PASSATO DI ZUCCA

Pumpkin and Courgettes soup

Alfonso lived with us for 3 months, in autumn. Originally from Milan she was that type of "radical chic" girl going out to buy lunch and comig back rather with "The Guardian" and a new 200 pound kashmir sweater. Anyway, I liked her way of cooking. A very healthy and light way of cooking, always with first quality products. We once bought a small pumpkins and some courgettes from the organic shop next door and made a soup together out of it. That was just WAO and from that point on I cannot stay an autumn without it.

Ingredients:

- 1 small pumpkins
- 2 courgettes
- 1 onion
- 1 small potato
- 1 vegetable stock
- Extra virgin olive oil

- Parmigiano reggiano

- salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

To cut the pumpkins: use your biggest and heaviest chef's knife. Insert the tip of the knife at the top of the pumpkin and push it in. Push the knife in applying pressure straight down. Work your way carefully and slowly down the side of the pumpkin and repeat on the other side of the pumpkin, till you have 2 half. Take out the seeds and put them aside for other preparations. Cut up the pumpkin into thick slices, peel off and cut down into small pieces.


Clean the courgette and cut them into pieces. The shape it does not matter in this recipe as we will blend everything after it has been cooked.


Cut the onion in small pieces, unpeel and crush the glove of garlic and

Cooking:

Heat half the olive oil in a large saucepan, then add the garlic glove, unpeeled and crushed, and the onion. Gently cook until the onion are soft.

Add the pumpkin, the courgette and the potato and cook together for few mins, stirring occasionally, until they start to soften and turn golden. Cover with water about 4 cm over the vegetable. Put the stock then season with salt and pepper. Bring to the boil with the lid closed. 

When cooked purée with a blender.

Serving:
Pour the soup into a souce plate, add extra vergin olive oil, black papper and bit of fine grated parmigiano to taste.