Maremmana water cotta

Ingredients for 3 servings:

• 1 onion(s), diced
• 1 can tomatoes, chopped
• e.g. salt and pepper
• 1 pinch(s) of sugar
• e.g. oregano
• 500 ml broth
• 3 slices of white bread, very stale (e.g. half rolls)
• 3 eggs
• salt and pepper
• 150 g grated cheese (e.g. mozzarella or Gouda)
• e.g. olive oil

Instructions

Working time approx. 15 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 45 minutes; Total time approx. 1 hour

Boiled water

First, prepare a tomato sauce using the listed ingredients. Sauté diced onion and a pinch of sugar together in olive oil. Deglaze with a very small amount of stock and reduce the heat. Then add the chopped tomatoes and the remaining spices. Bring to a boil briefly and simmer over low heat for about 45 minutes. Pour in the remaining stock, season to taste, and bring to a boil. Important: The sauce should have enough liquid to soften even the dry bread rolls. In the end, however, (see my photo), they shouldn’t be swimming in the sauce! Create three empty spaces in the tomato sauce in the pot and slide an egg into each (for three poached eggs). Season the eggs with salt and pepper, cover, and let set. Separately, toast the white bread (e.g., in a toaster) and rub it with a clove of garlic. Place a slice of bread on each plate. Using a tablespoon, soak the bread with a little tomato sauce so that it only softens very slightly (!). It should NOT become soggy! So don’t add too much liquid. Sprinkle the grated cheese over the bread and place one of the eggs on top. Let it sit for five minutes to soften the bread slightly. Finally, pour a drizzle of olive oil over the dish. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Note: The acquacotta shouldn’t become soupy! A little crunch should remain from the toasted white bread. That’s the slight difficulty with this recipe. This dish originates from the Italian cucina povera, the cuisine of the poor. The Maremma is part of Tuscany.