tromboncino squash soup / zuppa di zucchetta

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creamy delight
(placemat by La FABBRICA del LINO)

In the year of COVID, in the summer (and now fall) of fires, I am clinging to cooking and reading to keep my balance. Among my to-read books, I recently chose a novel by the late Swedish author Henning Mankell (without Kurt Wallander² as protagonist): The Man from Beijing.¹ The book opens with a horrific mass murder in a remote Swedish village. Judge Birgitta Roslin, who is connected to some of the victims, gets involved the case, whose roots go back in time and space to the construction of the Pacific Railroad, which relied on the labor of, among others, Chinese workers. The novel travels also to Canton, Beijing, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Copenhagen and London.

The plot kept me interested until the end, yet I admit I missed Wallander, following his meticulous investigation and reasoning process to reach the solution. Roslin is not an investigator, yet she ends up discovering what happened, partly thanks to her determination, partly to chance. Mankell is not shy in criticizing his country and worries about its future. In The Man from Beijing such worries take a more international tone.

the soup's trio of ingredients
(napkin by La FABBRICA del LINO)

Tromboncino squash³ is a favorite summer squash (in Italian tromboncino literally means small trombone, the musical instrument). I get excited when I see it displayed on a table at the farmers' market or, as was the case earlier this year, at a farm stand⁴. Its long, curvy shape is eye-catching and its dense flesh and delicate, pleasant flavor make it a winner. Although it is harvested early and consumed as a summer squash, tromboncino squash does not belong to the Cucurbita pepo species like zucchini and other summer squashes, but rather to Cucurbita moschata, like butternut squash. Like its more famous relative, zucchetta has seeds only in the lower part of its body: the long neck is seedless.

Print-friendly version of briciole's recipe for Tromboncino squash soup

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 pound / 20 ounces / 570 grams tromboncino squash
• 2 tablespoons / 30 ml extra-virgin olive oil
• 10 ounces / 280 grams sweet onion, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
• 1/2 teaspoon Ras el Hanout (spice mix)⁵
• 1/2 teaspoon Marrakech Moroccan mix⁵: substitute either or both mixes with spices of choice, but do not skip
• 1 cup / 240 ml chicken broth or stock, or vegetable broth [in which case the soup is vegan], possibly homemade
• 2 cups / 475 ml water, plus more as needed
• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt, or to taste
• freshly grated cheese of choice, to taste

Heat the oven to 375 F / 190 C.

Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.

Cut the tromboncino squash into 1/2-inch / 1.25 cm thick slices and distribute them on a single layer on the lined baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes, turning the slices halfway through. Take the baking sheet out of the oven, let the squash slices cool slightly then transfer into a bowl.

Warm up the olive oil in a soup pot on medium heat. Add the onion and stir, turn down the heat and cook on low heat until the onion is soft, stirring often. Add the garlic, stir and cook for 1 minute. Sprinkle the spices on the onion and stir, add the tromboncino squash slices to the pot, pour the broth and water and stir.

Cover the pot and bring to a boil. Adjust the heat so the soup bubbles gently. Cook until you can smash the squash easily with the back of a spoon. Sprinkle the salt, stir, turn off heat and let the soup rest for at least 15 minutes, then purée with an immersion blender. Add more water, as needed, to make the soup reach the desired consistency. Taste and adjust salt to your taste.

When ready to eat, heat the soup, ladle it in bowls and sprinkle some cheese on top. Serve immediately.

Serves 4-5

Roasting the squash adds depth of flavor to this soup and the spices make it shine. I usually don't stop after the first bowl.

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¹ The novel's page on the publisher's website
² My earlier Novel Food post featuring Kurt Wallander
³ Wikipedia entry on Tromboncino squash and an earlier post on this blog with another recipe for tromboncino squash and tomatoes
⁴ Sarvinski Family Farm (The Corn Crib)
⁵ The spice mixes I use: Ras el Hanout contains nutmeg, sea salt, black pepper, ginger, cardamom, mace, Chinese cinnamon, ground allspice, turmeric, saffron; Marrakech Moroccan mix contains cinnamon, turmeric, nutmeg, mace, white pepper, galangal, black and green cardamom, ginger, anise, allspice, rose petals, cloves, lavender, orris root, cayenne.

