In the Marche region, a dish is still being prepared which, from its name, gives you an idea of ​​its importance: the imperial soup, or colorful for friends. "Once upon a time it was for weddings, now you don't get married anymore and therefore you do at most for birthdays." This is how Emidia tells us, for everyone Mimina from Montalto Marche, in the province of Ascoli Piceno, among the few ladies left to prepare it according to the ancient original recipe. In fact, if it can happen to find i colored cubes of imperial soup in the various pasta factories from Matelica to Offida, quite different is the homemade soup according to the traditional method which requires hours and hours of time.

What is imperial soup?

The imperial soup is a dish widespread in all the Marches, in particular between the province of Macerata, Fermo and Ascoli Piceno. It is a mixture of eggs, flour, parmesan, lemon, nutmeg, which is then divided into three different parts and colors with the addition of spinach and tomato paste. THE three different colors they are only an aesthetic question, most likely a reference to the Italian flag. Its peculiarity lies precisely in the cooking: in fact, it cooks for hours and hours (at least three) in a cotton sack closed with string, to then be cut into cubes; for this the ideal would be to prepare the dough the day before consumption. In the past, when it was prepared in large quantities, the three doughs were cooked in three large pots. If the quantity is for a few people, however, it is not possible because the dough would stick to the bag and therefore today they are also cooked together. Given the length and complexity of the preparation, over the years it is becoming less and less, or other methods are preferred, such as cooking in the oven which significantly shortens the time. "But it's not good in the oven", explains Mimina "because it dries too much and becomes hard, while prepared in the traditional way it becomes soft and spongy as it should be, without being too compact". The flavor vaguely resembles that of the passatelli, from which it differs however for consistency, shape and color.

The Gregori family

As mentioned, the imperial soup has been the dish par excellence of weddings for years. Mimina always prepared it when she was called, together with her sister Annunziatina, to cook at weddings. Mimina and Annunziatina, in fact, were among the first forms of catering in history, still famous today in the country as the sisters who always cooked well. This same passion for the world of food Mimina has also passed on to the family, in particular to his two grandchildren: Stephen opened the company Olive Gregori, among the few a produce Ascoli olives, which we remember that before being the well-known fried fish are the local cultivar of Ascoli Piceno; the brother Lucainstead, he is completing his studies in Agriculture to then devote himself to the activity. It will be because they grew up educated to the priceless value of their land, the Marche region, and to the importance of continuing to devote time to food production, whether in the countryside or in the kitchen. And in fact Mimina "the imperial soup buy he has never tried it ", but has continued to prepare it at home according to the long times of tradition.

The traditional recipe … for 40 people

Precisely because of this long preparation, imperial soup is a dish to eat in many. Almost always a part is left over, which freezes to consume it later. The following recipe, therefore, is for 40 people, also because as Mimina says: «It is always better to prepare more than less, no?.

Ingredients

40 eggs
500 g parmesan
600 g 00 flour
grated peel of 2 lemons
nutmeg to taste
salt to taste
butter to taste

Method

1. Prepare a chicken broth (better) or beef.
2. Start preparing the dough by beating the eggs with all the other ingredients. Apart from boiling the spinach, then mash and whisk.
3. Divide the dough into three parts: in one add the spinach, in the other the tomato paste and in the last nothing, so as to obtain three different colors (green, orange and yellow).
4. Put all three parts of the dough in a cotton sack or other equally resistant and flared fabric, close with string and cook in boiling water for about 3 hours.
5. Once ready, make sure that the middle part is also well cooked. Then remove the bag from the boiling water and let it cool down without opening it on a tray under a weight for about an hour.
6. When it has cooled, gently remove the dough from the bag and cut into cubes.
7. Throw the diced soup into the chicken stock for a few minutes (it is already cooked) and serve boiling hot.

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