Pan con Tomate
Pan con Tomate is a real fancy saying for bread with tomato, and yes, it is exactly that. Something so simple, using the freshest, ripest tomatoes and some really great bread and you have something so addicting that it will have you scratching your head as to why you have not made this before.
Pan con Tomate is really a Spanish style tapa, normally an appetizer, but to be honest this can be eaten any time of the day, and I mean anytime. Mine was served around the brunch time hour and I was screaming for more. Currently we have so many tomatoes growing and we are harvesting them every morning. We have so many at this time that our countertop is full of roma, heirlooms, and cherry tomatoes and it is only about an 1/8 of what is currently in our garden. Pan con Tomate will be getting served, I suspect, on a more regular basis. Did I mention the garlic rub that takes it over the top?
Lets get started.
Ingredients:
- 1 2 inch slice of good bread (sour dough, ciabatta, etc)
- 1 ripe large tomato, grated
- 1 clove of garlic, peeled
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- salt to taste
Start by preheating your broiler to high. This is for toasting your bread.
During the preheat, use a box grater and on the larger grate holes, and begin rubbing your tomato. I used a large beef steak tomato. The skin will not be grated so no worries. You will be left with a thick tomato pulp. It’s glorious stuff and I really do not even like tomatoes that much!
Once the oven is preheated, add the slice of bread to a baking sheet and drizzle with half of the olive oil and a sprinkle of salt.
Place the baking sheet underneath the broiler and keeping an eye on it, cook until it is nicely browned and slightly crisp.
Remove the baking sheet from the oven and rub the top of the toast with the clove of garlic, all over. This in itself is amazing. You could stop there and devour, but don’t!
Spoon on the tomato pulp and slather it on the top of the toast. Season with a bit more salt and drizzle the remaining olive oil. Dig in!
Talk about summer time. This pan con tomate is something so simple but so delicious. It’s amazing this is not on everyone’s radar. If you are looking for something besides a BLT, then give this one a shot. Enjoy!
One Comment
Miriam
For those who don’t like garlic, is there an alternative to rubbing with garlic? I like other alliums.