When we decided to write about stale bread as our ingredient of the week, Peter immediately bagsed bread and butter pudding and stuffing. Which left me pretty much stumped. That’s all I’ve ever made with stale bread, and most of the time I just give it to the ducks in the Grand Canal.

Luckily, my lovely Italian friend Elisa came to the rescue with these two simple and delicious recipes.

‘Bagnet Vert’ (Green Sauce)

This sauce is originally from Piedmont.

• 4 cloves of garlic – chopped
• 4 salted anchovies (maybe 5 if you are using small anchovies from a jar – wash them first to avoid a too salty taste)
• 2 big slices of stale bread (no crust) – dipped in red wine vinegar then squeezed and smashed with a fork
• 1 big handful of parsley leaves – finely chopped
• 1 glass of extra-virgin olive oil
• salt to taste, and a bit of chilli powder if you like it

Put everything in a mixer.

It’s great on soft cheese – like Italian ‘robiola’ or on cottage cheese, or to accompany boiled meats, or even just to make an open Philadelphia sandwich special, to dip fresh bread, or pieces of roasted peppers, boiled potatoes etc!

Meatballs in Tomato Sauce

For 2-3 people:

• 250 gr. minced beef
• 100 gr. stale bread – de-crusted and softened in water or milk – then squeezed before mixing it with other ingredients
• 1 egg
• 2 big spoonfuls of grated cheese (preferably parmigiano or pecorino, or a dry cheddar!)
• 2 cloves of garlic – finely chopped
• a bit of chopped parsley and pine nuts and a handful of raisins if you like them, all finely chopped
• salt and pepper to taste

Aside, I prepare a tomato sauce with:

• 1 onion
• 1 clove of garlic
• 1 can of whole plum tomatoes
• basil

I stir-fry the meat balls in abundant olive oil, I remove the oil if there’s too much left in the pan and cover them with the tomato sauce for 15 minutes at low heat.

Related posts:

1. Stale Bread Recipes: Bread and Butter Pudding with Jam, Old Fashioned Herb Stuffing
2. Ingredient of the Week, Leftover Bread: Italian Bread Soup with Tomato
3. A reader’s tips for stale bread