Ribollita Soup
- 1 can of cooked Cannellini Beans
- 2 small cloves of Garlic, finely chopped
- 1 medium Red Onion, diced
- 2 medium Celery stalks, diced
- 1 medium Carrot, peeled and diced
- 1 medium Fennel, diced
- 1 large Potato, peeled and diced
- 1 400g can of Tomatoes, crushed
- 3 cups Savoy cabbage, finely shredded
- 1 bunch of Kale, finely shredded
- 1 litre of Vegetable Stock
- 1 Bouquet garni (1 sprig of fresh thyme, 4 sage leaves, 1 bay leaf, small bunch of parsley, 1 sprig of rosemary tied together in a bunch)
- 1 tbsp Joseph La Casetta Aged Vinegar
- 1/2 loaf of crusty bread
- 1 small piece of Parmesan cheese rind
- 30g Parmesan cheese
- Joseph First Run Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Heat olive oil in a deep pot on a medium heat, then gently sauté garlic and onion until they soften.
Drain the cannellini beans and set aside.
Add the carrot, celery, fennel and cook until they start to soften. Add the potato and crushed tomato and cook for a few minutes. Add the cannellini beans and bouquet garni, then add your vegtable stock until it covers the vegetables.
Turn heat to low to medium, cover and simmer for 1 hour. Check and stir every 15-20 minutes.
If the stock is reducing too quickly, add more of your stock. The soup does not need lots of liquid and it should have a thick texture by the end of the cooking time.
When the soup is almost ready, the potato, carrot and cannellini beans should have softened and will breakdown. Use a fork to roughly mash them slightly in the pot. This adds a creamy texture to the soup.
Add the vinegar to the soup and cook for 10 minutes.
Add the shredded kale and savoy cabbage and cook for 8-10 minutes until the cabbage and kale have softened. During this time you can also add a small piece of parmesan cheese rind to the soup and let this cook though the soup.
Season your soup with salt and pepper to taste, then turn off and let it cool slightly. Remove the bouquet garni and the cheese rind.
While the soup is cooling slightly, lightly toast some slices of crusty bread and place slices of bread or torn chunks into bowls and add the Ribollita soup over the bread.
Grate parmesan cheese over bowls, drizzle with lots of Joseph First Run Extra Virgin Olive Oil and enjoy!
This soup is excellent if prepared the day before, placed in the fridge for the flavours to come out overnight and then 're-boiled' the next day (or even the day after that). If you have time to do this, place on a medium heat on stove and bring to boil. Add your vinegar, kale and cabbage and parmesan cheese rind once your soup has boiled and cook for a further 10 mins before serving.