Broken Emmer Soup

Ingredients:

250g Broken Emmer (does not require soaking), 60g Thickly sliced ham, 1 Medium-sized yellow-flesh potato, 1 Leek, 1 Onion, 1 Carrot, 1 Celery stalk, 1 Bay leaf, 150g Tomato puree, Extra virgin olive oil, Salt to taste, Pepper in grains, Grated Parmesan cheese to taste.

Instructions and procedure:

Prepare a coarse chop of onion, celery and carrot. Remove the first leek peel, divide it in half vertically leaving, wash it under running water and slice it finely. Peel the potato, cut it into cubes and keep it immersed in water in order to maintain its freshness. Heat the oil in a heavy-bottomed saucepan and add the vegetables and the chopped ham (with its fat part). Season lightly with salt and cook over a low heat for about ten minutes. Now add the tomato puree and the bay leaf and cook for another 10 minutes. Pour about one and half litres of hot water into the aucepan and, when it starts to boil, we add the potato and the broken spelt, sprinkling it on. Stir and adjust the salt. Let it cook for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally and at the end, complete the seasoning with a generous amount of pepper.

Serve the soup piping hot with grated cheese.