Zuppa di Cicerchia Molisana — Grass Pea Soup

Apennine interior of Molise — cicerchia cultivation is ancient in the central Italian highlands where the legume grows on poor soils at altitude. The Isernia and Campobasso provinces both maintain the tradition.

Cicerchia (Lathyrus sativus, grass pea) is one of the ancient legumes of the Apennine interior — drought-resistant, yielding on thin soils, and with a flavour richer and more complex than chickpea. In Molise, cicerchia soup is made with the dried legume soaked overnight, then long-simmered with soffritto, a bone (often ham bone or lard rind), peperoncino, and finished with a thread of raw olive oil and stale bread in the bowl. The cicerchia has a distinctive earthiness — darker, more mineral than other legumes — that the Molisani use to advantage in winter soups. The preparation is nearly identical to the Umbrian and Marchigiani versions but Molise uses more peperoncino.

Cicerchia soup is dark and earthy in the bowl — the broth turns a deep tan colour from the legumes and is intensely flavoured from the long simmer with ham bone. The peperoncino adds warmth; the raw olive oil a brightness. Torn bread in the bowl absorbs the broth and becomes the substance of the dish. It is the taste of Apennine winter.