Monday, March 10, 2014

Escarole Soup Approved by Dave



Saturday was a busy day. We woke up early and started chipping right away at our to do list. Dave, a good friend came over to help my husband with the bathroom plumbing and a few other things. Mid morning I headed out to the kitchen to start on this soup. I had picked up a head of escarole at the farmers market and wanted this veggie to be the main ingredient, the star if you will. The dish was started with the usual trinity combination of onions celery and carrots for the base and then layers of flavor were added from here. The last 10 minutes I added the precooked farro and the chopped escarole and finished the meal with chopped fresh parsley. The soup was done in less than an hour. We had lunch outside on the patio and the weather was very nice. Our friend loved the soup and even requested a second bowl. All in all it was a pretty successful day.

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion (chopped)
3 stalks celery (sliced)
2 carrots (sliced)
1/2 teaspoon salt.
1/4 cup dry sherry
4 roma tomatoes (chopped)
1 15-ounce can organic cannellini beans
6 cups vegetable broth
2 bay leaves
1 2-inch piece Parmesan rind
1/2 cup pre-cooked farro (picked this up at Trader Joe's)
1 large head escarole (chopped)
2 tablespoons fresh parsley (chopped)

To prepare:

In a large soup pot, add olive oil, then onion, saute about 5 minutes, then add celery, carrots and salt. Saute another 5 minuter or so until veggies are just tender. Add the dry sherry and saute until all liquid has evaporated. Add tomatoes, beans, broth, bay leaves and Parmesan rind. Bring to a boil, then simmer another 20 minutes or so. Add farro and escarole. Simmer on medium high 10 minutes. Remove Parmesan rind. Garnish with chopped parsley.


Cheri Savory Spoon
Cheri Savory Spoon

Mysavoryspoon was first started in 2010 as a way to journal recipes that I had collected from cookbooks, magazines, family and friends. Most everything was savory, using legumes and whole grains. Along the way I discovered a love for baking. Now a couple times a month you might see some type of sweet pie or treat.

38 comments:

  1. I've actually never tried excarole (or farro!), but this looks like a great soup to introduce me to both of them

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    1. Hi Kelly, escarole is a little bitter, but it is delicious, farro reminds of barley in some ways, both very good.

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  2. What a delicious and healthy soup! I would definitely get a second bowl too.

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  3. Love this simple rustic and hearty soup with farro!

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    1. Thanks Jeanette, even though the ingredient list looks long it was very simple to put together.

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  4. What a lovely healthy soup! I love the idea of adding the parmesan rind in there!

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  5. This sounds and looks really good! Perfect for those late winter days :)

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    1. Thanks Tammy, it is very a very soothing kind of soup.

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  6. This looks delicious. I love the addition of farro and the Parmesan rind. Sounds rich and yummy...I am going to be writing about soup this week, too. Must be the season, eh? Enjoy. D
    PS Just added your site to my blogroll on Gathering Flavors, http://gathering-flavors.com/links/. Lucky me!

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    1. Hi Dena, soup is always good, right? Thanks for adding my site, appreciate it, added you to mine as well.

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  7. What a great soup you put together. I love the sound of the farro in there. I'm glad your friend loved it. I would definitely have needed at least two bowls of it. :)

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  8. Looks like a great Soup! I've never cooked with Escarole but this looks yummy yummy!

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    1. Hi Sweetphi, it's a little bitter, but very good. Thanks!

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  9. Well, if it's approved by Dave...it must be fantastic! Never cooked with escarole so thanks for a tasty intro! :) ela

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  10. Oh does that look good! Just my kind of soup. I agree with Dave.
    -Erin

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  11. Two bowls full Good! Dave

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  12. Yum farro and parmesan rinds that makes this soup really delicious and dining alfresco if something we are all looking forward to doing. Take care, BAM

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    1. Thanks Bam, the parm rind sure adds to the broth, don't you think?

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  13. This looks delicious! The weather was nice enough today that we wanted to eat outside...but then we started craigs-listing patio furniture instead because we don't have any :)

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    1. Hi Karen, I know there is always something to check out on craigs list or ebay, thats for sure

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  14. My grandma made escarole soup all the time when I was little, so I have some serious nostalgia for it! Such a tasty bowl!

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    1. Thanks Joanne, it's interesting how certain types of dishes or ingredients remind of someone special.

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  15. MMMMmmmm, this soup looks so healthy and delicious, Cheri. I love soups that you can bring together in an hour. I will admit to not cooking with faro yet but this is a definite motivator to do so. Thanks!

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    1. Thanks Robyn, I've just started cooking with farro the last few months and it kind of reminds me of barley. Thanks for stopping by

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  16. This is so warming and delicious sounding! I bought a bag of farro to try for the first time - can't wait.

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    1. Hi Reeni, I just started using farro too, reminds me of barley. Pretty good.

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  17. Wholesome and surely delicious! A great combination of ingredients.

    Cheers,

    Rosa

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  18. This is totally my kind of soup! It's the kind that makes you feel so good. Pinning it right now :-)

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