In previous posts, I have often shared parts of my childhood while growing up in Australia. I was four when we moved to Australia from Brazil, and the first little town we lived in was a place called Moonee Ponds. Like most small towns, it had one main street — and ours was Puckle Street. We lived several blocks from the train station and fairly close to the neighborhood hospital. We either walked, took the train or the tram to get around, because we never owned our own car.
My family arrived in the late 1960’s, and we found that moving to a new country wasn’t very easy. Learning a new language, trying to learn where everything is along with learning how a new government works, is a challenging task. Unless you have experienced it, it is not easy to understand. I think it’s hard enough moving from one town or state to another, but picking up and moving to another country while leaving behind everything you have ever known — well, that takes great courage. In their lives, my parents had to endure this three different times. Immigrants may leave their homelands and their families for many reasons — political unrest is very common, many also leave for better opportunities in employment, a better quality of life, a chance to educate their children and a safe place to call home…I guess you can say that they wanted the same thing we all want.
Australia had been welcoming immigrants from around the world for quite a few years to help build the infrastructure of the country, and their new immigration project would change and influence the country forever.
Like many others, my family arrived in Australia with very little. At the time, it was just the three of us, so my parents chose to rent 2 rooms in the back of a house owned by a Sicilian family. The Sicilian family had arrived several years earlier and had begun to establish roots. They had purchased a one level home and rented out some rooms to help pay it off. It was a very common practice in those days and was practical for families like ours with very limited resources.
There was on large room where we all slept, a very small kitchenette, an outhouse and a shower that we shared with the family. Although it was a modest home, they had a large plot of land. To the right of their house was a very large garden where they grew all of their vegetables. They also raised and slaughtered their own chickens, made their own bread, pasta, pasta sauce and cured their own meat. They even raised their own ferrets that they used for rabbit hunting and as a deterrent for pests in their garden.
The family had 3 children—Franco (the eldest), Bruno and Amalia — I was closest in age to Amalia who was a year or so older than I was, so we became playmates and fast friends.
Me and Amalia at her birthday party…
(Left to right) Amalia, her mother (also Amalia), me and Bruno…
In front of their home (left to right) Bruno, Franco standing behind us, me and Amalia…
Their mother was a great cook, and always kind to invite me to eat with them. It was there that I first tried homemade pasta, arancini and panzanella. Panzanella was something she made when she had leftover bread and an abundance of tomatoes. I loved it after only taking the first bite, and encouraged my mother to make it at home. She would cut the pieces of leftover bread and crisp them up slightly, so that they were toasty on the outside but still soft on the inside. Right before serving, she would toss it all together with her delicious homemade vinaigrette.
She was always very resourceful and never let anything go to waste. Any leftovers were deliciously re-purposed into something new and delicious every day. As an 8 year old, I remember being so impressed with everything that she made.
We didn’t have much but it was a brilliant time to be a kid in Australia. Meeting new people from different cultures and learning about their food and traditions left an indelible mark in my life. Little did she know that I would still remember her, after all of these many years. She was one of the many people who influenced my love and curiosity of food.
Panzanella
2 cups of leftover bread, cut into small pieces and lightly toasted
2 cups of sliced fresh tomatoes (or grilled vegetables)
½ cup of grated parmesan cheese or torn fresh mozzarella
Vinaigrette dressing
3 Tablespoons olive oil
1½ Tablespoons red wine vinegar (or any other acid)
½ teaspoon Dijon mustard (or more if you like, should be tangy)
Coarse Salt to taste
Freshly ground pepper
Fresh chopped oregano or parsley**optional
I had some leftover pull apart rolls left over. I cut them into small, bite size pieces, placed them on a paper lined sheet pan and toasted them in the oven. They are supposed to be toasty on the outside but still soft inside (not like a crouton). I love to make panzanella with these pull apart rolls because they already have so much flavor. Once they have begun to take on a little color, remove them from the oven and allow them to cool. If you are using just tomatoes, make sure to slice them into bite sized pieces. Nowadays, anything goes—so feel free to add just about any fresh vegetable or grilled vegetable you like.
While the bread is cooling, prepare your dressing by placing the vinegar (or lemon juice) in a small bowl along with the salt, pepper and mustard. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil and whisk it until it has thickened. Add in the fresh oregano or parsley.
Place all of the cut vegetables into a bowl and toss them all together with a few tablespoons of the dressing. Then add your choice of cheese, toasted bread along with the remaining dressing and toss again. Serve immediately.
Leave a Reply