SOUP OF BORLOTTI BEANS WITH SPELT
14.1 oz of borlotti beans, previously boiled
1 celery stalk
1 carrot
½ white onion
1 medium-sized potato
7.05 oz spelt (Barilla)
1.75 pt vegetable stock
0.52 oz extra virgin olive oil (preferably Tuscan)
approx. 1.75 pt water or vegetable stock
salt and black pepper
10 cherry tomatoes cut into quarters and sautéed in a pan
Ingredients for simmering:
1 cup of extra virgin olive oil (preferably Tuscan, about 1.05 oz)
6 sage leaves
1 sprig of rosemary
1 chilli pepper
1 clove of garlic
Chop up the celery, carrot and onion coarsely.
Get a large saucepan and, after heating it slightly, add the oil and immediately add the chopped vegetables, then brown for about 5 minutes.
Add the potatoes, already cleaned and diced. After about 3 minutes, add the boiled borlotti beans.
Brown for another 5 minutes and add the water or, even better, if you have already made it, the vegetable stock. Cook over medium heat for at least 20 minutes, mixing now and again, until you obtain a mixture reduced by about half.
Blend the beans and put them back into the pot, adding salt and pepper to taste.
Now add the Barilla spelt and continue cooking for another 10 minutes, making sure that the cream has the right liquid consistency, which is necessary for the spelt to cook well.
Gently heat 0.7 oz of olive oil in a small pan, add the sage, rosemary, garlic and chilli pepper, and then leave to cool for at least 10 minutes.
Add the flavoured oil to the cream of borlotti beans and spelt.
Before serving, add a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and the sautéed cherry tomatoes.
Chef’s note
Simmering is the most important step when making any Tuscan soup since it adds character to every dish: it simply involves infusing the oil with flavours.
If you want, you can add some pasta to it, in which case you can cook it together with the spelt.