Sicilian spring farmer’s soup.
We are nearing the end of spring, and at this time fava beans and peas are a bit firmer. This is when the housewives of the past invented this soup, which is also excellent served as a side dish.
Here in Sicily, it is customary to eat raw fava beans when they are still tender, accompanied by fresh peppered cheese and salami. But when spring is advanced and the fava beans start to harden a bit but are not yet dry, these fantastic products lend themselves to delicious recipes.
Thought for you:
- Portions: 4
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Regional Italian
- Region: Sicily
- Seasonality: Spring
- Energy 200.24 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 21.03 (g) of which sugars 7.11 (g)
- Proteins 8.37 (g)
- Fat 10.04 (g) of which saturated 1.43 (g)of which unsaturated 0.27 (g)
- Fibers 9.49 (g)
- Sodium 390.26 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 200 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients
let’s do the shopping
- 2 cups peas (already shelled)
- 2 cups fava beans (fresh, already shelled)
- 10.5 oz chard (already cleaned)
- 3.5 oz shallots
- 1 fresh chili peppers (or ground pepper to taste)
- Half glass dry white wine
- 2.5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- to taste salt
- 3.5 oz water
- 4 artichokes (Hearts)
Sicilian spring farmer’s soup
Tools
what we need to prepare
- 3 Bowls
- 1 Knife
- 1 Pan with lid
Steps
Preparations
To prepare the Sicilian Spring Farmer’s Soup, first shell the peas and…
…and fava beans, remove the stems from the latter.
Wash the chard and cut it into strips, and set it aside. Now take care of the artichokes: remove the outer leaves and get the heart of the artichoke. Remove the fuzz and peel the stem, then cut them into quarters. Keep the artichokes in water with lemon until use.
Pour a drizzle of olive oil into a pan, let it heat up, and add chopped shallots and chili pepper slices if you like, let them flavor, then add the artichokes, stir, and let cook for 3 minutes.
It’s time to add the fava beans, stir, and after another 3 minutes, add the peas.
Let cook for about 4 minutes then add the chard, raise the heat, and deglaze with the white wine.
Let cook for about 4 minutes then add the chard, raise the heat, and deglaze with the white wine.
Let it evaporate well, and add the water; cover with a lid, and let cook for at least 15 minutes. Before turning off the heat, adjust the salt and pepper.
Sicilian spring farmer’s soup is ready to be served.
Sicilian spring farmer’s soup.
It can be stored in the refrigerator for 2-3 days maximum.
And in the freezer for up to 3 months.
If you want to make the dish richer and more complete, you could:
1) add diced potatoes first, and then proceed with the fava beans and other vegetables.
2) 5 minutes before the end of cooking, you could add eggs and poach them with the lid tightly closed.
Additionally, this dish pairs well with fresh peppered sheep cheese and bread croutons.
