Panzanella [alla Norma]
Yields: 4 portions
Preparation time: 15'
Waiting time: 4h
Tools
-
[OPTIONAL] BlenderSieve or colander
Ingredients
-
250g of slightly stale bread50ml water (depends on how watery your tomatoes are)1 table spoon of wine vinegar (not balsamic)0.5 red onion0.5 red bell pepper1 🐟anchovy🐟 (or a teaspoon of mushroom paste for the 🌿vegan🌿 variant)250g tomatoes (best if “Cuori di bue” variety)1 sprig of basil60ml extra-virgin olive oil[OPTIONAL] taggiasche olives[OPTIONAL] stir-fried eggplants
Directions
-
Put on a kettle with ~2l of waterFinely dice onionPut the diced onion in a sieve and pour the boiling water on top (this will take away part of the smell)Finely dice bell peppers (~3mm side)Coarsely dice tomatoes (~1cm side), keep the juice[OPTIONAL] Remove the crust from the bread and blend itCoarsely dice the rest of the breadMix the anchovy with some oil and break it down to a pasteBreak the basil with your hands in small stripes, try to squeeze it while doing soMix everything (except for the eggplants)Put in the fridge to rest (suggested 4h minimum)[OPTIONAL] When serving add the eggplants on top
Panzanella is a good way to put your stale bread to good use: nothing goes to waste!
The two optional ingredients are not from the original recipe, but they are a twist I added.
Keep in mind that ingredients and quantities are just a suggestion: feel free to customize this recipe as much as you like!
↓ Here are the recipes for some of the ingredients listed above ↓Mushroom Paste
Tools
-
Blender
Ingredients
-
any edible mushrooms, I use champignonenough seed oil to blend the mushrooms
Steps
-
Blend the mushrooms with the oilPut in a pan and cook on medium-low heatKeep cooking and stirring until most of the water is evaporated
This paste has a high content of umami, which can be used to enhance and prolong a taste.
It can be easily stored in the freezer in an ice-cube mold for later use.
Category: Starter
Origin: Toscana
-