In the Hands of a Chef (8 page)

Bouquet garni: 1 bay leaf plus a few sprigs parsley, tied together with kitchen twine

1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme

4 garlic cloves, smashed

Freshly ground black pepper

½ cup stellini (tiny star pasta)

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice, or more to taste

1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon

¼ cup coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

GARNISH

4 thick slices crusty Italian bread

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

½ cup freshly grated Parmesan

1.
Place the chicken breast side down in a large deep soup kettle. Add the stock and 4 teaspoons salt (or, if using canned stock, first taste, then add salt as needed). Bring to a boil and skim the surface thoroughly. Lower the heat and add the carrots, celery, leeks, bouquet garni, thyme, and garlic and season with pepper. Adjust the heat so the water barely bubbles. Poach the chicken for 15 minutes, then flip it over and continue poaching until cooked through, about 25 minutes. Lift the chicken out of the pot, transfer to a large plate, and allow to cool.

2.
Taste the vegetables. If they’re tender, strain the stock into a large saucepan, setting the vegetables aside. If they’re not yet tender, transfer them with the stock to the saucepan. Discard the bouquet garni. Set the stock over medium-high heat and let it simmer steadily until the liquid reduces by half, about 20 minutes.

3.
While the stock is reducing, put a medium saucepan of salted water on to boil for the pasta. As soon as the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the skin and pull the meat off the bones. Discard the skin and bones and shred the meat into large pieces. Set the meat aside, covered, in a warm place.

4.
When the water comes to a rapid boil, add the pasta. Cook until it is tender but still has some bite, about 5 minutes. Drain and set aside.

5.
When the chicken stock is reduced, whisk in the butter, then add the lemon juice and tarragon. Taste for seasoning and add more lemon, salt, and pepper if necessary. Add the vegetables, chopped parsley, and pasta to the broth. (Sometimes if I know there are going to be leftovers, I set aside what won’t be consumed before I add the pasta to the remainder. That way the pasta doesn’t absorb the liquid in what will be leftovers.) Keep warm over low heat.

6.
Brush the bread with the olive oil and either toast or grill until golden. Sprinkle each slice of toast with 2 tablespoons of the Parmesan.

7.
Set 1 cheese toast in each of four deep dinner plates. Distribute the chicken over the toast. Ladle the broth, vegetables, and pasta over the chicken and serve.

F
arro is an ancient grain
that was for thousands of years a staple throughout the Mediterranean. The Romans, who recognized that its large hard kernels made poor flour, used it to make a savory porridge, a dish still served for good luck at the weddings of modern Romans. Farro’s creamy texture makes it an excellent addition to soup, and Umbrian cuisine includes several soups thickened with farro. Although not yet as available as Arborio rice, it’s becoming more and more common in specialty food stores or even well-stocked Italian groceries.

This soup is a great transition from light summer cooking to the heartier fare of the approaching cooler weather. You can make this dish any time of the year by substituting canned tomatoes for fresh ones, but roasted fresh tomatoes add a depth to the soup’s flavor unavailable the rest of the year.

Cull through the cheese drawer in your refrigerator for leftover rinds of grating cheese. Throw them in while the soup is cooking; they add body and flavor. Remove any undissolved pieces before serving.

MAKES 4 TO 6 SERVINGS

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 ounces sliced pancetta, cut into ¼-inch dice

2 celery stalks, peeled and chopped into ¼-inch dice

1 small onion, chopped into ¼-inch dice

1 medium leek, white part only, trimmed of roots and tough outer leaves, chopped into ¼-inch dice, and swirled vigorously in a bowl of cold water to remove any grit

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 cup farro

3 bay leaves

1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme

1 teaspoon dried oregano

4 cups Chicken Stock (page 31) or high-quality canned low-sodium chicken broth

2 cups water

Leftover cheese rinds (see headnote; optional)

4 pounds ripe plum tomatoes, cut lengthwise in half

GARNISH

4 ripe plum tomatoes, peeled (see box), seeded, and cut into ½-inch dice

2 peperoncini or hot cherry peppers, thinly sliced and seeded

2 tablespoons fresh basil leaves cut into thin strips

¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan (optional)

Extra virgin olive oil

1.
To make the soup base, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Add the pancetta and cook until the fat starts to render, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the celery, onion, and leek and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about
7 minutes. Add the garlic, farro, bay leaves, thyme, and oregano and stir. Add the chicken stock and water; the liquid should cover the ingredients by
½
inch. Season again with salt and pepper, and add the optional cheese rinds.

2.
Cook uncovered until the farro is tender,
not
mushy, about 20 minutes. If the liquid evaporates below the level of the farro, add more water. When the farro is done, the soup base should be thick but not pasty.

