Turnip greens and potato soup with truffle oil

Turnip greens and potato soup is one of those dishes that tell the story of Apulian cooking better than a thousand words: a few simple ingredients, a base of onion and garlic, slow cooking with the lid on, and a result that warms and fills you up. It is a vegetarian recipe, easy to make and perfect for the cold season, when turnip greens (cime di rapa) are at their best at the market.

How do you make turnip greens and potato soup? You start by gently frying chopped onion and garlic in oil, add the potatoes cut into cubes of the same size so they cook evenly, then the cleaned turnip greens, left to wilt briefly before covering everything with hot water or stock. You cook it with the lid on until the vegetables are tender: there is nothing complicated about it, it is a vegetable soup that only asks for good ingredients and a little patience.

In this recipe the oil does two different jobs. For the base we use our Biologico extra virgin olive oil, made from Ogliarola Garganica, Coratina and Leccino olives grown in certified organic fields: it has pronounced aromatic notes and an intense fragrance that stand up to the slightly bitter taste of turnip greens. At the end comes a drizzle of truffle-flavoured extra virgin olive oil, always poured raw over the piping hot bowl: the aroma of truffle opens slowly and turns a humble country soup into a dish for a special occasion.

Served with a slice of toasted bread, turnip greens and potato soup becomes a one-dish meal for autumn and winter evenings: the softness of the potatoes, the bold character of the turnip greens, the crunch of the bread and the scent of truffle on top. The quantities are for two people, but doubling them is easy.

Ingredients (for 2 people)

• 300 g peeled potatoes
• 300 g cleaned turnip greens
• 1 clove of garlic
• ½ onion
• organic extra virgin olive oil Oleificio Fratelli Vieste
• truffle-flavoured extra virgin olive oil Oleificio Fratelli Vieste

Method

1. Finely chop the onion and fry it gently with a couple of tablespoons of organic oil together with the garlic clove.
2. Add the potatoes, cut into cubes of the same size, and let them absorb the flavours.
3. Add the previously cleaned turnip greens and let them wilt slightly.
4. Pour hot water or stock over the vegetables until they are covered, add salt if needed and cook the soup with the lid on until the vegetables are tender.
5. Serve the soup piping hot with a slice of toasted bread and a drizzle of truffle-flavoured extra virgin olive oil.