Crema di zucchine

Name: Crema di zucchine
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Lombardy
Ingredients: 700 g zucchini (about 5 medium), roughly chopped; 1 medium potato (about 150g), peeled and roughly diced; 1 medium onion, roughly chopped; 2 cloves garlic, peeled; 2 tbsp unsalted butter; 900 ml good vegetable stock; 80 ml double cream; 1 tsp fine salt, plus more to taste; white pepper, to taste; 1 large handful fresh basil leaves; 4 tbsp good extra virgin olive oil; 1 pinch fine salt

Silky Italian cream of zucchini soup with basil oil

Origin: Northern Italy, Lombardy

From the journey of Zucchini.

Crema di zucchine belongs to the Italian tradition of velvety vegetable cremas, not cream soups in the British sense (cream added to thicken a thin broth) but smooth, silky purées of vegetables cooked until very tender and blended with their own cooking liquid into something of extraordinary delicacy. The distinction is important: the Italian crema derives its creaminess from the vegetable itself, from the starch of a small added potato, and from the precision of the blending rather than from the addition of large quantities of cream. In Lombardy, where zucchini is the quintessential summer market vegetable, crema di zucchine is made throughout July and August when the season's most abundant produce is at its sweetest and most tender. The Milanese kitchen tends towards the gentle and refined, butter rather than olive oil, subtle rather than assertive seasoning, the sauce that whispers rather than shouts. This soup is a perfect expression of that philosophy: the zucchini's mild sweetness is the entire point, preserved by brief, careful cooking and smooth blending, and highlighted by the vibrant green basil oil that is drizzled over at the last moment. That basil oil (bright green, slightly grassy, intensely aromatic) is not an optional decoration but a structural element of the dish, providing the herbal punctuation that gives the gentle zucchini crema its focus and makes it something more than the sum of its parts.

Ingredients

Main

700 g zucchini (about 5 medium), roughly chopped
1 medium potato (about 150g), peeled and roughly diced

Aromatics

1 medium onion, roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled

Cooking

2 tbsp unsalted butter

Liquid

900 ml good vegetable stock

Finish

80 ml double cream

Seasoning

1 tsp fine salt, plus more to taste
white pepper, to taste

Basil Oil

1 large handful fresh basil leaves
4 tbsp good extra virgin olive oil
1 pinch fine salt

Method

Make the basil oil first: bring a small pan of water to a boil. Blanch the basil leaves for 10 seconds, then immediately transfer to a bowl of iced water to stop the cooking and fix the colour. Squeeze dry in a clean cloth, then blend with the extra virgin olive oil and a pinch of salt until very smooth. Pass through a fine sieve if you want a perfectly clear oil. Set aside.
Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the chopped onion with a pinch of salt and cook for 5–6 minutes until soft and translucent. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more. Do not allow anything to brown: the crema should be pale and sweet.
Add the chopped zucchini and diced potato. Stir to coat in the butter. Pour in the stock, season with salt, and bring to a simmer. Cook for 15–18 minutes until the zucchini and potato are completely tender: a knife should pass through with no resistance.
Blend the soup until completely smooth: use a high-powered blender for the silkiest result, working in batches with the lid held firmly. Return to the pan, stir in the cream, and reheat gently. Taste carefully and adjust salt and white pepper.
Ladle into warm bowls. Drizzle a generous amount of basil oil over each portion in a slow spiral. Serve at once, with good bread alongside.

Notes

The smallest, youngest zucchini give the most vivid colour (their skin is thinner and brighter green, which translates into a more vibrant soup. Large, mature zucchini produce a blander, paler result. If the soup is too thick after blending, add stock or water to adjust) the consistency should be coating but pourable, not stiff. The soup can be made a day ahead and refrigerated; reheat gently and re-blend briefly if it has separated.

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Journey Point Map Key

Ingredient originTrade or transit route

Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control