Soup makes my heart sing. If I’m at a restaurant or ordering in, I’m likely to avail myself if it’s on offer. But I’m loath to admit that I don’t make soup frequently enough to keep my cravings at bay. See, the thing about soup is that it has to be flavorful, textural, and tantalizing, and this takes time. And time requires patience, a virtue I try regularly to better embody. But the thing is, when I crave soup, I usually seek instant gratification. I’m generally not a fan of supermarket brands, and unfortunately, there’s no Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods nearby where I can get an excellent pre-made one. And alas, I’ve never been able to prepare one that meets my palatal requirements quickly enough–but this has changed recently. And this revelatory occasion was the perfect way to ring in soup season.
Vicenza native Lorenzo Cogo, Italy’s youngest Michelin-starred chef (he earned his first star at age 25), has launched an endeavor that tickles my fancy to no end: LOCO gourmet soups. An acronym of the chef’s first and last names, LOCO is a deliberately “crazy” concept: a freeze-dried soup born after years of studies, recipes, and tests.
And the LOCO soups are delicious–delightfully so. They pack the flavor and texture of an excellent restaurant or homemade soup, but you can prepare them in a fraction of the time. All the soups are vegan, lactose-free, and gluten-free and are a healthy and balanced alternative to the ready-made meals already on the mass retail shelves.
The soups, all made from quality Italian ingredients, come in three flavors: a distinctly Italian blend of tomato, olives, basil, and lemon; spinach, hazelnut, and truffle, which he considers the most “gastronomic”; and finally, pumpkin, carrot, peanut, and orange, which packs a touch of sweetness and a pleasant crunchiness.
They’re available online and at select supermarkets around Italy, including PAM Panorama supermarkets. And LOCO’s nifty online store finder indicates that there is indeed an outpost close to home where I can buy them.
They’re so going to be my go-to lunch or dinner once I’m back in Milan after the holidays.
