Cooked Water with Greens, or Acquacotta di Verdure: Acquacotta, literally cooked water, is peasant food with a vengeance, greens cooked in water and ladled over toasted bread, and you will find variations on the theme in many of the poorer sections of Italy. This particular recipe is from the Marche.
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Ingredients:
- A loaf of day-old Italian bread
- 2 1/4 pounds (1 k) potatoes, peeled and cubed
- 1 pound (500 g) ripe tomatoes, chopped (and peeled, if you like)
- 1 pound (500 g) farm-fresh chicory, well washed and chopped
- Herbs (see below), minced
- Extravirgin olive oil
- Salt & Pepper to taste
Preparation:
Continuing the introduction,
The secret to its success lies in the selection of the herbs and greens used. To follow tradition to the letter, one should use farm-gathered chicory, borage (Antonio Piccinardi says it is similar to spinach in flavor), and other wild herbs, together with marjoram, thyme, parsley, and mentuccia (a minty-smelling relative of marjoram).
In other words, do not stint on the herbs or the soup will be tasteless. The above ingredients will serve 6. Proceed:
Fill a fairly large pot 3/4 full of water and add the vegetables and herbs. Season with a little salt and cook for about 40 minutes.
When the vegetables have finished cooking, cut the bread into thick slices. Dip each in the pot, let it drain, and put it in a bowl. Spoon some vegetables and a bit of the vegetable broth over the slices, drizzle some olive oil over them, and serve them with freshly ground pepper.
The wine? I'd go with a light white here, or perhaps a rosé.
Note: according to Giuliano Bugialli, Mentuccia is the variety of thyme known as Nipitella in Tuscany, which adds that special secret something to many porcino recipes.
The secret to its success lies in the selection of the herbs and greens used. To follow tradition to the letter, one should use farm-gathered chicory, borage (Antonio Piccinardi says it is similar to spinach in flavor), and other wild herbs, together with marjoram, thyme, parsley, and mentuccia (a minty-smelling relative of marjoram).
In other words, do not stint on the herbs or the soup will be tasteless. The above ingredients will serve 6. Proceed:
Fill a fairly large pot 3/4 full of water and add the vegetables and herbs. Season with a little salt and cook for about 40 minutes.
When the vegetables have finished cooking, cut the bread into thick slices. Dip each in the pot, let it drain, and put it in a bowl. Spoon some vegetables and a bit of the vegetable broth over the slices, drizzle some olive oil over them, and serve them with freshly ground pepper.
The wine? I'd go with a light white here, or perhaps a rosé.
Note: according to Giuliano Bugialli, Mentuccia is the variety of thyme known as Nipitella in Tuscany, which adds that special secret something to many porcino recipes.
