Ribollita
Warm up with a hearty Ribollita, a rustic Tuscan stew brimming with beans, greens, and crusty bread.
Ingredients
- 300 g dried cannellini beans
- 300 g stale light country bread
- 250 g kale
- 250 g savoy cabbage
- 2 carrots
- 2 celery stalks
- 1 large onion
- 300 g potatoes
- 2 garlic cloves
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 l water
- 2 tsp salt
- black pepper
How to make it
- Soak the dried cannellini beans in plenty of water overnight, then drain them and rinse well.
- Put the beans in a pot with the 2 l water, bring to a boil, then simmer until tender, about 60 to 90 minutes. Keep the cooking liquid.
- Meanwhile, chop the onion, carrots and celery finely, cut the potatoes into small cubes, shred the savoy cabbage, and strip the kale from the stems before slicing it coarsely.
- Heat the olive oil in a heavy pot over medium heat and sweat the onion, carrots and celery for 8 minutes until softened and glossy.
- Add the garlic and tomato paste, cook for 1 minute until fragrant and brick-red, then add the potatoes, savoy cabbage and kale and stir until coated.
- Add the cooked beans with their cooking liquid, season with the salt and black pepper, and simmer gently for 25 to 30 minutes until the vegetables are tender and the soup looks thick and rustic.
- Tear the stale bread into pieces and stir it into the pot in batches so it softens and begins to break down, then let the ribollita rest off the heat for 10 minutes before reheating once more.
- Serve the ribollita thick and chunky in wide shallow bowls, with the bread folded into the soup and the beans, cabbage and kale clearly visible on top.
