside for 10-20 minutes before spooning in to bowls. Garnish with a thread of olive oil and a sprig of fresh basil leaves.
You can use this resting time to make a salad, preferably including rucola with a simple balsamic and olive oil dressing.
Indonesian Version:
Bubur Tomat
Untuk 2-3 orang
Bahan- bahan :
- 3 Tbl. minyak olive extra virgin
- 1/2 cangkir bawang bombay, di potong halus
- 1/2 cangkir celery, di potong halus (jangan pakai seladri)
- 1/2 cangkir wortel, di potong halus
-150 grams roti yang keras dan kiring (country bread) atau roti lain dengan kulit yang keras (jangan pakai roti tawar yang biasa/lembut)
- 450 grams kaleng tomat Italian termasuk air tomatnya (jus) - bisa pakai tomat yang segar tanpa kulit
- 1/4 anggur putih atau air
- garam secukupnya
- merica bubuk yang segar - secukupnya
- satu atau dua jari bubuk cabe kering
- 1 biji bawang putih, di potong halus sekali
- 2 Tbl. daun basil segar, robek robek dengan tangan (robek besar- besar)
- minyak olive untuk hiasan
- sedikit daun basil untuk hiasan
Cara Membuat:
Panaskan 2 Tbl. minyak olive di dalam panci medium. Waktu minyak panas, tambahkan bawang bombay, celery, dan wortel. Kecilkan api dan masak. Sekali-kali diaduk, sampai campuran menjadi coklat. Jangan masak terburu-buru tapi harus masak pelan- pelan supaya rasa menjadi enak.
Sementara ini dimasak, robek roti dengan menggunakan tangan (robek besar- besar). Masukkan kedalam mangkok dan tambah 1 1/2 - 2 cangkir air. Campur dengan menggunakan tangan atau sendok besar supaya semua roti menjadi basah. Taruh di samping, dan aduk sekali-sekali.
Saat campuran di dalam panci menjadi sedikit coklat, masukkan tomat serta air tomatnya. Aduk pelan sambil potong-potong tomatnya dengan menggunakan sendok. Tambah anggur putih atau air, garam, merica, dan bubuk cabe kering. Aduk bagus dan masak selama 20 menit, gunakan api kecil. Sekali-sekali aduk supaya campuran tidak gosong, tambahkan air kalau perlu.
Sekarang ambil roti yang sudah direndam. Ambil segegam roti, biarkan airnya keluar se banyak mungkin. Tambahkan roti ke dalam panci yang ada tomat. Ambil roti lagi 1 genggam dan biarkan airnya keluar sebanyak mungkin, masukkan dalam panci, ulangi terus sampai semua roti dalam mangkok habis. Tambahkan sisa 1 Tbl. minyak olive. Aduk semua campuran di dalam pot sampai semua tercampur bagus, sekali-kali tambahkan air kalau perlu. Masak selama 10 menit. Campuran harus kental tapi jangan sampai gosong.
Matikan api. Tambahkan bawang putih dan daun basil. Aduk bagus, setelah matang biarkan di samping 10-20 menit. Waktu mau makan, masukkan bubur tomat di dalam mangkok untuk tiap orang, hiasi dengan sedikit minyak olive dan daun basil.
Enak dimakan dengan salad dengan rucola. Bikin saos dengan cuka balsamic dan minyak olive. Bisa bikin salad sementara bubur di taruh disamping.
All recipes are available on the Bali Advertiser website in both English and Indonesian versions. You can easily copy and paste and print. Paste as unformatted text.
