The Getting of Garlic by John Newton

Author:John Newton [John Newton]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781742244365
Publisher: NewSouth Publishing

ROSA MATTO

LA RIBOLLITA

Serves 4 / Soak overnight

Rosa’s recipe (with bay leaves) for Tuscan bean soup – a winter soup. Here, Rosa introduces the recipe:

Regarded by many as a quintessential cucina povera recipe from the area around Pisa, Firenze and Arezzo, it belongs, more broadly, to the tradizione invernali contadina toscana (Tuscan peasant winter tradition.) The name ribollita refers to the fact that housewives made this soup in vast quantities, usually on a Friday. Over the next few days, the soup would be reheated (ribollita/re-boiled) many times.

When you discuss la ribollita with una toscana, you will be told – amongst other essential details – that the il cavolo nero, essential to this dish, as is its less glamorous cousin, the savoy cabbage, must be picked after it has experienced the first winter frosts. In this way, the leaves are more tender.

250 g dried cannellini beans, soaked overnight (or use 2 tins beans, drained, but I don’t want to know about it)

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

1 carrot, finely chopped

1 stalk celery, finely chopped

2 thin leeks, finely chopped

1–2 bay leaves (add these at your peril)

1–2 cloves garlic, mashed to a paste with salt

1 sprig of rosemary, finely chopped, plus extra

2 large potatoes, peeled and cut into small dice

200 g chard, or silverbeet or spinach

200 g savoy cabbage, cut into fine strips

200 g cavolo nero, taken off the spine and cut into strips

vegetable stock, if necessary

salt and pepper

1. Cook the beans in cold, unsalted water (I add a clove of garlic and a bay leaf) for about an hour or until the beans are tender. Do not throw out the water, this will become our ‘stock’.

2. In a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan, heat the oil and sauté the onion, carrot, celery, leeks and bay leaves (if you dare). Allow them to soften completely without taking colour. Now add the garlic and rosemary and stir for a minute. Add the potatoes, chard, savoy and cavolo nero. Completely cover with stock or even water and allow to cook for an hour or so.

3. Meanwhile, mash half the beans to a chunky purée. At this point, add the mashed beans, whole beans and all their cooking liquid. Allow to simmer for another hour. Season well with salt and pepper and perhaps a little chilli, if you like.

4. Tradition dictates two things from this point. The soup should be allowed to ‘season’ overnight in the fridge and served the next day, heated and poured over toasted, stale bread. Ideally, the bread should be the close-textured, saltless Tuscan variety but a good loaf of Italian bread will do. (I like to rub the hot toast with garlic but then I’m going to hell for sins committed against la vera cucina toscana.)

4. Garnish with fresh rosemary leaves and a drizzle of robust extra virgin olive oil. (Do not serve with parmesan unless you want to join me in that ‘other place’.)

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