Soup as the anchor of the day
Zuppa — soup — is everyday fare on the Italian table: often just vegetables, beans, a little bread, as down-to-earth as the region. Zuppa di pesce on the coast, with whole fish, mussels and squid. Zuppa toscana with beans, cavolo nero and stale bread.
A zuppa reinvents the kitchen: little, warm, filling. In the south, it is eaten as a substantial main course, in the north as a starter. A good zuppa is the exact mirror of its season.