Ribollita
This hearty hot soup isn’t just delicious, it’s a great way to make something tasty out of leftover vegetables and ingredients you may already have at home. (Serves four.)
- 5 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 1 small red onion, thinly sliced
- 1 carrot, peeled and diced
- 1 celery stalk, diced
- 1 tbsp. garlic, minced
- Salt and ground black pepper
- 1 rosemary sprig, picked and chopped
- 2 thyme sprigs, picked
- 1 15-oz. can peeled tomatoes, whole
- 1 cup soaked or canned cannellini beans
- 4 cups vegetable stock or water
- 1 lb. cavolo nero kale (Lacinato), chopped
- 4 large, thick slices whole-grain bread (about 3/4 of an inch)
- 1/2 cup parmesan, freshly grated
In a medium-size pot, place soaked beans in cold vegetable stock or cold water and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook until tender (approximately 2 hours).
Bring another medium-size pot of salted water to a boil; add kale and cook for 10 minutes. Remove kale from water and chop into 1-inch pieces. One-half hour before beans are done cooking, heat olive oil in a medium-size pan. Add the carrot, yellow onion, red onion, celery, and garlic. Season with salt and pepper, and cook until slightly tender. When vegetables are tender, add chopped rosemary and thyme, and cook for 30 seconds. Next, add tomatoes and cook until they release liquid.
Add the cooked kale to the pot with the vegetables and tomatoes, and stir together.
Add the tender beans along with the cooking liquid to the pot with the vegetables. Cook on low heat for 15 minutes. Adjust seasoning, as needed.
Place the ribollita in a casserole dish and cover with a thick-cut bread (filone, if available). Drizzle with olive oil and bake at 400 degrees for approximately 10 minutes or until golden brown. After removing from the oven, grate parmesan over the bread.