Living in Vienna one winter, I got really sick of the ice and slush, so one morning I jumped on an 8:00 a.m. train to Venice, ate a three-course lunch while going through the alps, arrived in Venice at 4:00 p.m., jumped on a boat to my small hotel near Piazza San Marco, where I checked in and changed clothes just in time for dinner.
I love Venice, but in the off season many things are closed. After a few days, (and after months of great-but-heavy-and-rich Austrian cuisine) I was craving some real Venetian cooking. I asked my hotelier, and he recommended that I go to his friend’s place and mention what I was seeking. I went there, and ordered the “Venetian Soup.” It was amazing!
I know that restaurants never give away the secret recipes for which they are famous. (But I was trained, in grad school, by my gourmet-chef boyfriend Jones, to read anything in a recipe or on a menu and discover the ingredients!) So I wrote the ingredients I’d discerned in the fabulous soup and called the proprietor to my table.
“I know that the chef will not wish to reveal his recipe,” I said. ”But I have identified all the ingredients in this soup except one. Would he tell me what the teeny green specs are, in this magnificent soup?”
I waited though three more courses, but no news was forthcoming from the kitchen. After I paid my bill, as I bid my adieu to the owner at the door, he leaned toward my ear and whispered: Rosmarino!
I hope you enjoy this deletable soup!
Venetian Soup
Ingredients:
Chicken stock White potatoes Fava Beans
Celery Carrots Peas
Chard Green beans White onion
Tomato Zucchini Fresh Rosemary
