La Ribolitta
Tuscan Twice Cooked Vegetable Soup
Soffritto:
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 6 cloves garlic, crushed
- 5 sprigs fresh rosemary
- Celery leaves (see Ribollita recipe, below)
- 1 cup diced tomatoes
- Red pepper flakes, optional
Prep oven per Mugnaini Roasting Oven Protocol.
Prepare the Soffritto first. While it is cooking, prepare all ingredients for the Ribollita (soup).
Place olive oil in skillet with crushed garlic, rosemary, and celery leaves and set just inside mouth of wood-fired oven (where temperature is cooler). Cook, stirring occasionally, until garlic is soft, and light golden brown, about 30 minutes. Be careful not to burn the garlic. Add tomatoes and red pepper flakes (if desired), and cook for 20 minutes more. Remove from oven. Purée Soffritto in a food processor or blender, stir into soup and mix well to combine.
Ribollita:
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 2 medium yellow onions, diced
- 1 carrot, peeled and diced
- 3 celery stalks, top leaves removed (save for Soffritto, above), diced
- 2 potatoes, peeled and diced
- 1/2 head Savoy cabbage, finely chopped
- 1 bunch Cavolo Nero (black leaf kale), center stalk removed, finely chopped
- 3 cups cooked cannellini beans
- 8 cups water or chicken stock
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Heat olive oil in a large soup pot in wood-fired oven. Add onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden. Add carrots, celery, potatoes, cabbage, Cavolo Nero, beans, and water or stock. Bring to a boil, cooking for about 30 minutes total. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Meanwhile, prepare toasted bread (recipe below).
To Serve:
- 2 cloves garlic
- 8 slices Italian bread, toasted
- Grated Parmigiano
Place sliced bread onto sheet pan. Toast in wood-fired oven until lightly brown on one side. Rub each slice (toasted side) with garlic.
Fill a clay pot by alternating layers of toasted bread slices and vegetable soup. Sprinkle top with Parmigiano, return to oven and cook for about 15 minutes, or until heated through. This second cooking is why the dish is call Ribolita, or “twice cooked” vegetable soup.