3.
Meanwhile, preheat the broiler. Toss the split plum tomatoes with the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Arrange the tomatoes cut side down on a sheet pan and broil until they’re browned and tender, about 15 minutes. Put the tomatoes through a food mill to get rid of their skins and seeds, or purée them in a food processor, then strain the purée to remove the skin and seeds.

4.
Add the tomato purée to the soup base and cook over medium heat for 20 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasonings. Remove the bay leaves and any cheese rinds.

5.
Ladle the soup into warm bowls. Garnish each bowl with the diced tomatoes, peperoncini, and basil. Add a light grating of Parmesan, if desired, and then drizzle each serving with extra virgin olive oil.

E
scarole soup used to be
a mainstay on the menus of family-run Italian immigrant restaurants, as familiar as pasta with red or white sauce, and with good reason. Hearty green leaves with real flavor in a delicious beef broth with meatballs—on a cold rainy day, what could warm you faster? The primary hurdle to making escarole soup at home is that few of us keep beef stock on hand, and canned alternatives have little to recommend them. They taste artificial and unacceptably salty. My solution is to sweat the escarole with some sautéed aromatic vegetables and mushrooms, then to add chicken stock. My kids love discovering the marble-sized meatballs hiding among the floating strands of escarole. This is a fairly thick soup; if you like more broth, increase the chicken stock to 8 cups.

MAKES 4 TO 6 SERVINGS

MEATBALLS

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 shallot, minced

1 garlic clove, minced

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

½ pound ground veal

1 extra-large egg

2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan

2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

¼ cup unbleached all-purpose flour

BROTH

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 medium carrot, peeled and chopped into ¼-inch dice

1 celery stalk, peeled and chopped into ¼-inch dice

1 leek, white part only, trimmed of roots and tough outer leaves, finely chopped, and swirled vigorously in a bowl of cold water to remove any grit

½ pound mushrooms, finely chopped

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 head escarole, coarsely chopped and rinsed thoroughly to remove any grit

6 cups Chicken Stock (page 31) or high-quality canned low-sodium chicken broth

1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage

1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme

¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan, plus more for serving

1.
To make the meatballs, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a small sauté pan over medium heat. Add the shallots and garlic, season with salt and pepper, and cook until tender about 3 minutes. Let cool.

2.
Combine the remaining meatball ingredients except the flour in a bowl, add the shallots and garlic, and mix. Test the mixture by forming a
small amount into a ball and frying it. Taste, and adjust the seasonings in the meat mixture as necessary. Dust your hands with flour and form the mixture into meatballs the size of marbles (about ½ teaspoon). Cover and refrigerate at least 15 minutes.

3.
To make the broth, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a soup pot over medium heat. Add the carrot, celery, leek, and mushrooms, and season with salt and pepper. Cook for 5 minutes or until tender. Add the garlic and escarole, cover, and cook for 5 minutes. Add the chicken stock and herbs and cook, uncovered, for an additional 10 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasonings.

4.
Add the meatballs to the soup and poach for 5 minutes. Ladle the soup into warm bowls, sprinkle with the grated Parmesan, and serve. Offer additional cheese on the side.

T
his rustic dish is a
great introduction to cooking rabbit. The rabbit is seared, then simmered slowly in a garlicky soup broth. The meat is easily stripped from the bones after the rabbit is cooked. Rabbit is a natural partner to garlic and pepper, both sweet and hot. All the different peppers in this recipe—paprika, freshly ground black pepper, sweet red peppers, and hot red pepper flakes—weave together to make a hearty, peasant-style soup.

MAKES 6 TO 8 SERVINGS

One 3-pound rabbit

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

½ pound chorizo sausages pricked with a fork (so they don’t split)

3 medium onions, chopped into ¼-inch dice

3 red peppers (about ½ pound each), peeled with a vegetable peeler, stemmed, seeded, and cut into ½-inch strips

2 cups peeled garlic cloves (see Note) (about 2 heads or 25 cloves)

1 tablespoon paprika

4 bay leaves

1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme

½ teaspoon hot red pepper flakes

8 cups Chicken Stock (page 31) or high-quality canned low-sodium chicken broth or more as needed

2 cups cooked chickpeas (see page 230) or canned chickpeas, rinsed well

2 tablespoons dry sherry

6 ripe plum tomatoes, peeled (see page 55), seeded, and chopped into ¼-inch dice (or one 15-ounce can diced tomatoes)

½ cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1.
Season the rabbit all over with salt and pepper. Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven or soup pot over medium heat (the pot should be large enough to hold the rabbit and sausage in a single layer). Add the rabbit and sausage and brown on both sides, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate and set aside.

2.
Add the onions to the pot, season with salt and pepper, and cook until lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Lower the heat if the onions are cooking too fast. Add the peppers, season with salt and pepper, and cook until the peppers just begin to soften, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic, paprika, bay leaves, thyme, and red pepper flakes and cook for 1 minute.