BEAN AND YOUNG ZUCCHINI FLOWER BUD SOUP

If you have a garden and grow zucchini, this is the recipe for you! The young buds of the leaves, before they open up, are the basis of this soup!

  Time: 45 minutes
  Difficulty: easy
  Serves: 4

  INGREDIENTS

• 2 cloves garlic, peeled and lightly crushed

• extra virgin olive oil, as desired

• 250 g pomodoro pelato di Napoli (Naples peeled plum tomatoes)

• 2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced

• 1 litre vegetable stock, or water with a stock cube

• a big handful of young zucchini leaf buds, or a mixture of chopped zucchini plus spinach or chard, shredded

• 500 g canned beans such as cannellini, or borlotti

• 100 g spaghetti, roughtly broken

• salt to taste

• pinch red pepper/chili pepper flakes

• handful of basil leaves, torn, to serve

• shredded caciocavallo cheese, as desired

METHOD

Sauté  the garlic in 4 tablespoons or so of extra virgin olive oil; when the garlic is golden, remove from the pan and add the tomatoes and vegetable stock, and bring to the boil, simmerfor a couple of minutes.

Next, add the diced potatoes and zucchini flower buds, cooking together until the potatoes are just tender.

Add the beans and broken spaghetti, more stock as desired and cook until the spaghetti is cooked through. Season  with salt and chili flakes (or red pepper).

Serve, adding a drizzle of extra virgin olive  oil, a handful of the torn basil, and a generous sprinkling of grated caciocavallo cheese