We wish we'd discovered this one back during Vegan Week! The Italians might call this topping "poor man's parmesan," but toasting bread crumbs in olive oil until they're golden and crispy sounds pretty rich to us. Who knows? We might ditch the parmesan altogether.
We're not sure that poor man's parmesan was ever intended to actually simulate cheese or convince your taste buds that it actually is cheese. This is a centuries-old technique used in poorer Italian communities where aged cheeses like parmigiano reggiano were too expensive a commodity for everyday use. But you have to sprinkle something over your pasta, right?!
All you need is a handful of breadcrumbs and a few glugs of olive oil. Swirl the oil in a pan until it's warm and then add the breadcrumbs with a good pinch of salt. Stir this around until the crumbs have absorbed all the olive oil and turned golden. For extra flavor, you can add garlic, fresh herbs, and ground pepper. For a more detailed description of the process, check out our own recipe for Poor Man's Parmesan.
In some ways, this is even better than parmesan. You get the same (ok, similar!) savory and salty flavors, but with the added bonus of crunchiness. This also has a more forward flavor than parmesan, the flavors hitting upfront rather than melting into the background.
Traditionally, you would sprinkle this over a plate of pasta just before serving. It also works well as a topping for casseroles, for salads, and even a last-minute coating for steak and other grilled meats.
Do you ever make this topping? How do you like it?
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Comments (13)
I've totally done that before. Only instead of even toasting the crumbs in olive oil, I've just used a spoonful of Progresso Italian Breadcrumbs over my pasta.
This is one of my favorite dishes (yeh! carbs!). I also add cauliflower to the mix. I also sometimes use croutons I have already made and crumble them up.
If you're a "sometimes anchovy" kind of vegan, a shmear of anchovy or anchovy paste in the oil with a little garlic and some fine lemon zest will take it to another kind of level.
I love herbed oil-toasted breadcrumbs! They're great on pasta or over casseroles as described here. Try a nice hearty whole-wheat penne with winter greens and bread crumbs --- fantastic!
Whenever we have a heel or extra slice of bread going stale, I make a batch of seasoned crumbs to keep in the freezer so I can use just a sprinkle here and there.
I pour out just a few spoonfuls into a ramekin and let it come to room temp on the counter, or pop it in a warm oven for a few minutes. They're perfect on a steamed vegetable with a little lemon (a great blend of tart and crunchy and unctuous), tossed with a roasted vegetable (crumbed carrots? yum), or sprinkled onto a bowl of bean soup for a flavorful garnish.
Love that, but usually just make caramelized onions (diced small), then toss the bread crumbs in with the onions (and the oil they caramelized in). Delicious!
When I was a kid growing up in the 70's my mom used to serve a side dish of egg noodles topped with herb flavored breadcrumbs saute in butter. Yes the breadcrumbs were out of a box but the dish was very tasty.
I usually sprinkle a mix of toasted ground almonds, lemon zest, garlic, salt, pepper, and nooch on my pasta. This sounds great though! Will have to try it!
I lived as a boarder with a family with small children, and they used to call this "pasta with sand." Fabulous by any name.
I second Art's recommendation. I managed to finagle a recipe from my ex-boyfriend's mother for a dish he once made me called "Spaghetti with Sand." The sand is bread crumbs toasted in olive oil with some anchovy paste and minced garlic. I add a healthy does of freshly ground black pepper. It's delicious and easy to make, one of my go-to "I don't know what to make for dinner tonight" dishes.
I've always considered Nutritional Yeast to be "Vegan's Parmesan cheese". It's cheesey flavour is really good. I like to put it on popcorn!!
When you said "poor man's parmesan it reminded me of one of our favorite alfredo-substitutes that uses cashews to thicken the sauce. I posted it here http://scribbit.blogspot.com/2009/05/cashew-fettucini-alfredo.html. I keep cashews on hand all the time for this quick fix up.
Yup, I've totally done the toasted bread crumbs (I use Panko) too. And I would think adding a little salt and garlic would take you a ways toward something like parm but with it's own thing too...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/40964542@N08/5261577266/
I love the sound of this... WOW!!