Usually, comfort foods are laden with gravies and hearty meats, but, it IS the new year and I at least wanted to make it somewhat on the healthy side, and deliver a deliciously savory dish that vegetarians and meat-eaters can guiltlessly enjoy whilst bundled up during these cold months. For this dish, I decided to pull from the “Tuscan Cookery” by Elisabetta Piazzesi. [English edition ©2003 by Casa Editice Bonechi, via Cairolo] maybe it spoke to me because I just recently watched “Eat Pray Love” on a plane while traveling over the holidays, and got a craving for some delicious Italian cuisine.
RIBOLLITA (Rechauffe of bread and vegetable soup)
WHAT YOU NEED:
- 1 Fairly large red-skinned onion
- 2 Carrots
- 1 Celery stick
- 4 Potatoes
- 10 Courgettes(Zucchini)
- 300g/11oz. dried beans
- bunch of Swiss chard
- 1 Savoy cabbage
- 1 Bunch of Tuscan ‘black’ cabbage or kale
- 1 Leek
- Tomato puree
- 2 Days’ stale Tuscan white bread
WHAT YOU NEED TO DO:
- Soak the dried beans and cook over a slow flame.
- In a pan, gently fry the onion, sliced.
- Add the other vegetables diced, with the exception of the cabbage, kale and beans,(which are added later)
- When the vegetables have sweated out their juice, cover with hot water and then add all the cabbage and kale shredded.
- Cover and simmer for an hour over medium heat.
- Add the cooked beans(some whole , some pureed), add salt and pepper as well.
- Leave to simmer for another 20 minutes, stirring frequently (the beans tend to stick to the bottom of the pan so this is an important step)
- Add 2 or 3 tablespoons of tomato puree.
- Slice the stale bread and in an earthenware casserole, alternate layers of bread with the soup until the bread is well impregnated.
- Leave to stand for a day.
TO SERVE:
Remove the desired amount from casserole and heat it up or “re-boil” it as the name in Italian suggests.
And you have yourself a mouth-watering, hearty, yet healthy Italian dish. It may take some prep time, but this news worthy meal is well worth the wait.
Buon Appetito!
~FoodDiva