French soup for all occasions

There’s more to French soups than “oignon.” There is, for example, pistou.

“Soupe au pistou” is a vegetable soup from Provence. It is a hearty, flavor-intensive bowl of vegetables with an incredibly tasty basil and garlic topping. Like bouillabaisse -- the famous Provencal fish soup -- it is served not as a starter but as the main event.

“Pistou” (“peas-TOO”) is the name for a sauce made with basil, olive oil, garlic and cheese. Sound familiar? Yup, it’s pesto without the pine nuts. Food historians tell us that Italians from nearby Liguria brought the sauce to Provence, where they served it on pasta, spread it on bread and dolloped it on this soup. It is a kind of preparation that defines Provencal cuisine. A bowl of bouillabaisse, a taste of soupe au pistou, and visitors will be forgiven for forgetting anything else they ate on their trip. But even in your own kitchen, it can create memories.

SOUPE AU PISTOU Yield: 6 main-course servings For the pistou: 4 garlic cloves, chopped 2 cups packed fresh basil leaves Pinch of sea salt 1/3 cup olive oil, preferably Provencal or Ligurian

3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, plus more for serving For the soup: 1/2 cup dried cannellini or borlotti beans, soaked overnight 1 or 2 bay leaves 6 cups chicken stock, vegetable broth or plain water

1/4 cup finely minced pancetta (Italian bacon; optional) 2 garlic cloves, minced 1/4 cup chopped flatleaf parsley

1/4 cup chopped white or yellow onion

1/4 cup olive oil, preferably Provencal or Ligurian 2 leeks, diced 2 medium diced 2 small zucchini, diced 1 large russet potato, peeled and diced

1/2 pound fresh green beans, sliced about 1 inch

1/2 pound ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped, or 6 canned whole tomatoes, drained and chopped

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 cup pasta, either small shapes or vermicelli broken into 1-inch lengths; or 1/2 cup long-grain rice

1/4 of a small green or Savoy cabbage, slivered

3 or 4 large leaves chard (red or green), slivered

Make the pistou: Combine the garlic, basil and salt in the food processor, and, with the motor running, pour in the olive oil. Scrape into a bowl and stir in the cheese. Set aside until the soup is done.

Make the soup: Drain

carrots, the soaked beans and add them to a saucepan with the bay leaves and 2 cups of the stock. Cover and simmer over mediumlow heat until the beans are tender but not falling apart, 40 minutes to 1 hour. When done, set aside in their liquid.

In the bottom of a heavy soup pot, combine the pancetta, garlic, parsley and onion with the oil. (If you are not using pancetta, you may wish to add another tablespoon or two of oil to the mixture.) Set over medium- low heat and cook gently, stirring, until the vegetables are tender. Do not let them brown.

Once the vegetables are soft, add the leeks, carrots, zucchini, potato, green beans and tomatoes. Stir in the remaining 4 cups stock (or water) and bring to a simmer. Cook gently, covered, for about 20 minutes, or until the carrots and potatoes are tender.

Stir in the beans with their cooking liquid, and add salt and plenty of freshly ground black pepper. Let the soup simmer for another 5 minutes, then stir in the pasta or rice and continue cooking just until the pasta is al dente or the rice is tender. Add the slivered cabbage and chard, mix well, and remove from the heat. The greens will cook in the residual heat of the soup.

Stir in a big spoonful of the basil sauce right before serving, tasting once more and adjusting the seasoning. Serve more of the sauce and more grated cheese at the table.

(Excerpted from “Virgin Territory: Exploring the World of Olive Oil” (copyright) 2015 by Nancy Harmon Jenkins. Reproduced by permission of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.)

Tax software makers and service providers are offering new layers of security this tax season, says Consumer Reports. You may find shorter shutdown times after inactivity, for example, and fewer chances to try again after a login error.

Users of TaxSlayer, TurboTax and other services will have the option to use a unique login code along with the usual ID and password. The updates reflect a coordinated effort by the Internal Revenue Service, states and the tax-prep industry to prevent fraud involving pilfered Social Security numbers.

According to Consumer Reports, thieves usually claim tax refunds by filing returns before their victims do. So another way to protect yourself is to file long before the tax deadline, which is Monday, April 18, this year (April 19 in Maine and Massachusetts).

What Victims Can Do You may not know you’ve been a victim of tax-related ID theft until you get an IRS notice. It may say that you collected wages from an employer you don’t recognize, for example, or that your Social Security number has been used on more than one return.

Report incidents of ID theft to the Federal Trade Commission at ftc.gov. Then set up a fraud alert with one of the three big credit bureaus -- Equifax (equifax.com/ creditreportassistance, 888-766-0008); Experian (experian.com/ fraudalert, 888-397-3742); or TransUnion (transunion.com/fraud, 800680-7289). The bureau you choose will share your alert with the other two; all three will give you a free credit report. You can also request that the bureaus issue security freezes to prevent any new credit from being issued without your permission.

At irs.gov, fill out Form 14039, an Identity Theft Affidavit. The IRS will issue you an “identity protection personal identification number” (IP PIN) intended to prevent further fraud. (All residents of the District of Columbia, Florida and Georgia -- not just victims -- can get IP PINs as part of an IRS pilot program. Find details at irs.gov/getanippin.)

Avoid Other Scams Fraud involving IRS impersonators spikes during tax season. Consumer Reports suggests keeping the following in mind:

-- The IRS never asks for personal or financial information via email, text or social media, and it will never contact you by phone to demand payment. Report suspicious email to irs.gov/uac/ Report-Phishing.

-- The agency will never ask for credit card numbers over the phone, require payment without allowing you to question or appeal it or threaten you with arrest for nonpayment.

-- Report fraud to the IRS at 800-366-4484 and at treasury.gov/tigta/contact_ report_scam.shtml. 4 Reasons to File Early 1. Get your refund sooner. About two-thirds of Americans can expect federal refunds this year. Last year, refunds averaged more than $2,700.

2. Fund an IRA. If you get money back, consider using it to fund an individual retirement account for 2015 before the April 18 deadline. Or use your refund toward your 2016 IRA; you’ve got through the next tax season.

3. Get a jump on college aid. You can use information from your tax forms to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, at fafsa. ed.gov. Early applicants get more financial aid, says Mark Kantrowitz, president of MK Consulting in Las Vegas and a financialaid expert.

4. Buy yourself some time. If you don’t get money back, but instead owe, knowing the amount before the deadline gives you more time to plan how you’ll pay. You can pay by credit card, but you’ll get hit with a service fee of as much as 2.35 percent of your tax liability.