Pan Bagna - a Vegetarian Delight
Introduction: Pan Bagna - a Vegetarian Delight
This version of the “soaked bread” sandwich has been in my family since I was a kid when a friend from France taught it to us. It is a specialty of Nice, and can be done in a variety of ways, but we have followed this particular recipe for decades.
It is an event to make Pan Bagnas. We put all the ingredients out on the table and everyone makes their own simultaneously. The most unusual aspect of this treat is the raw garlic that gets rubbed onto the outside of the crusty French bread at the outset. It leaves your fingers with the aroma for a couple days an acts as a pleasant reminder of your Pan Bagna experience.
Supplies
Crusty French bread
Garlic cloves cut in half
Extra virgin olive oil
Red wine or Balsamic vinegar
Green onions (chopped)
Calamata olives
Fresh tomatoes (thickly sliced)
Ground Thyme
Salt
Fresh ground black pepper
Red or green leaf lettuce
Step 1: Prepare the Bread
Prepare the bread. If the bread is soft on the outside, you may need to pop it in the oven for a few minutes so it can develop a nice crispy crunch on the outside. This is important for the next step. Cut the bread into 6-7” lengths. 265
Don’t cut the bread open though.
Step 2: Garlic the Bread
Take a chunk of garlic and rub it all over the outside of your bread. Use the rough part of the bread to grind away at the garlic clove and expose new juicy garlic which you can rub all over the other areas. Try to grind the entire half clove onto you bread. If you have some left over, slice it up and put it inside later.
Step 3: Cut Your Bread Open
Step 4: Oil and Vinegar
Drizzle olive oil and red wine vinegar onto the soft insides of the bread.
Step 5: Green Onions
On the bottom half put in the chopped green onions.
Step 6: Calamata Olives
Add many halves of Calamata olives on top of the onions.
Step 7: Fresh Tomatoes
Add thick slices of tomato on top of the olives and onions.
Step 8: Thyme, Thyme, Thyme
Sprinkle a nice coating of ground thyme on the tomatoes.
Step 9: Salt and Pepper
Sprinkle on salt and fresh ground pepper.
Step 10: Leaf Lettuce
Add a few pieces of fresh leaf lettuce.
Step 11: Taste
Put the top on your sandwich. Announce that you’ve finished building. And take a big bite.
Step 12: Savor
Savor the perfect combination of flavors as you chew and notice the pleasant burn on your lips from the garlic. The flavor and burn will become more pronounced as you proceed to take more bites. It’s like a slow motion flavor explosion.
Step 13: Make Another
When you’re finished you will be ready to do it all over again. Enjoy! 808