Soups of Italy: Cooking over 130 Soups the Italian Way - Hardcover

Wasserman-Miller, Norma

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0688150314 ISBN 13: 9780688150310

Publisher: William Morrow Cookbooks, 1997

Synopsis

From preparing the lightest broth soups to hearty main coursesoups of vegetables, legumes, or fish, Norma Wasserman-Millertakes you into the kitchens of some of Italys best cooks to showyou how to transform simple basic ingredients into a wealth ofdelicious Italian soups.

Enjoy the wide range of soups prepared throughout Italy, fromthe great classics to superb original recipes created by some of Italys finest chefs. Sample a fragrant pasta and bean soup made with fennel; an aromatic pumpkin and herb minestrone; a savory fish soup made with porcini mushrooms; an elegant farro and radicchio soup; or one of the peasant soups that turn stale bread into a flavorful soup.

Each chapter gives clear directions and techniques for cooking the rich variety of Italian soups that include minestrone, pasta and bean, vegetable, fish, meat, bread, and grain soups. The uncommon authenticity and richness of this soup collection is wholesome, satisfying, and thoroughly delicious.

About this title

About the Author

Norma Wasserman-Miller is the co-author of the bestselling Risotto and is founder and co-owner of Formaggio Kitchen, a celebrated food store in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She lives in London.

Enjoy the wide range of soups prepared throughout Italy, fromthe great classics to superb original recipes created by some of Italys finest chefs. Sample a fragrant pasta and bean soup made with fennel; an aromatic pumpkin and herb minestrone; a savory fish soup made with porcini mushrooms; an elegant farro and radicchio soup; or one of the peasant soups that turn stale bread into a flavorful soup.

Each chapter gives clear directions and techniques for cooking the rich variety of Italian soups that include minestrone, pasta and bean, vegetable, fish, meat, bread, and grain soups. The uncommon authenticity and richness of this soup collection is wholesome, satisfying, and thoroughly delicious.

Reviews

Both Famularo and Wasserman-Miller stress the regional nature of Italian soups, and both include dozens of traditional recipes for minestre and minestrone, brodo, and zuppe. But Famularo, who grew up in a large Italian-American household, has a more personal approach, while Wasserman-Miller, who fell in love with Italy on her first visit there and later opened a Boston food shop called Formaggio, takes a somewhat more formal one, with more explanations of basic techniques and culinary background. Famularo includes many fondly remembered family recipes as well as favorites from his travels to Italy; Wasserman-Miller's collection seems a bit more wide-ranging, featuring some less well-known recipes along with the classics. Although there is some overlap here, of course, the two authors' approaches and interpretations of the traditional recipes are different enough to make both these books worth adding to most collections; they're also good companions to Margaret and G. Franco Ramagnoli's Zuppa! (LJ 12/96).
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Although everyone recognizes minestrone, the repertory of Italian soups extends far beyond this familiar kind. People today forget that originally pasta was always served in soup broth and only later evolved into pasta with a thick sauce on top. Italian soups thus have a long history and have always been central to the best home cooking. In these health-conscious times, many Italian soups provide good nourishment without excessive fats. One can even produce hearty, full-flavored soups without any meat, using simply water as a base. Cabbage and bean soup gets a kick from a small addition of garlic, pancetta, and hot pepper. Just about any vegetable soup profits from a spoonful of basil-scented pesto added at serving time. Miller makes Italian soups accessible to a wide audience through clear, simple instructions and by suggesting variations, such as pureeing, that can transform a simple soup into an elegant formal dinner preparation. Mark Knoblauch

Edition details

• Publisher: William Morrow Cookbooks
• Publication date: 1997
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0688150314
• ISBN 13: 9780688150310
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 224