Ribollita

Here is a recipe for ribollita soup that uses stale bread as one of its ingredients. Cavolo nero is essential for an authentic ribollita but robust greens such as swiss chard, the dark green leaves of savoy cabbage, kale, broccoli or rape may be substituted.

By Rose Gray and Ruth Rogers

Ingredients show imperial units

Serves 4-6

1 large bunch flat leaf parsley

Herbs

Ideal for seasoning pastas.

To keep cut parsley or coriander, put in a hole free polythene bag with a couple of tablespoons of cold water, give the bag a good shake and keep in the salad drawer of the fridge. Herbs should keep for a week like this.

, chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
1 head celery, chopped
225g carrots, peeled and chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
Olive oil

Usually the darker green the oil, the richer the flavour.
- Extra virgin olive oil is good for drizzling on salads and should never be heated as this destroys the fine properties
- Lighter olive oil is good for adding to bread, or to flavour a salad or marinade for chicken, meat, fish or vegetables. Lighter olive oil can be gently heated and added to marinades and baking.
1×400g tin peeled plum tomatoes, drained of their juices
1 kg dark green leaves such as cavolo nero, Swiss Chard, savoy cabbage, kale, broccoli or rape, leaves coarsely chopped
1 small can, about 125g cannellini or borlotti beans
Beans

Canned, dried or baked beans for the kids.
- Canned are most useful when in a hurry. Except for baked beans, once the can is open, tip the contents into a sieve or colander and run under the cold tap to rinse well.
- If you want to use dried beans in a recipe instead of canned ones, soak half the weight of canned beans in cold water overnight then cook in fresh boiling water until tender. Drain and use in a recipe.
- Beans can be served alone or mixed with other flavourings and foods. They are also great used to thicken soups and stews. They can be mixed with pasta or rice in soup for a hearty dish.
- Beans are a good substitute for meat in burgers as protein.
- Cold cooked beans are also excellent mixed with garlic dressing for a salad and served with cold meats or fish.
1 loaf stale ciabatta, crusts removed, sliced or torn
Extra virgin olive oil
Olive oil

Usually the darker green the oil, the richer the flavour.
- Extra virgin olive oil is good for drizzling on salads and should never be heated as this destroys the fine properties
- Lighter olive oil is good for adding to bread, or to flavour a salad or marinade for chicken, meat, fish or vegetables. Lighter olive oil can be gently heated and added to marinades and baking.
Salt

Salt

Consider tablesalt, sea salt or crystals.

Sea salt’s pronounced and salty flavour means less is required to season food.
Ground black pepper
Black peppercorns

Best used as a condiment.
They can be lightly crushed and used to spice up a creamy sauce or to coat fillet steak or chicken breasts.
- Although it might seem odd, grinding black pepper over a bowl of strawberries enhances the flavour of the fruit.
- Pepper that is pre-ground is not fresh tasting and often has other ingredients mixed in.
- Choose the type of mill that suits you, and if you want coarser pepper you can loosen the screw on the top of the mill or crush the seeds in a pestle and mortar

Instructions

In a large saucepan fry the parsley leaves, garlic, celery, carrot, onion in the oil for about 30 minutes until the flavours combine.
Add the tomatoes and continue to cook on a reduced heat for a further 30 minutes, then add the green leaves and half the cannellini beans with enough of their liquid to cover. Simmer for 30 minutes.
In a food processor, puree the remaining beans and return to the soup with just enough boiling water to make the soup liquid.
Add the bread, a generous amount of extra virgin olive oil and season with salt and pepper. As exact measurements are not possible, you must balance the amount of liquid to bread so that the soup is very thick.

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