Ribollita- Italian Veggie and Bread Soup Recipe

Ribollita (click on link for video) is historically a Tuscan peasant dish. It was originally made by reheating (Ribollita literally means Reboiling) the leftover minestrone or vegetable soup and adding to it some day old bread.

I first tasted Ribollita almost 20 years ago while I was studying in Florence, Italy. I was reminded how much I loved the dish when I had it again at an Italian restaurant in Seattle about 4 years ago. This hearty comfort dish is full of veggies and legumes which makes it a perfect meal on a cold February day.  I had a hard time finding a recipe that matched what remember tasting in Florence ages ago so I decided to try and recreate it myself. I hope your family loves it as much as mine do!

  • Prep Time 15 minutes
  • Cook Time 35 minutes
  • Total Time 50 minutes
  • Serves 4-6
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Ribollita- Italian Veggie and Bread Soup Recipe

Ingredients

 

  • 4 Tbsp if extra virgin olive oil (+ 1/4 cup for garnishing)
  • 5 gloves of garlic minced
  • 1 small yellow onion chopped
  • 1 carrot chopped
  • 1 celery stalk chipped
  • 1 28 oz can of whole tomatoes. I prefer San Marzano Fire Roasted Whole Tomatoes if you can find them
  • 32 fl. oz. of veggie or chicken broth. I prefer chicken or veggie
  • 3 tsp salt
  • 2 large fresh sprigs of rosemary
  • 13 oz. can of cannellini beans.
  • 1 large loaf of sourdough bread with the crust removed
  • 1/4 cup of grated parmigiano reggiano for garnish.

Instructions

LET’S COOK!

  1. In a large deep pot saute the garlic over medium heat for about a minute or until golden
  2. Add the onions, carrots and celery. Saute until the onions are translucent. About 5 minutes.
  3. Add the can of tomatoes, the container of broth and the salt. Stir these ingredients and allow to come to a boil over medium/high heat.
  4. Once the liquid comes to a boil, bring it down to a simmer and add the rosemary and salt. Cover and let it sit for 20 minutes.
  5. Remove the Rosemary and add 1/2 can cannellini beans.
  6. Remove the soup from the heat and puree. I pureed mine using an immersion blender. You can also puree the soup in a blender that can handle hot food.
  7. Add the other 1/2 of the cannellini beans.
  8. Tear pieces of the sourdough bread. Slowly add the bread while continuously stir the soup. Continue to add the pieces of bread until the soup is nice an thick and the bread is soft
  9. Laddle soup into bowl. Drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle parm and olive oil. Devour immediately!