Ribollita (Reboiled Italian Cabbage Soup)
Ribollita means twice-cooked, or 'reboiled,' in Italian. A white bean stock is livened up with greens, tomatoes, and potatoes with added slices of toasted bread. The soup should be refrigerated overnight. All you'll have to do the next day is reboil it. Allow time for soaking the beans.
Ingredients
- 2 cups dry cannellini beans
- 4 cups water
- 32 ounce cartons chicken broth
- 5 cloves garlic minced
- 4 sage leaves
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ cup olive oil
- 2 onions diced
- 3 carrots peeled and sliced
- 3 large stalks celery chopped
- 2 potatoes peeled and cut into chunks
- 1 ½ cups cabbage coarsely chopped
- 1 bunch Swiss chard trimmed and chopped
- 1 bunch kale trimmed and chopped
- 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes
- 1/2- inch-thick slices French bread lightly toasted
- salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1 ½ cups grated Parmesan cheese for topping
- ½ cup olive oil
Instructions
- Sort and rinse the beans before placing them in a large pot with the water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and cook 5 minutes. Turn off heat, cover, and let stand 1 1/2 hours. Drain.
- Place the beans, chicken broth, garlic, sage leaves, bay leaves, and salt in a large pot. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer until beans are tender, about 2 hours. Cool. Remove 1 cup of beans. Discard the bay leaves and sage leaves. Blend the remaining bean mixture with a hand mixer until smooth. Set aside.
- Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the onions; cook and stir until transparent, about 10 minutes. Combine the carrots, celery, potatoes, cabbage, Swiss chard, and kale with the onions. Stir in the tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover, and cook until greens have wilted, stirring at least once, about 20 minutes. Stir in the pureed bean mixture, and cook 40 minute until the mixture thickens. Stir in the reserved beans. Adjust seasonings to taste. Add the toasted bread slices; cook until bread is soaked, about 10 minutes longer. Cool, and refrigerate overnight.
- Reheat the soup over low heat until heated through, about 20 minutes. Serve each serving garnished with 2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese and a drizzle of olive oil.