A variety of winter soups to warm your soul

From vegetable to seafood, soup is a quick and easy way to warm up the whole family on a chilly winter day and we have a variety of soups from the Scotto clan: Marion, John, Rosanna, Anthony and Elaina from the Manhattan restaurant Fresco. Here are the recipes:

Acqua Cotta
6 servings

Ingredients
½ pound escarole
¼ cup olive oil
2 cups finely diced onions
2 cups finely diced carrots
1 cup finely diced celery
2 tablespoons chopped garlic
1 to 2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste
1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage
1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
3 tablespoons chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
1 pound plum tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and chopped
Kosher salt to taste
6 slices Tuscan Bread or other peasant style bread
1 or 2 whole cloves garlic
6 large eggs
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus rind

Directions
In a large pot of boiling water, blanch the escarole for about 1 minute, until barely wilted. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the escarole to a bowl of cold water for a few seconds, shake off excess water and transfer to a plate. Set aside.

In a large stockpot, heat the ¼ cup of oil over medium heat. Add the onions, carrots, celery, garlic, red pepper flakes, sage, rosemary, parsley and cook, stirring frequently, for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the vegetables soften.

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Add the tomatoes and cook for 15 to 20 minutes longer, until the tomatoes are so soft they fall apart. Add 5 cups of water, the escarole, the peppers, and the cheese rind, bring to a simmer over medium to high heat, and cook for about 20 minutes. Season to taste with salt.

Meanwhile, toast the bread until lightly browned and then rub the slices with the whole garlic cloves. Put a slice of toast in each of 6 serving bowls.

Reduce the heat to medium, so that the liquid is gently simmering. Carefully crack 1 egg into a cup, keeping the yolk whole. Slide the egg into the simmering liquid using a small strainer as support. Repeat with the remaining eggs, cooking each egg for 2 to 3 minutes, until poached.

As it poaches, lift each egg using the strainer from the pot and position it on a piece of toast. Ladle some of the hot broth and vegetables over each. Drizzle each with 1 teaspoon of the extra virgin olive oil and garnish with grated cheese.

Zuppa di Pesce
6 servings

Ingredients
1 carrot, finely diced
1 red onion, finely diced
1 stalk celery, finely diced
2 leeks, cleaned and finely diced
1 fennel bulb, finely diced
1 16-ounce can tomatoes, with juice
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon spicy red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 cups dry white wine
1 16-ounce can clam juice
2 tablespoons chopped garlic
1 1-pound filet sea bass, cut into 4 pieces
12 large shrimp, peeled and deveined
20 Manila clams (or cockles)
12 mussels, cleaned
1 pound calamari, cleaned and cut into slices
4 red and yellow tomatoes, diced
1 cup cooked cannellini beans (canned or fresh)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions
In a large sauté pan over medium heat, sauté the carrot, onion, celery, leeks, fennel, and tomatoes in 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Add the red pepper and oregano.

Deglaze the pan with the white wine and reduce to half over medium heat. Add the clam juice and cook over medium to low heat for 15 to 25 minutes. Add salt to taste.

In a large sauté pan over low heat, sauté the garlic in the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil for 2 minutes, or until golden brown. Pan sear the fish and seafood at the same time and sauté for 2 minutes, or until golden brown on each side. Add the sauce and cook the soup for about 15 minutes over low heat. Add extra clam juice if necessary if the soup seems too thick.

Garnish with the diced tomatoes, cannellini beans, and chopped basil.

Wild Mushroom and Chickpea Soup with Spareribs
(6 servings)

Ingredients
2 ounces dried porcini or other wild mushrooms
½ cup dry white wine
4 tablespoons olive oil
8 pork spareribs (about 1½ pounds), cut into individual pieces
1 large onion, cut into ½-inch dice
3 large cloves garlic, minced
¼ cup finely diced flat leaf parsley
2 large potatoes, peeled and cut into ½-dice
2 cans (15½ ounces each) chickpeas, rinsed and drained
6 ounces fresh cremini or other mushrooms, cleaned and thinly sliced
7 cups water
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
½ cup finely diced fresh basil

Directions
Soak the dried mushrooms in the wine in a small bowl for 30 minutes to soften them. Remove the mushrooms with a slotted spoon, and reserve the wine. Chop the mushrooms fine. Set aside both the chopped mushrooms and the wine.

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Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium heat and add the spareribs. Sauté until lightly browned on all sides, about 10 minutes, turning the ribs occasionally to brown. Add the onion and sauté until softened, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic, stir well, and cook 1 minute.

