Sunday, February 15, 2004

In winter, we often make a Saturday supper of soup, salad and a sweet. It's a meal we shop for in the Strip District. It comes almost directly from the stores and begins with a good country bread (BreadWorks' Rustic Italian works well) cut into thick slices, toasted, then rubbed with a cut clove of garlic and sprinkled with olive oil (I use my best for this), coarse salt and freshly ground pepper. You could almost make a meal of this bread, which Italians call fettunta.

My favorite salad is an easy one: a small bunch of any pretty lettuce. Lately it's been red leaf or watercress, a wedge of mild goat cheese, such as the evocatively named Humboldt Fog, and a few strips of roasted red pepper, all drizzled with the good olive oil.

Shopping works up appetites, and I like to get dinner onto the table without too much fuss. What follows are two fast favorites. In both, Italian sausage is an essential ingredient. There is plenty of good sausage on the Strip. Among others, I like Parma Sausage Products, 1734 Penn Ave., but you need to know that on Saturdays, the store closes at 2 p.m. Wherever you buy it, Italian sausage tends to be salty, so I would not add any salt until you've tasted the finished soup.

Of the following two soups, the first is quicker; the second, good the first day, is even better the second.

Soup and salad lead directly to dessert. Mon Aimee Chocolat, 2101 Penn Ave., is the place to find it. One piece of exquisite intense chocolate for each person at the table is my suggestion. Owner Amy Rosenfield has made it her business to find the top chocolate makers in America and have every piece shipped fresh -- so essential to good chocolate.

Here are some choices: salted caramels enrobed in dark chocolate said to be a cult item in New York City, are available from Andrew Shotts, Providence, $1.25 each. Jacques Torres makes a fresh-squeezed-lemon cream in dark chocolate that is a best seller here for $1; from Fritz Knipschildt, a sophisticated candy maker in Norwalk, Va., comes the memorable combination of red chili-tangerine robed in dark chocolate, $1.25 each; by the big bar, there is E. Guittard's San Francisco single-origin dark chocolate bars from cocoa beans harvested exclusively in Colombia, Ecuador, Madagascar or Venezuela. Available in 2.2-pound bars, Rosenfield will cut to order; it's $16 a pound.

RELATED RECIPES

White Bean, Sausage and Escarole Soup

• 1 pound sweet Italian sausage
  
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
  
• 1 head escarole (1 pound), chopped
  
• 2 large garlic cloves, chopped
  
• 2 (15-ounce) cans chicken broth, low-sodium preferred
  
• 2 cups water
  
• 2 (19-ounce) cans cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
  
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Squeeze sausage from casings into a 5-quart heavy pot and cook in oil over moderate heat, stirring to break up large lumps, until golden. Pour off all but 1 tablespoon drippings.

Stir in escarole and garlic, and saute over moderately high heat until escarole is wilted. Add chicken broth and water, and simmer 5 minutes.

Mash half of cannellini beans with a potato masher or fork. Add all beans to mixture and simmer 5 minutes. Stir in cheese and season with salt and pepper. Makes about 9 cups.

<Gourmet

Fennel and Tomato Soup With Italian Sausages

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
  
• 1 large fennel bulb (about 1 pound), cut into 1/3-inch dice
  
• 1 large onion, diced
  
• 1 large garlic clove, minced
  
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
  
• 4 1/2 cups canned chicken broth, low-sodium preferred
  
• 1 (14 ounce) can Italian plum tomatoes with their juices, coarsely chopped (see note)
  
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
  
• 1/2 pound sweet Italian sausage
  
• 1/2 pound hot Italian sausage
  
• 1/2 cup orzo
  
• 2 cups fresh baby spinach leaves

In a large non-reactive saucepan, heat the oil. Add the fennel and onion; cook over moderate heat, stirring, until the onion is translucent and beginning to brown, about 5 minutes.

Add the garlic; cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Blend in the tomato paste. Add the broth and the tomatoes with their juices. Season with salt and pepper; bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer gently for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large heavy skillet. Squeeze sausage from casing into skillet. Cook over moderate heat, turning, until browned and cooked through. Drain on paper towels. Add to soup and, if desired, refrigerate overnight.

Bring the soup to a boil, add the orzo and cook, stirring occasionally, until al dente, about 10 minutes. Add the spinach and cook, stirring, until spinach is wilted, 2 to 3 minutes.

Makes 6 servings.

<-- Adapted from Food and Wine

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