Florence Fabricant's Thick Tomato-Bread Soup, Catalan-Style

Let's say I bit off a bit more than I could chew. Move on Sunday, cook that same night already, are you kidding me? What can I tell you: I was in a moving-addled state of mind. It took me three more days just to move the contents of my kitchen, and a few more days from that point on to unpack everything and then get to cooking. So forgive me for my long silence and let's move on. After all, it's a whole new day! And there's tomato-bread soup to be discussed.

(For those of you who care about these things, I decided to stay in Queens, in Forest Hills, to be exact, and simply moved from one side of a parking lot to another. My apartment is a studio now, but it has tons of windows and light, far more closet space than should be legal in New York City, and a pretty swank little kitchen, if I do say so myself. The counter space is still rather piddling, but the stove was manufactured sometime in the last 10 years, which is a step up from the last place, and there's no fear anymore that I'll singe my knuckle hairs off every time I try to boil a pot of water, so that's good.)

The first thing I cooked in the new place was a poached chicken breast, well, three, actually, to shred into a big salad that I made for my neighbors the night before they, too, moved out of our apartment building. (Only instead of moving one block away, which would have been the right thing to do, they had the nerve to buy a house in the boonies and move out to Long Island. I might never forgive them.) But, as triumphant as I felt watching the little bubbles squiggle skyward in the poaching liquid, cukes and avocado diced just so in the salad bowl, it was hardly blog-worthy stuff. You, so full of patience while I left you here with the archives, deserved something a little more exciting, wouldn't you say?

I would.

Florence Fabricant, ever trustworthy, provided me with just the thing: a tomato-bread soup by way of Catalunya, chockful of most of my favorite things. Peasant bread and fresh tomatoes? Check. Smoked paprika and saffron? Check. Cubes of chorizo and minced parsley? Well, hello, lover.

Normally, I think I'd be too lazy to enjoy the process of making this soup. There's an awful lot of dealing required for the tomatoes and there's quite a bit of dicing, cubing, slivering, mincing of the other things to be done, not to mention the use of a food processor. But after so many weeks out of the kitchen, it was nothing but a relief to be back in my apron, standing at the counter, working quietly, my mind at ease. I highly recommend cooking this soup during the day, preferably on a weekend when midday is quiet anyway, and you can imagine what it's like to be in Spain on a hot summer's day, people asleep during high noon, you the solitary cook, at home in the kitchen. Ooh, that's bliss, all right.

And the soup is none too shabby either. It's thick and sweet-spicy (I used chorizo picante), the bread gone custardy, the saffron, smoked paprika, and pork fat combining to delectably rough-around-the-edges effect. This is a lusty soup if I ever saw one, and when cooled to room temperature, remarkably palatable on a summer's day. And such a welcome return to cooking.

(In other news, the one thing, the one thing I can't seem to find since the move is my bag of Aleppo pepper. Random bags of votive candles, every mix CD I ever was given, even my replacement pack of dryer sheets made it. But the Aleppo pepper is gone. What the what? And, second of all, I saw Julie & Julia and...frankly, found both story lines a little snooze-worthy. Maybe because I liked actually reading Julia's book and Julie's blog instead of watching the movie version(s)? (Though Meryl is, as usual, so good.) I don't know. What I do know is that the internet venom aimed at Julie Powell these days is mystifying and getting old, awfully fast. Third of all...what was I going to say? Oh, right! My camera. Nikon repaired it and the lens and sent both back, beautifully wrapped, only for me to find that although they did manage to fix the lens, the camera body is still busted. Still. Busted. Despite. The. Repair. Slip. Nikon. Included. When. They. Sent. It. Back. Nice, right? So, my beloved is winging its way back to Nikon, probably as we speak, and if you could all put a little prayer in for its speedy recovery and return, I'd be grateful to you, oh, for eternity. That's all.)

Thick Tomato-Bread Soup, Catalan-Style
Serves 2 to 3

4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic, slivered
4 ounces chorizo (casings removed), cubed
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
3 pounds ripe tomatoes, peeled
Generous pinch saffron threads
2 cups crustless country bread, finely diced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons minced flat-leaf parsley

1. Heat oil in a large sauté pan. Add garlic and cook over low heat till soft. Add chorizo, raise heat and cook until starting to brown. Stir in paprika. Remove from heat.

