Recipes

Tomato Toast with Jamón

Anya Von Bremzen

"Paladares"

Megan Fawn Schlow

"Paladares"

“One of the unexpected perks of dining out in Havana is encountering great Spanish ingredients—either imported or smuggled in suitcases by homesick Spanish expats. At Casa Pilar, run by a Spanish señora who’s lived in Cuba for almost two decades, locals indulge in her classic Catalan pan con tomate (tomato-rubbed toast) draped with sweet-dusky curls of excellent Spanish serrano or Ibérico ham. Choose flavorful red-ripe tomatoes and the best jamón you can find. Ibérico, now available in this country, is best, but a good serrano isn’t bad either.” —Anya Von Bremzen and Megan Fawn Scholow in their 2018 Beard Award–nominated Paladres.

Ingredients

  • 2 medium, ripe tomatoes, halved crosswise and seeded 
  • 4 thick slices country-style bread, toasted
  • Salt and pepper
  • 4 thin slices jamón Ibérico or serrano (or prosciutto)
  • 4 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling

Method

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Place a grater over a bowl and, with cut-sides-down, grate the tomato flesh to make about 1 cup fresh tomato pulp. Discard the skins.

Spoon 1/4 cup of the tomato pulp over each piece of toast. Season with salt and pepper. Top each with 1 slice jamón and drizzle with 1 teaspoon olive oil per slice. Eat immediately while the bread is still crisp.

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Adapted from Paladares (Abrams Books, 2017).

Yield

4 servings