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Italian Bread Soup

If you hate waste, you’re going to love this recipe. You can use your stale bread to make a filling Italian soup. This is vegan-friendly if you use vegetable stock.
Italians call this Pappa al Pomodoro. It’s amazing what you can do with broth, bread, tomatoes, and aromatic spices. You should be able to put this together in about 30 minutes
The basics of this soup have quite a humble history, particularly in southern Tuscany and northern Lazio. It was considered peasant fare and bore the name Acquacotta. Aptly, Acquacotta means cooked water!
You can certainly add vegetables to this, but it’s already pretty filling.

Ingredients

  • ½ loaf stale bread (about 6 oz)
  • 2 + tbsp Extra virgin olive oil
  • ½ tsp crushed red chili pepper or red pepper flakes
  • 4 cloves garlic
  • 1 small white onion
  • 1 can (28 oz whole Italian peeled tomatoes)
  • 4 3-4 leaf clusters from fresh basil
  • 2-3 c broth (your choice)
  • Salt & Pepper to taste
  • Fresh parmesan shredded cheese for topping (optional)

Instructions 

  • If the bread is still partly soft, toss it with olive oil
  • Spread on a sheet pan
  • Broil until they turn toasty brown.
  • Put the other 2 tbsp olive oil in a saucepan.
  • When the oil is shimmery, add the chili pepper, onion, and garlic
  • Stir for 10 minutes until fully aromatic and a light golden brown.
  • Pour the tomatoes into the pan and use a tomato masher to make large chunks. Don’t get fancy!
  • Add the basil and simmer
  • Lower the heat and add the bread pieces
  • Pour in 2 cups of broth
  • Let it continue simmering until the soup has a texture similar to grits. If it’s too thick, add more broth.
  • Taste test and remove whole basil pieces
  • Add salt and pepper
  • Pour into bowls with the parmesan on top if you’ve chosen to use it.