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Click on the button to hear me pronounce the Italian words mentioned in the post:

zuppa di zucchetta

or launch the zuppa di zucchetta audio file [mp3].

[Depending on your set-up, the audio file will be played within the browser or by your mp3 player application. Please, contact me if you encounter any problems.]

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This is my contribution to the 40th edition of Novel Food, the literary/culinary event that Lisa of Champaign Taste and I started 13 years ago and that I continue to host.

The roundup of the event.

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And I am contributing my fruit salad also to Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammies) Sundays, a weekly event created by Cook the Books club co-host Deb of Kahakai Kitchen.

The roundup of the event.

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FTC disclosure: I have received the table linen free of charge from the manufacturer (la FABBRICA del LINO). I have not and will not receive any monetary compensation for presenting it on my blog. The experience shared and the opinions expressed in this post are entirely my own.

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onion, tromboncino squash, soup, Italian cuisine

Comments

[Deb in Hawaii]

I have seen the tromboncino squash before but never cooked it. Your soup looks warming and delicious. Thanks for sharing it with Souper Sundays, (The book sounds interesting too.) ;-)

[Simona Carini]

You should try it, Deb. It's so cute and also good (by the way, I have a pot of the soup on my stove right now :) You are welcome, my pleasure.

[Elizabeth]

What a perfect way to comfort yourself! And thank goodness for books. Many thanks for keeping this event going, Simona. (I wonder if we can get tromboncino squash at our farmers' market... I hope so. I hope so.)

[Simona Carini]

Thank goodness for books, indeed, Elizabeth, in this and other circumstances when we need comfort. You are welcome: it is a great, enduring pleasure to get people together 3 times a year for Novel Food. In terms of the tromboncino squash, seeds are available and if you ask farmers you know they may be intrigued by this squash. Just last Sunday I snatched two more and can't wait to turn them into soup :)

[Elizabeth]

I just looked at some of the photos of tromboncino squash growing and realize that we have seen them growing in some gardens that we have bicycled by! Now that I know they are an Italian heirloom seed, we'll look for seeds next year at the garden centre near the neighbourhood where there are many Italian immigrants living.

In the meantime, we will have to content ourselves with butternut squash (which is a favourite to make into soup with ginger, garlic, and lime juice - it's a recipe I copied from Gourmet Magazine Sept 1987). But your soup with Moroccan spice mixtures sounds truly wonderful. I think we neeeeed to make it!

(I have just downloaded a libray e-copy of "The Man From Beijing" by Henning Mankell. Wow. It starts out very well, doesn't it? Thank you for the recommendation.)

[Debra Eliotseats]

That is a beautiful squash. I would love to try to grow that next season. I'll pass on the book but would definitely take a bowl of soup!

[Simona Carini]

It would be so cool if you find the seeds and grow it, Elizabeth! I also like butternut squash for soup. In fact, I have already bought a couple for that purpose, small ones, which I like. Yes, the novel's beginning is intense: it makes you wonder what kind of rage makes a person do that, doesn't it? I have another novel by Mankell without Wallander on my reading list :)
P.S. I am currently reading a Deborah Crombie mystery (I described the series in this Novel Food post: https://www.pulcetta.com/2014/06/carrot-fromage-blanc-tart-torta-salata-carote.html )

[Simona Carini]

I hope you find the seeds, Debra. I just roasted another one last night and will make more soup today. It is pretty and I love the dense flesh. I imagine it could be used in zucchini dishes where having less moisture is a plus (I am thinking fritters or bread). Mankell's mysteries are rather intense, crime-wise, so I understand preferring lighter reading. The current Cook the Books selection, though still a mystery, fits the bill :)