Condimento Alle Verdure

It may seem like all I’ve been doing for the last seven weeks is reminiscing about my time in Italy and yes, there’s been a lot of that going on, but I’ve also been back in the kitchen.

My first impulse when looking for a summer starter is to grill up some bread for bruschetta with heirloom tomatoes, but I wanted something a little bit lighter. This recipe comes from-Italy in Small Bites (by Carol Field)-a book I’ve had for years and I’ve never been disappointed with anything that I’ve tried. It was everything that I hoped it would be and is the perfect topping for crostini. I loved the surprise of the slight crunch of the cucumber. This would also be delicious tossed with pasta for a summery salad or spooned over grilled fish. The other side of the bowl holds pickled vegetables, a recipe (coming soon) from Cerasa, the farm in the Garfagnana where the Panini Girl Tour spent the day.

Condimento alle Verdure

1/2 small red onion, diced
1/2 cucumber, peeled and diced
2 ripe tomatoes
1-1/2 teaspoons kosher or sea salt
1/8 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 cup finely chopped flat leaf parsley
1/4 cup finely shredded basil
Scant 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1-1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Put the diced onion and the cucumber in a bowl. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Cut an X on the bottom of each tomato and drop into the boiling water for a minute. Remove the tomatoes, place in a bowl of cold water and the skins should slip right off. Slice the tomatoes in half, seed, chop and add to the bowl with the onion and cucumber. Sprinkle with the salt and leave for 2 hours.

Drain any liquid from the vegetables and stir in the oregano, basil, parsley and red pepper flakes. Toss with the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Serves: 6 as an appetizer

Panini Girl In Lucca May 2018   for info or questions get in touch at paninigirl4@gmail.com