1 lg Onion; very thinly sliced
Salt
3 tb Butter
2 lb Broccoli
1 cl Garlic; peeled and very
-thinly sliced
4 lg Boiling potatoes; peeled;
-washed, and cut into small
-dice
2 c Homemade meat broth -OR-
1 Bouillon cube
Black pepper; freshly ground
6 Basil leaves; up to 8, torn
-into small pieces
75 g Parmigiano-Reggiano; freshly
-grated
Put the onion, a large pinch of salt, all the olive oil, and butter
in a saucepan, turn on the heat to medium low, and cover the pan.
Cook until the onion is completely tender and has become coloured a
light nut brown.
Detach the broccoli florets from the stems, keeping the stems aside to
serve boiled in olive oil. Wash the florets under cold running water.
When the onion is cooked, add the garlic and leave the pan uncovered.
Cook, stirring, for about 1 minute without letting it become
coloured. Add the broccoli florets, a generous pinch of salt, and
cook, turning the florets over from time to time until they feel
tender at the pricking of a fork.
Add the diced potatoes and cook for about 5 minutes, turning them
over frequently. Then add the broth or 575 ml water together with the
bouillon cube. Cook until some of the potatoes dissolve as you stir
them. Add 1 or 2 tb water if you find the soup becoming too dense.
The final consistency should be loosely creamy, runny rather than
thick.
Taste and correct for salt, and add a liberal grinding of black
pepper. Swirl in the basil, the Parmigiano-Reggiano, the menaining
butter, and serve at once.
Tips:
If you want to use the stems in the soup, wash them, pare away their
tough outer layer and cut them into 5 mm pieces. It will, however,
become a different soup in consistency as well as appearance.