Add the dried mushrooms and the wine, then the parsley, potatoes, chickpeas, fresh mushrooms, water, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce the heat to a very slow but steady simmer and cook covered, until the spareribs are very tender, about 2 hours. Stir frequently but gently.

Serve hot, with a sparerib placed to the side of each bowl so the bone is evident. Sprinkle some basil over each serving.

Bollito Misto Con Salsa Verde (Mixed Boiled Meat with Green Sauce)
(6 servings)

Ingredients
2 pounds beef (either brisket or chuck steak)
1 chicken (about 3 pounds, cut in quarters)
1 pound veal (preferably sirloin tip)
1 pound pork garlic flavored sausage
4 stalks celery, rough chop
4 carrots, rough chop
2 small leeks, rough chop
2 onions, rough chop
1 tablespoon parsley
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions
In a Dutch oven or other large pot, combine the onions, carrots, celery, leeks, and add enough water to cover vegetables by 3 to 4 inches (You may need as much as a gallon). Bring to a boil over high heat. Add the brisket, salt and pepper to taste. ½ hour later, add sausage, veal and chicken. Reduce heat and simmer for an additional 1½ hours, skimming off the foam that rises to the surface several times.

Before serving all the meats, heat them thoroughly, once more.

Slice all the meats, including the sausage, and divide the chicken in suitable portions, placing everything on a large preheated platter.

Add 1 cup of the meat broth to the platter of sliced meats. Sprinkle with fresh parsley.

Serve with the green sauce and boiled vegetables. As a side dish, you may also serve steamed potatoes (optional).

In addition to the green sauce, you may also use an additional dipping sauce, such as red pepper aioli.

Green Sauce

Ingredients
5 bunches fresh Italian parsley
7 canned anchovy filets, drained
2 cloves garlic
1 to 2 tablespoons pickled capers, drained
5 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons wine vinegar
Salt

Directions
Trim the stemless leaves of parsley and process together with the anchovies, garlic and capers until you get a smooth puree.

Gradually add the oil in a very thin stream until you get a smooth sauce. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Chocolate Tortellini in Pear Broth
(4 servings)

Ingredients
2 tablespoons Armagnac or other fine cognac
2 lemons
4 medium well-shaped pears
3 cups white wine, preferably Chardonnay
1 stick cinnamon
¾ cup sugar
3 cups pear nectar

Directions
Poached pears should be made a day or more in advance to allow the flavor of the broth to develop.

Drain poaching liquid from pears into large saucepan. You will be starting with about 4 cups; reduce this to 3 cups. At full boil, this takes 10 to 15 minutes.

In a large pasta pot half full of rapidly boiling water cook chocolate Tortellini for 3 to 5 minutes, until they are al dente.

Drain Tortellini, and add to reduced pear broth along with the Armagnac.

Heat soup bowls. Fan cut (do not cut completely through the narrow end so that when slightly flattened, the pear slices fan attractively) and lay a pear half at the side of each bowl.

Ladle in broth and Tortellini.

Note: About keeping: Pasta must be cooked close to serving time; the dough will lose its texture if it remains in the broth for too long, especially if kept warm.

Chocolate Tortellini
Ingredients

3 tablespoons heavy cream
1 tablespoon orange zest
3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon cocoa
1 tablespoon hot water
1 tablespoon melted bittersweet chocolate
1 egg, at room temperature
¾ cup semolina flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1 egg, beaten

Directions
To make the ganache
Stir the cream, orange zest, chopped chocolate, and butter in a double boiler over barely simmering water until melted. Strain through a fine mesh sieve and refrigerate for 2 hours, or until firm.

To make the pasta
Combine the cocoa and hot water and stir to make a paste. Place the cocoa mixture, the melted chocolate, egg, semolina flour, and the 2 tablespoons sugar in an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook and blend for 5 minutes, or until the ingredients are combined.

Remove the dough from the mixer and knead by hand until smooth, adding a little four if the dough is too sticky.

Cover the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour. Roll the dough out to a 1/16-inch thick piece and cut into twenty four 2½-inch squares.

To make the tortellini
Place about 1 teaspoon of the ganache in the center of each square. Brush 2 of the edges with the egg, fold over the square to form a triangle, and pinch the edges to seal.

Pull the 2 points on the long side together and pinch firmly to form the tortellini.

Drop the tortellini into simmering water for 3 minutes, or until they float. Drain and set aside.

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