Anna Sultana's Soppa ta' L-Armla - Widow's Soup, Maltese Style

Hot drinks like Mulled Wine and Mulled Apple Cider are all well and good.

But, to paraphrase a rather famous saying, man does not live by hot drinks alone.

It's getting cold… it's time to make and serve some soups.

Sometimes Maltese recipes have some rather strange names.

I mean, cookies named Dead Man's Bones?

And then there's Soppa ta' L-Armla - Widow's Soup.

Not exactly the most cheerful name for a bowl of soup.

I notice Campbell's and Lipton's don't have it in their repertoire.

And what does a husband think when he sits down to a bowl of this?

Should he wonder if it's a hint, like she's hoping and planning her future?  

Should he eat it?

Well, yes he should, if he's Maltese.

And give thanks that his wife knows how to make a good homemade soup.

Hint:

If you can't find ġbejniet in your local store, substitute individual soft cheese balls.

Or more ricotta or cottage cheese.

                        Soppa ta' L-Armla 

Chop into roughly the same spoon-sized chunks

2 carrots

2 onions

1 medium cabbage

1 head of lettuce

1 endive (or a second head of lettuce)

1 cauliflower

1 celery stalk

In a large pot place

1/4 Cup margarine, butter or oil

Sauté the vegetables.

Add

2 litres of water

400 g peas

Simmer until the vegetables are done.

Slowly add, one by one

4 eggs

4 ġbejniet (fresh Maltese cheeselets)

4 Tablespoons ricotta

Simmer until the eggs have cooked.  

When serving, first place an egg, a ġbejniet and a scoop of ricotta in each bowl.

Then ladle on the vegetables.

Season with salt and pepper.

Carmela Soprano's Escarole and Beans Soup - Zuppa di Scarola e Fagioli

Paulie Walnuts also wrote a chapter for The Sopranos Family Cookbook.  

The chapter, about his Mom, is called My Nucci.

No, Nucci is not Italian for Mom.

Nucci is from Marianuccia which means Little Marian.

Paulie had a thing for his Mom.

Well, he did until he found out Nucci wasn't his Mom.

Long story.

Back to the food...  Paulie likes to cook.

He used to prepare meals for his Mom.

He also took her shopping every Saturday.

Paulie was the perfect son.

When Paulie was at the shop on a cold day he likes to cook soup.

He thought it improved morale.

Zuppa di Scarola e Fagioli is a very good recipe. 

And it uses escarole.

About calling this Carmela Soprano's Escarole and Beans Soup...

I don't think anyone will google for Paulie's recipes.

So, I'm posting this under Carmela's name.

Another disappointment for Paulie.

So it goes.

                        Zuppa di Scarola e Fagioli

Serves 4

Trim off and discard bruised leaves of

1 head escarole (about 1 pound)

Cut off the stem end and separate the leaves.

Wash well in cool water.

Stack the leaves and cut in 1 inch strips.

In a large pot place

1/3 Cup olive oil

Cook over medium heat

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

Cook until the garlic is golden.

Add

the escarole strips

2 medium ripe tomatoes, chopped (or 1 Cup canned Italian tomatoes, chopped)

Cover the pot and simmer 20 minutes.

Add

4 Cups beef or chicken broth (or water)

3 Cups cooked or canned cannellini or Great Northern beans

Cook for 20 minutes.

Stir in

1 Cup elbow macaroni or small shells

salt and pepper to taste

Cook for 10 minutes. 

Serve hot with grated parmesan or romano.

\

Would I make Zuppa di Scarola e Fagioli again?

Sure.

Who can't use another escarole soup recipe?

One recipe down.  Seventy-eight more to go.  

Carmela Soprano's Escarole and Little Meatballs Soup - Minestra l Tiny Meatballs Recipe

Ah, Escarole, where have you been all my life?

I don't remember Ma ever serving it.

Then, again, we lived in College Point.

During the 50s and 60s College Point was a strictly German and Irish town.

The church suppers weren't very interesting.

More like "Welcome to the world of cabbage and boiled meat."

Oh, well, so it goes.

Since I just made the 'Schcarole for the two of us, I had a half head leftover.

Back to Carmela's Feeding my Family in Artie's The Sopranos Family Cookbook.

There's a recipe for Minestra.

