Castilian Garlic Soup

From the garden

• 16 cloves garlic, thinly sliced (about 2 heads)

From the pantry

• 8 slices day-old crusty bread, torn into rough pieces · stale is better than fresh; it drinks the broth without going gluey
• ⅓ cup olive oil · plus a thread for each bowl
• 2 tsp smoked paprika (pimentón) · sweet, or half sweet and half hot
• 6 cups vegetable stock
• ¼ tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
• 1 bay leaf
• salt · to taste
• black pepper

1. Warm the olive oil in a heavy pot over medium-low heat and add the sliced garlic. Cook slowly, stirring often, 8–10 minutes, until every slice is honey colored and sweet. Rushing this step is what makes the soup bitter.
2. Lift out about a third of the slices with a slotted spoon and set them aside on a plate; they go back on top at the end, so keep them crisp. Pull the pot off the heat and let the oil stop shimmering, about half a minute.
3. Stir the smoked paprika and pepper flakes into the oil off the heat, 20 seconds only. Pimentón scorches in a heartbeat, and the residual warmth is enough to release its color and perfume.
4. Return the pot to medium heat, pour in the stock, and add the torn bread and the bay leaf. Simmer 15–20 minutes, stirring now and then, until the bread collapses and the soup thickens to a soft porridge a spoon can stand in.
5. Fish out the bay leaf, season with salt and plenty of black pepper, and mash any stubborn crusts against the side of the pot. Ladle into bowls and finish each with the reserved garlic chips and a thread of olive oil.