Pappa al Pomodoro”…or Pupule al Pomodoro

Pappa Al Pomodoro is a traditonal Tuscan soup that originated as a means, as many old recipes have, to use up leftover food…in this case bread and tomatoes.  This soup is a virtual staple on any traditional Florentine restaurant menu.  “Pappa” means mush because, well, that is the consistency of the soup.  This Tuscan version is one of many throughout Italy of “pancotto” or cooked bread.  The good folks at King’s Hawaiin Original  Hawaiian Sweet Rolls once issued a challenge to food bloggers to create a recipe using King’s Hawaiian sweet rolls.  I have created a version of Pappa Al Pomodoro, nicknamed here Pupule al Pomodoro, incorporating the rolls as the bread ingredient in this classic Italian dish.  Some versions have used diced carrot or a bit of sugar in the soup to sweeten the acidity in the tomatoes.  But those ingredients are not necessary in my version as the King’s Hawaiin sweet rolls add all the sweetness necessary and impart a delicious, creamy texture to the soup.

First drop each tomato in a pot of boiling water for one minute.  Remove, let cool slightly, then peel off the tomato skin.Chop the tomatoes, put them in a bowl and set aside.Add olive oil to a pan and cook the onion and garlic until soft.  Meanwhile, toast the King’s Hawaiian sweet rolls in a toaster oven, tear the cooled down pieces apart and process in a food processor into small chunks.Add the chopped tomatoes to the onion mixture and cook for 20 minutes.  Add the King’s Hawaiian sweet roll chunks and 4 cups of chicken broth and cook on medium for 20 minutes.Ladle soup into bowls and serve with torn pieces of fresh basil atop the soup and accompanied by a separate piece of toasted King’s Hawaiin sweet roll.  Very yummy fusion food:  Italian-Hawaiian! This  post is part of my entry in to the KING’S HAWAIIAN Go Pupule recipe sweepstakes.