I do believe that the soup section of ‘Essentials’ has surprised me the most so far. When I think of soups and Italian foods two things come to mind – Minestrone and Pasta Fagioli. Who knew that there was such greater depth to Italian soups than that?
This is not to cast aspersions upon these two soups – I love them both. Rather it is merely an observation on my ignorance of the breadth of Italian foods. I chalk this to the fact that I always visit Italy in the warm weather when soup is by far the furthest thing from my mind. Gelato . . . always! Soups . . . not so much.
Marcella includes no fewer than four different potato soup recipes in Essentials. This is the second one to include peas. I love potato soup and I love pea soup so I was sure that this would be a new favourite of mine.
The recipe was a breeze . . . essential you boil the heck out of potatoes and split green peas. This mixture gets puréed and then sautéed onions are added. One finishes the dish with some freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese, a grind of pepper, and you’re good to go.
The soup was a subtle, but pretty green colour and a had surprising depth of flavour. This made it a favourite in our household.
Marcella suggests serving it topped with homemade crositini which added a hefty crunch to this soup.