2 litres of salted water. A large sprig of sage. A dozen peeled cloves of garlic. Some slices of stale bread. Olive oil.
Sage soup, a remedious miracle which cures all excesses of the table, perfectly combines three sacred elements from our region : water, whose importance one has the tendency to forget these days; sage, whose name in Niçois saùvi, means “I save”; and garlic, that universal remedy which “heals the body, kills worms, repels scorpions and spiders, and frightens away witches and devils “!!
Boil the sage and the garlic in the salted water. Serve it onto the stale bread and add a small splash of olive oil. Variation : the bread can be replaced by a handful of vermicelli dropped into the soup 10 minutes before the end of cooking time. It can also be served with a little grated gruyère.