A few weeks ago, I popped into my local bookstore to kill some time absolutely determined that I wouldn’t buy ANYTHING. I somehow managed to resist Nigella’s new cookbook
I’m not usually into those French cooking school books – often the cuisine is haute and needlessly fiddly. This on the other hand just smacked of rustic goodness and approachable simplicity. I bought it.
The structure of the cookbook is to follow what one would have learnt during a week in a Provence Cookery School. This means that the recipes are somewhat fixed in the region with the occasional ingredient that isn’t all that easy to find in a Sydney supermarket. Fortunately, they are the sort of recipes that lend easily to substitution with more accessible ingredients. There are also details like “Today starts with a visit to a busy [Provence] market)” which aren’t particularly useful but they do set the scene.
I made a broad bean soup the other day which froze well and was as tasty as I imagine most broad bean soups that don’t involve bacon can get. Today, however, I made a soup that was easily one of the best I’ve ever tasted (and certainly the best soup to come from my hands). I felt like the restaurant critic sipping the Ratatouille in the Pixar movie, only I had no childhood in Provence to be swept back to… nonetheless it made me felt like I should. The solid base of the bacon with the fineness of the courgette/zucchini and the fragance of the pistou made it the most damn evocative thing I’ve tasted in a long time.
I did use pesto instead of the correct pistou to make it a little easier. One day I will try out the proscribed pistou without the pesto’s pine nuts and Gruyere instead of Parmesan and the flesh of three medium tomatoes. I have little doubt that it will blow my mind even more than this one did.
I also forgot to add the beans (either 2 x 400g cans of cannelli/red haricot beans or 200g fresh white haricot beans and 100g fresh red haricot beans) other than the fresh green flat ones, but I think the soup was actually better for it. It was more delicate which made a nicer juxtoposition with the oompf of the pesto.
Here in any case is the soup I cooked today…
Soupe au pistou
1 ham hock/thick piece of smoked bacon (I used the end bit of bacon from a good butcher) about 150g (5 1/2oz)
250g (9oz) flat green beans
2 med potatoes
3 tomatoes
Sea salt
Black pepper (freshly ground)
100g small macaroni (or similar pasta)
150ml (5 fl oz) Pesto
In a large pot, add 2L (3 1/2 pints) cold water and the bacon piece. Bring to a simmer, cover partially and let simmer gently for 30 minutes (this is a good time to cut the vegies!). If you are particularly good, you can skim occasionally (have to admit that I didn’t as I was too busy cutting the vegetables).
Top and tail the green beans, chop into 2cm (1″) lengths. Chop the tomatoes and courgettes. Dice the potatoes.
Once the bacon piece has been cooking for 30 mins, add the vegetables to the water. Season lightly. Return to a simmer and let it bubble gently for 1 hour (again skim any scum off occassionally).
When the beans and the bacon are tender, remove the bacon bit and shred it (if you used a ham hock, take it off the bone too). Using a slotted spoon, place half of the vegetables on a plate and gently mash them with a fork. Return the mashed veg and bacon/ham to the soup.
Check the seasoning and season to taste, if it’s too strong add just a little water. Add the macaroni and you can turn up the heat a bit. Cook until the pasta is just tender.
Remove from the heat and stir in the pesto to serve.
I am freezing some portions of it so I’ll leave adding the pasta until I need to eat it, same goes with the pesto a spoonful then will be fine).
No pics of it, unfortunately, as I couldn’t wait to eat it but here’s a pic of the soup from the book (with the beans):
