This is a print preview of "Tuscan Vegetable Soup - La Ribollita" recipe.

Tuscan Vegetable Soup - La Ribollita Recipe
by John Spottiswood

Tuscan Vegetable Soup - La Ribollita

We made a heaping pot of this up at Heavenly Valley last week when up there for ski week. It was the perfect capstone to a wonderful day snow boarding. We were limited to vegetables we could find at the local supermarket, and substituted regular green cabbage for the black leaf Kale. While it was still good, I would recommend substituting other dark greens (spinach, swiss chard, beet greens, etc.) instead.

Rating: 4.4/5
Avg. 4.4/5 6 votes
Prep time: Italy Italian
Cook time: Servings: 8

Wine and Drink Pairings: Pinot Grigio

Ingredients

  • 1 lb dried cannellini beans (or 2 14oz cans cannellini beans)
  • 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 onion finely chopped
  • 1 celery rib chopped
  • 2 leeks finely chopped
  • 4 garlic cloves finely chopped
  • 1 small savoy cabbage shredded (may sub. napa cabbage)
  • 1 large potato, peeled and chopped
  • 4 medium zucchini chopped
  • 2 1/2 cups canned Italian tomatoes diced
  • 2 sprigs fresh rosemary chopped
  • 2 sprigs fresh sage chopped
  • 2 sprigs fresh thyme chopped
  • 1 whole dried hot red pepper (or 1/8 tsp red pepper flakes)
  • 2 lbs cavolo nero (black leaf Kale -- any Kale will do)
  • Sea or Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
  • 2 Tbsp vegetable soup base (optional)
  • TO SERVE
  • 6 thick slices crusty italian bread
  • 2 garlic clove peeled and mashed
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • freshly grated parmesan cheese

Directions

  1. If using dried cannellini beans, soak overnight with plenty of water.
  2. Heat half the olive oil in a heavy soup pot, add the onion, carrot, and celery and cook for about 10 min stirring frequently. Add the leeks and garlic an cook another 10 minutes. Add the savoy cabbage, potato, and zucchini and cook for another 10 minutes, stirring. Stir in the beans, tomatoes, herbs, red pepper, and about 2 quarts of water. Add salt and pepper, or vegetable base and pepper. Bring to a boil, then simmer for about 2 hours until beans are soft.
  3. Stir in the Kale or greens and the remaining olive oil and simmer for another 15 minutes.
  4. Allow to cool a bit before serving or, better yet, refrigerate over night and reheat to serve the next day. The soup is even more flavorful that way. This is how we do it!
  5. To serve, spread the mashed garlic over the slices of bread and toast in the oven. Place one piece of toasted bread at the bottom of each soup bowl and pour the soup over it. Drizzle with fresh olive oil and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Buon Appetito!