The first time we prepared this Pantesca salad, we weren’t on the tiny island of Pantelleria in Sicily. In fact, we were in upstate New York, in New Paltz, at the dreamy farm of Ray Bradley. We were kicking off a new Gustiamo tradition: a Ferragosto (15th of August) celebration with Ray, our absolute favorite farmer. We cooked a full menu for 60 (sixty!) people, combining Ray’s fantastic produce with some Gustiamo staples. Here’s an adapted version of the recipe for a smaller crowd for the balmy weather.
Ingredients
SERVES: 4-6 people
TIME: 45 minutes
- Medium potatoes (Yukon Gold or Eastern), 4
- Fresh plum tomatoes, 8
- Small red onion, 1/2
- Large basil leaves, 12, thinly sliced
- Black olives (40 gr/ 1.5 oz)
- Anchovies, 4, cleaned, filleted, and torn into pieces
- Capers, rinsed and patted dry (30 gr/1 oz)
- Caper leaves, 12, thinly sliced
- Dried oregano, to taste
- EVOO, 1/4 cup
- Fine sea salt
- Black pepper
Preparation
- Scrub the potatoes. Boil them until they are easily pierced with a fork (30-35 minutes). Drain and let cool. Then peel, halve, and slice them crosswise. Transfer to a large salad bowl.
- Peel and halve the onion lengthwise, then slice crosswise very thinly. Put the onion slices into a bowl with cold water and set aside.
- Wash the tomatoes and cut into 1 1/4-inch cubes.
- Add to the salad bowl tomatoes, capers, caper leaves, basil, anchovies, black olives, and drained onions.
- Add enough EVOO to coat all the ingredients, season with salt and black pepper, and toss to mix thoroughly.
- Serve immediately or chill with a slice of bread.