Pappa al pomodoro (Tuscan Bread and Tomato Soup)

Method

1. 01 / Prepare the tomatoes

   Wash them and score a small ‘X’ on the skin of the tomatoes with a small knife, then put them in boiling water for a few seconds. Drain and cool them in cold water. Remove the skin, cut them into quarters and remove the internal seeds, then coarsely cut the tomatoes.

2. 02 / Start by cooking the tomatoes

   In a pan, gently heat a little extra virgin olive oil and brown the clove of garlic. When the garlic is golden, add the tomatoes. Turn up the heat, add the basil leaves, vegetable stock, a pinch of salt and cook for 15 minutes.

3. 03 / Continue with the prep

   Cut the bread into slices and then into cubes, removing the hardest part of the crust if you prefer. Add the diced bread to the saucepan with the tomatoes. Lower the heat and stir with a wooden spoon, making sure that the soup doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pan. Continue cooking over a low heat for another 20 minutes, adding hot stock if needed and stirring constantly until you get a soft consistency.

4. 04 / To serve

   Put the bread and tomato soup in serving dishes, add a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and top with a basil leaf.