Ligurian Chickpea And Porcini Soup Recipes

LIMA BEAN AND PORCINI SOUP

Steps:

• In a soup pot, combine celery, carrot, onion, garlic, olive oil and salt. Cover and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 10 minutes. Add lima beans, barley, 8 cups water, bones, porcini, thyme and bay leaf, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, until beans are tender, about 1 1/2 hours.
• Discard thyme sprigs and bay leaf. Remove bones, remove meat from bones, chop meat and return meat to soup. Taste and add salt if needed. Ladle soup into bowls and season with pepper. Garnish with shallot and parsley, and serve.

CHICKPEA SOUP WITH PORCINI MUSHROOMS

Steps:

• Rinse the chickpeas, and put them in a bowl with enough cold water to cover by at least 4 inches. Let soak for 12 to 24 hours in a cool place.
• Drain and rinse the beans, put them in the soup pot with 5 quarts of fresh cold water, and bring to the boil over high heat. Drop in the dried porcini pieces, partially cover the pot, and adjust the heat to maintain steady but gentle bubbling while you prepare the pestata.
• Put the onion, garlic, celery, all the herbs, and 1 teaspoon of the salt in the work bowl of the food processor. Process to chop everything to small bits, scrape down the bowl, and process again into a finely minced paste.
• Pour the olive oil into the skillet, and set over medium-high heat. Scrape and stir in all of the pestata, and cook for 2 or 3 minutes, stirring frequently, until it starts to color and stick to the pan. Add the crushed tomatoes.
• Scrape the paste into the boiling soup. Slosh a cup or two of the soup liquid into the skillet to deglaze, scraping up any browned bits stuck to the bottom; pour this into the soup too. Now let the soup perk along steadily for about an hour, uncovered, to develop flavor and reduce slightly.
• Dump in all the sliced mushrooms and another teaspoon salt, stir well, and let the soup bubble and reduce for another hour, or until the chickpeas are tender and the broth has thickened slightly with a velvety sheen. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Serve right away, or let it cool and use later.
• Ladle portions of hot soup into warm bowls, sprinkle freshly grated cheese over, and give each portion a flourish of excellent olive oil. Pass more cheese at the table.

LIGURIAN CHICKPEA AND PORCINI SOUP

Steps:

• 1 Soak the mushrooms in the water for 30 minutes. Remove them and reserve the liquid. Rinse the mushrooms under cold running water to remove any grit. Chop them coarsely. Strain the liquid through a paper coffee filter into a bowl. 2 Pour the oil into a large pot. Add the pancetta, onion, carrot, celery, and garlic. Cook, stirring frequently, over medium heat until the onion and other aromatics are golden, about 10 minutes. 3 Stir in the chickpeas, Swiss chard, potato, tomatoes, and mushrooms with their liquid. Add water to just cover the ingredients, and salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a simmer and cook until the vegetables are tender and the soup is thickened, about 1 hour. Add water if the soup becomes too thick. 4 Stir in the pasta and 2 more cups water. Cook, stirring often, about 15 minutes, or until the pasta is tender. Let cool slightly before serving. From "1,000 Italian Recipes." Copyright 2004 by Michele Scicolone. Used with permission of the publisher, Wiley Publishing, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

GARLIC, SPINACH, AND CHICKPEA SOUP

Steps:

• Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat, and stir in garlic and onion. Cook until tender. Season with cumin and coriander.
• Mix vegetable stock and potatoes into the pot, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer about 10 minutes. Stir in the garbanzo beans, and continue to cook until potatoes are tender.
• In a small bowl, blend the heavy cream, tahini, and corn meal. Mix into the soup.
• Stir spinach into the soup. Season with cayenne pepper and salt. Continue to cook until spinach is heated through.

LIGURIAN CHICKPEA AND PORCINI SOUP

Steps:

• 1 Soak the mushrooms in the water for 30 minutes. Remove them and reserve the liquid. Rinse the mushrooms under cold running water to remove any grit. Chop them coarsely. Strain the liquid through a paper coffee filter into a bowl. 2 Pour the oil into a large pot. Add the pancetta, onion, carrot, celery, and garlic. Cook, stirring frequently, over medium heat until the onion and other aromatics are golden, about 10 minutes. 3 Stir in the chickpeas, Swiss chard, potato, tomatoes, and mushrooms with their liquid. Add water to just cover the ingredients, and salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a simmer and cook until the vegetables are tender and the soup is thickened, about 1 hour. Add water if the soup becomes too thick. 4 Stir in the pasta and 2 more cups water. Cook, stirring often, about 15 minutes, or until the pasta is tender. Let cool slightly before serving. From "1,000 Italian Recipes." Copyright 2004 by Michele Scicolone. Used with permission of the publisher, Wiley Publishing, Inc. All Rights Reserved.