2. Place a sieve over the pan, halve tomatoes horizontally and hold cut side down over sieve as you gently squeeze to remove seeds and allow juice to fall into pan. Remove sieve. Reserve tomato pulp. Heat juice in pan until warm, add saffron and set aside off heat 10 minutes.

3. Finely chop tomato pulp by hand or in food processor. Add to pan. Bring to a simmer. Stir in bread. Cook, stirring, 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Allow to stand, off heat, stirring from time to time, until room temperature, about 30 minutes. Fold in parsley and serve.

Comments

[Jennifer Hess]

That soup looks and sounds luscious, filled with so many of my most favorite things, and hello - great light in your new place! Cheers and happy new home!

[Tony]

I'm sorry to hear you didn't enjoy the movie - I haven't seen it yet, but I understand where you're coming from.
the soup looks wonderful, by the way. Nikon or no Nikon your posts come together beautifully. I'll be sure, however, to say a little prayer for its speedy recovery :)
congrats on your new place!

[Shauna from Piece of Cake]

Yes!! So glad to see this place blink back to life. And with the perfect recipe for the all-too-often depressing San Francisco "summer" weather.

And you must be feeling like you are missing an arm or something being sans camera for so long. Work it OUT, Nikon! Geez.

[The Leftoverist]

I was only away from your blog for four days (on vacation) and couldn't wait to come back and start reading. 1) I know that feeling of putting on my apron and being back in the kitchen. Heaven. 2) I'm sorry you lost your aleppo pepper. That would be a hardship for me. I wish I could teleport some over to you 3) I'll have my kids add your Nikon to their bedtime prayers

[Laura]

Oh my. This sounds delicious. It's the chorizo that sealed the deal. In other news, I am so happy you are back! Moving is such a pain, even if it is a short one. I hope your camera recovers soon!

[Emily]

Oh gosh, this soup sounds delicious. But I think what really sold it was your paragraph about Spain ;) I think I'll be making it one lazy Sunday this month thanks to those few lines (and the strong desire for a little more saffron in my life!).
Have a good week,
Emily.

[Victoria]

Lots of luck to you in your new apartment. I hope you are very happy there.

I don't know.

It will be hard to tear me away from Bill Telepan's Tomato Bread Soup from last year.

[TheKitchenWitch]

I can't wait to make this soup when it's not quite so steamy outside. I love soup in the fall.

While annoying as heck,consider yourself lucky that it's just your pepper that's missing. I've moved many times and seem to lose something critical every time. This last time, it was my wedding photo album. I am still bitter!!

And you are right. The wrath directed at Powell seems unnecessary. Akin to peeing in one's own nest, I think. Glad you spoke up.

[Alison]

The soup looks delicious and I can't wait to try it. Good luck with the new apartment.

[Shawna]

Welcome back pal! You have been missed. Congrats on the new apartment, looking forward to seeing pics. Oh you must have been pissed opening that package...
Mmmmm. Chorizo makes life so much more interesting.

[Amanda Nicole]

Oh, your new apartment sounds lovely! Here's to lusty soups, and to getting your precious back in all one piece :)

[amelia]

so sorry about your still-broken camera! sounds like it's bordering a worst case scenario situation.

[Julie]

Your new apartment sounds lovely and I am sure your Aleppo pepper will show up sometime soon.

Agree about being surprised at the level of vitriol aimed at Julie Powell. There seems to be a very who-does-she-think-she-is/she's-no-Julia-Child attitude -- completely failing to understand what Julie Powell was doing with her project and blog.

[Kim]

You make me miss my old neighborhood, FH. The CSA, the beautiful, tree-lined walk to the ice cream shop on Metropolitan, Nick's. I now realize that even Natural is a gem. I'm glad you stayed.

[Lynn]

I am so glad you're settled, and so glad you're back!

[Carrie]

This sounds delicious!! Can't wait to try. Your new apartment sounds great - very happy for you.

[Sharon]

I remember when you first moved to the Hills. I'm in LI now, but still miss it a bit. Eddies ice cream, Dees, Natural, and walking to get ices. Loved my time there, especially walking in FH Gardens

[Honeybee]

I hope you're settling into you new place! This soup sounds great - I love any dish containing smoked paprika!

