Instructions
Drain the soaked cannellini, cover generously with fresh water, and simmer until tender, about 1 hour. Reserve the cooking liquid. Puree half the beans with a ladleful of their broth.
60 minIn a heavy pot, warm the olive oil over medium heat and cook the onion, carrot, and celery with a pinch of salt until soft and sweet, about 12 minutes. Add the garlic for the final 2 minutes.
14 minStir in the passata and let it darken a shade, about 5 minutes, so the soffritto tastes cooked rather than raw.
5 minAdd the cavolo nero, savoy cabbage, and thyme. Turn the leaves through the soffritto until they collapse, about 5 minutes.
5 minPour in the bean puree, the whole beans, and enough reserved bean broth to cover. Simmer gently, partly covered, for 40 minutes, seasoning with salt and pepper toward the end.
40 minTear the stale bread into the pot, stir, and turn off the heat. Rest at least 1 hour, or refrigerate overnight (this is the traditional pause that makes ribollita ribollita).
Reboil: return the thick soup to medium heat and cook, stirring from the bottom, until it sighs and bubbles, about 10 minutes. It should hold a spoon nearly upright.
10 minServe in warm bowls with a ring of raw olive oil and, if you like, paper-thin red onion on top.
Chef's Tips
- The bread matters: Salted sandwich bread turns slick as it breaks down. If you cannot find unsalted Tuscan-style bread, use a plain country loaf and dry the slices in a low oven first.
- Do not blend it: Ribollita is rustic by design: the beans are half pureed, never the soup itself. The texture should read as vegetables and bread, not cream.
- In spring, Tuscan cooks swap part of the cavolo nero for chard. The soup forgives almost any greens that can survive forty minutes of simmering.