Carmela calls it Minest'.

Whatever.

The half recipe of soup used up the rest of the head escarole.

And soup makes a nice meal in Autumn. 

Oh, the recipe calls for either veal or beef.

Guess what I used.

Carmela also used 8 ounces of ditalini or tubetti.

They are very small pasta.

She also suggested spaghetti broken into bite-sized pieces.

You get the idea.

No pasta?

About a half cup of rice is also nice.

Oh, add the rice a little sooner since it takes longer to cook.

And cover the pot.

Bought a large package of ground meat?
Here are some more meatball recipes:

Anna Sultana's Tomato Sauce and Homemade Meatballs, Maltese Style

Carmela Soprano's Sunday Gravy (Tomato Sauce with Meat) and Homemade Meatballs

Carmela Soprano's Hot Meatball & Mozzarella Heroes

Carmela Soprano's Grilled Meatball and Sausage Skewers

Carmela Soprano's Little Chicken Meatballs in Tomato Sauce

                        Minestra 

Serves 6

Trim and discard bruised leaves of

1 head escarole (about 1 pound)

Cut off the stem end and separate the leaves.

Wash well in cool water.

Stack the leaves and cut in 1 inch strips.

There should be about 4 Cups.

In a large pot place 

the escarole strips

3 large carrots, chopped

6 Quarts chicken broth

Bring to a simmer.

Cover the pot and simmer 30 minutes.

Meanwhile make the Meatballs

In a large bowl combine

1 pound ground veal or beef

2 large eggs

1/2 Cup finely minced onion

1 Cup plain bread crumbs

1 Cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

Shape the mixture into tiny meatballs.

Drop the meatballs into the soup.

Simmer about 15 minutes.

Add

8 ounces small pasta or broken spaghetti

Simmer, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes.

Taste and correct the seasoning.

Serve hot with grated parmesan.

Would I make Minest' again?

Sure.

Winters in Winnipeg are really long and cold.

Soups are perfect for our climate.

And it's a great way to use up the leftover escarole.

One recipe down.  Eighty more to go.  

Carmela Soprano's Sautéed Escarole or Endive with Garlic

A few of the recipes in Artie's The Sopranos Family Cookbook worried me.

Some of the ingredients, like the veal, were out of my league.

Well, asking for the veal gave the butcher a laugh.

And he did make some good suggestions for substitutions.

Ah... one day I will find, and buy, some veal.

It's high on my bucket list.

Another thing that was a problem was Escarole.

Or 'Schcarole as Carmela calls it.

She cooks up quite a bit of it in her chapter Feeding my Family.

I live in the north end of Winnipeg.

Most of my neighbors are from Poland, the Philippines and India.

Yes, it does make for interesting church suppers.

I figured I was in the same spot as Goodfellas' Henry Hill.

Henry Hill ended up in the Federal witness protection program.

It saved his life.

But his new neighborhood deprived him of real Italian food.

So it goes.

Try as I might I couldn't find Escarole.

I looked in in the produce section and the frozen food section.

I even looked in the canned food section.

Finally I took a look in Wikipedia.

There it was!!

Escarole, or broad-leaved endive (var latifolia) has broad, pale green leaves and is less bitter than the other varieties. Varieties or names include broad-leaved endive, Bavarian endive, Batavian endive, grumolo, scarola, and scarole. It is eaten like other greens, sauteed, chopped into soups and stews, or as part of a green salad.

Endive is rich in many vitamins and minerals, especially in folate and vitamins A and K, and is high in fiber.

Mystery solved.

                        'Schcarole with Garlic

Serves 4

Trim and discard bruised leaves of

1 head escarole (about 1 pound)

Cut off the stem end and separate the leaves.

Wash well in cool water.

Stack the leaves and cut in bite-sized pieces.

In a large pot place

3 Tablespoons olive oil

Cook over medium heat

3 garlic cloves thinly sliced

Pinch of crushed red pepper (optional)

salt to taste

Cook until the garlic is golden.

Add the escarole and stir well.

Cover the pot and simmer 15 minutes.

Serve hot or at room temperature.

Would I make 'Schcarole with Garlic again?

Sure.

Now that I know what it is.

Fiber, folate and vitamins.  Perfect. 

One recipe down.  Eighty-one more to go.