Recipes Meat main dishes - Pasta or Risotto Displaying items by tag: ribollita
Ribollita
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MAKES 6 servings - 1/2 cup (4 fl oz/125 ml) extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling |
When Tuscan cooks make this soup, they often serve it in two or three forms over the next few days. It starts as a hearty vegetable soup, which can be eaten as is. The soup is then layered, at the time it is made or as leftovers the next day, with stale bread to make zuppa di pane, or "bread soup." When the leftover bread soup is baked until hot and drizzled with olive oil, it is declared ribollita, or "reboiled." The version here is prepared and served the same day. The ingredient that makes the soup authentic is cavolo nero, or "black cabbage," a dark green, leafy vegetable. Dinosaur kale can be substituted. |
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In a large soup pot over medium-high heat, warm the 1/2 cup olive oil. Add the onion, carrots, and celery and sauté unti! the onion is golden, 3-4 minutes. Add the cauliflower and sauté until tender-crisp, about 5 minutes. Add the cavolo nero, chard, zucchini, and potato (in that order) and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes. Buon appetito! |
The Tuscany (Toscana) Region - Capital: Florence (Firenze)
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Spectacular Simplicity
Of all the regional cuisines of Italy, Tuscan cooking is perhaps the least influenced by other cultures and traditions. Its foundation is good raw
materials—local produce, beef (especially the prized Chianina breed), chicken, pork, beans (such as cannellini and borlotti)—that are generally Culinary Signature: Olive Oilprepared with
a minimum of herbs and spices, so that their essential qualities shine through. Much of the food is homespun, and many dishes are born of poverty, like panzanella, a salad that turns stale bread and vegetables into a delicacy. Olive oil is the cooking fat of choice, and cheese is centrai to the diet, with the sheep's milk cheeses of the Pienza area among Italy's finest. Every Italian region with a coastline has its seafood stew, and Tuscany's is cacciucco, a spicy specialty of Livorno. Among the many celebrated Tuscan wines, standouts include Vernaccia di San Gimignano, a light, crisp white; the ruby red Brunello di Montalcino; Chianti Classico from the Chianti zone between Florence and Siena; the complex Vino Nobile di Montepulciano; the so-called super-Tuscans, sophisticated blends created since the 1970s and produced outside the DOC system; and vin santo, a sweet dessert wine.
Culinary Signature: Olive Oil
Olive trees define the landscape of Tuscany, and olive oil is the common denominator of the cuisine. It is used for frying and sautéing and is drizzled over soups, pastas, vegetables, and other dishes. Tuscan olive oil is prized for its fruitines, and low acidity. Olives are harvested in the fall and pressed immediately. The bright green new oil has
a peppery bite that mellows over time. Tuscan cooks prefer extra-virgin olive oil, which comes from the first pressing and has an acidity leve! of 1 percent or less.
Regional Specialties
Panzanella a salad made from day-old bread, tomatoes, cucumbers, and onions, moistened with olive oil and vinegar
Ribollita a bean and kale soup, layered with slices of bread and reheated
Pappardelle wide, flat pasta, often served with wild boar ragù
Bistecca alla fiorentina thick-cut grilled steak, made with meat from white Chianina cattle, a local breed
Cinghiale wild boar, prepared in umido (slowly braised) or simmered with tomatoes to make a robust ragù for pasta
Panforte the dense spite cake of Siena, studded with candied fruit and almonds Pecorino sheep's milk cheese, fresh or aged, also known in Tuscany as caciotta
Cantucci biscotti made with almonds, often served with vin santo, a sweet dessert wine, for dipping
Photo: Tuscan olive oils (pictured at top) are generally fullbodied and fruity, with a pungent nose. Fiorentine steak (pictured at bottom) is simple and delicious.
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