[ann]

That sounds good! I wish my tomatoes had survived so I could make this with my own. Sigh. Glad you're settling in.

[Chelsea]

I love that combination of Spanish ingredients! Chorizo picante of course, why would you choose anything else?! And that soggy bread thing just never gets old.

[Darina]

Best of luck in your new place. I'm not a big soup person but the was you describe this one sounds heavenly--makes me want to make a pot of it myself.

[jean]

Congrats on surviving your move. I just helped my mother move this weekend. I opted to take her out, instead of cooking for her, though. There would have been no way I could have managed both. -- Jean

[Anna]

oh geez good luck with the camera! I feel your pain. At least you weren't moving today- my god it's hot out there!

[Dawn in CA]

So happy to check in and find this post. Unpacking always takes longer than one thinks it will - natch. Welcome back, and thanks for the yummy soup recipe.

[spoonful]

I've been following your blog for a while. I love both digital and polaroid pictures tons!! Once I had my polaroid film run through the airport xray scanner, but I loved the results ... sometimes there are happy accidents. :) Good luck with moving!

[Randa Lea]

Thanks for echoing my thoughts on the slamming Julie Powell is taking. Like she glommed on to Julia's movie. I laughed out loud so much reading her book that my husband (NOT a cook) read it and loved it, along with several other friends. Her story definitely got short shrift in the movie. I have also read My Life in France and enjoyed that very much, but putting them together short-changed both stories. Julie Powell deserved and deserves better--especially from people who love claim to love food and cooking.

[Hillary]

This sounds amazing...tomatoes and bread? Those are my two favorite parts of pizza, let alone together in one soup! Yum!

[Suzy Quinn]

Welcome back! Missed you. And welcome to your new nest. So frustrating to unpack and not find that one thing...

[Suzanne Quinn]

Welcome back! Missed you. And welcome to your new nest. So frustrating to unpack and not find that one thing...

[rosie]

Welcome back! I've come out of my lurking state to say just that.
And I will be trying your soup!

[radish]

This soup looks lovely and comforting. I might make it this Saturday, heat and all! I'm re-reading "My Life in France" and loving it even more the second time around. I've a feeling I'll share your opinion of the movie... I have that hunch. I hope you're enjoying your new kitchen and the beautifully lit apartment!

[Nancy]

I hate to be gauche, but is there another possibility if one does not have saffron? I've never actually bought saffron before, and I'm worried it's going to be horribly expensive.

[Nicole]

You write so well lady - I love reading all your posts. And I'm off to see Julie & Julia tomorrow, I'm a little daunted by your review. I usually prefer any book over it's movie-mania, though I haven't read Julie's blog I loved Julia's book.

[Lisa-Marie]

Hurrah for a new place to live! You must be excited!

Luisa, you are my hero! The husband and I will be having this tonight for tea. mmmmmmmmm!

[Lauren]

I love your description of the feeling of satisfaction that comes from cooking--it's spot on!

[Luisa]

Victoria - I know. I KNOW! That soup is unreal. This one is not as good as that one, but not everything can be! :)

Kim - me, too. I miss my old apartment, but FH is just lovely. I'm so glad I live here.

Chelsea - soggy bread really is so good. Should we start a soggy bread appreciation group? Something tells me we wouldn't be alone. :)

Nancy - here's the thing with saffron: yes, it's expensive. But you use so little of it in recipes that the cost per use isn't so bad. If you don't want to buy it, I wouldn't replace it with anything. Its flavor is really unique. But subtle, too, so I'd just do without it in a recipe. BUT, I wanted to tell you that I bought my saffron at an Indian grocery store in Waltham, MA, for peanuts - almost literally. Is there an Indian neighborhood where you live? You might want to check out the stores there.

Nicole - thanks! Don't be daunted, it's got lovely moments. (I think I'm just too familiar with both story lines, you know?)

Thanks, everyone, for all your kind words about moving, the camera, and the apartment! It's good to be back.

[alexandria]

You had me with just the key words of tomato and soup! Wonderful!

[Baguette]

I`ll also love both words in combination...:-)