Orecchiette with turnip greens 

Zucchini is one of the most popular vegetables in the world, highly appreciated for its organoleptic and nutritional characteristics, as well as for its versatility of use in the kitchen. Spring and summer are the ideal time to harvest and consume as a vegetable also the "zucchini tops" or "zucchini talli", the stems of the plant, together with the smaller leaves and petioles. Zucchini tops are traditionally used almost exclusively in some territories of Southern Italy. In the Apulian dialect they are referred to as "Céme de checozze" (the "e" is silent), "Céme di chechezzédde" (in Italian, talli or pumpkin or zucchini tops) or "Ciùmm du cùcozz", depending on the different locations.

In Campania the term "talli di zucca" is widely used, in Sicily "càddi ri cucuzza" or "tinnirùma" (or "taddi" or "tannurume"), although with this term it is common to indicate indifferently the talli of zucchini and lagenaria plants. Most likely, the use of zucchini tops for food purposes originates from the peasant cuisine of some territories of Southern Italy. The talli of this species are among the main ingredients of the so-called "survival kitchen" which, in times of poverty, led to treasure every edible part of the plant.

From a nutritional point of view, zucchini tops provide very few calories (think, just 10 kcal / 100 g of product), a good content of mineral elements and a very low content of nitrates, so much so that zucchini tops could also be considered an ideal product for the preparation of dishes intended for early childhood nutrition. Not least the use in the kitchen, especially for the preparation of first courses. However, they can be used as a real green leafy vegetable, so as well as in soups and as a condiment for pasta, also sautéed with garlic and oil (and, if you like, a little tomato), as a side dish, in omelettes and as a filling for savory pies.

With stems, leaves, zucchini and flowers, cut into small pieces, wrapped in batter and fried, you can make tasty vegetable pancakes. The leaves of the zucchini tops have a particular velvety consistency that makes them very pleasant to the palate and suitable to be transformed into cream. Of the zucchini plant, therefore, nothing is thrown away, since all parts can be consumed: fruits, flowers, tops. At one time it would have been fitting to call it the "pig of the poor". But times have changed, vegetable prices are not always suitable for all budgets and, perhaps, it would be more current to rename this plant as the "vegan pig"... and not only!

Orecchiette with turnip greens are a fantastic first course of the Apulian tradition, let's prepare them together. The taste of turnip greens is intense: more bitter than broccoli and turnips, which also have a sweetish note. 

Ingredients

FOR ORECCHIETTE

300 g re-milled durum wheat semolina

salt

FOR THE SEASONING

1 Kg turnip greens

4 anchovy fillets in oil

1 garlic clove

1 chili pepper

salt

extra virgin olive oil

Procedure

FOR ORECCHIETTE

Knead the semolina with 150 g of warm water and a pinch of salt until you get a firm and smooth dough. Cover it with a cloth and let it rest for 30 minutes. Remove small portions of dough from the dough and roll them on the pastry board obtaining loaves; Cut them into small dumplings and, using the non-sharp part of a knife on the plate, "drag them", then turning them on the thumb to obtain the orecchiette. 

FOR THE SEASONING

Peel the turnip greens keeping only the most tender part. Wash them. Dip them in plenty of boiling salted water. After 2 minutes add the orecchiette; When they are still very al dente, drain everything. Heat in a pan 4 tablespoons of oil with 1 clove of garlic peeled and crushed, the chilli cut lengthwise and anchovies. When they are undone, remove the garlic and pour the orecchiette with turnip greens into the pan. Stir and serve.