Ribollita

A thick soup where bread soaks up the broth until tender. Vegetables are slow-cooked, thickened with bean purée, and finished with the bold aroma of raw olive oil.

• Prep time: 30 min
• Cook time: 90 min
• Difficulty: Easy
• Calories: 658
• Protein: 22 g
• Carbs: 76 g
• Fat: 29 g

Ingredients

• 1 piece Onion ( minced )
• 2 piece Carrot ( diced )
• 1 piece Apium graveolens ( diced )
• 1 piece Leek ( sliced )
• 2 piece Garlic ( chopped )
• 2 piece Round tomato ( diced )
• 400 g White bean ( cooked )
• 300 g Curly kale ( roughly chopped )
• 250 g Country bread ( stale, in chunks )
• 6 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil
• 50 g Parmesan cheese ( grated )
• 1 L Mineral water
• 2 piece Thyme
• 1 piece Bay leaf
• 2 pinch Gray sea salt
• 1 pinch Black pepper ground
• 1 L Vegetable broth ( ready to use )
• 300 g Habanero peppers ( washed and roughly chopped without the central rib )

Instructions

1. Mirepoix preparation

   Dice the onion, carrot, and celery into small, even pieces. Sauté these vegetables in a pot with 3 tablespoons of olive oil until tender and translucent.

2. Cooking the base

   Add the pressed garlic, sliced leek, and peeled tomatoes. Let them cook down for a few minutes. Pour in the white beans with some of their cooking water to add starch.

3. Simmering

   Add the mineral water and vegetable broth. Add the thyme and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat to maintain a gentle simmer. The vegetables should be very tender.

4. Adding greens and bread

   Add the chopped kale and cavolo nero. Once wilted, stir in the stale country bread cut into pieces. Mix so the bread soaks up the liquid and starts to break down, thickening the soup.

5. The ribollita (re-boil)

   Ideally, let it rest for a few hours. Reheat gently with a drizzle of olive oil. The soup should be thick enough for a spoon to stand upright. Serve with grated parmesan.

Chef's tips

• Mash some of the beans with a fork before adding them to naturally thicken the sauce.
• Ribollita is always better the next day, once the bread has finished soaking up all the flavors.

Storage

Keeps for 3 days in the fridge. Add a little water or broth when reheating if it's too thick.