Sunday Night Soups: The Minimalist'S Prosciutto Soup (Gurgling Cod Country Honk Version) Recipe

• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (It is really worth it to use a good fruity one here-I prefer Frantoia)
• 1/4 pound country ham, in one chunk or slice
• 6 cloves garlic, peeled and mashed
• 1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
• 1/2 pound greens, preferably kale (You could use mustard or turnip greens if you wanted to chase a cold, or even collards, if you wanted to make it even countrier)
• Parmesan rind, diced (optional)
• Chives (optional)
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

1. Set 6 cups of water to boil. Put 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in the bottom of a medium soup pot, and turn the heat to medium. Finely dice the ham, and add to the oil . Brown, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes, while you prepare the garlic, onion and greens.
2. Peel the garlic, and chop it roughly or leave it whole. Peel and chop onion. Wash and chop greens into bite-size pieces. Rinse once more than you think you need to.
3. When the ham is browned, add the garlic, and cook, stirring occasionally, until it begins to color, about 2 minutes. Add the onions, and cook, stirring occasionally, until they become translucent, 2 or 3 minutes. Add the greens, and stir; then, add the 6 cups of boiling water. Stir in the pasta and a good sprinkling of salt and pepper; adjust heat so the mixture simmers.
4. When the pasta has been going for about 5 minutes, add the diced parmesan rind. It will soften as the pasta cooks -- ideally, the pasta will be done just as the parmesan softens and surrenders its flavor, but before it disintegrates.
5. (Optional) If you are actually serving this soup to Ben Roethlisberger, remove pasta from broth and thread a piece of chive through each piece of pasta, to create a suggestion of a chinstrap. If your guests are smart enough to wear helmets when they operate two wheeled vehicles, you may omit this tedious refinement.

extra virgin olive oil, country ham, garlic, onion, chase, parmesan rind, chives, salt

Taken from www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2007/12/sunday-night-soups-the-minimalists-prosciutto.html (may not work)