Ribollita Recipe

Want to use up some old bread that's gone stale? This is the perfect recipe which will turn your not so tasty bread into a heavenly treat! Not only does it use up leftover bread but you can use any leftover vegetables that are lying around in your fridge. It's a really hearty soup and the use of spices really brings the Tuscan feel to life with a kick of chilli, just what you want on a cold winter's day. Although the texture is not thick and smooth, the bread and borlotti beans work just as well to make sure it fills you up.

Take a look at all our othersoupsfor something exciting like this!

HOW TO MAKE RIBOLLITA

Buy Leon: Fast Vegetarian (£20; Conran Octopus)

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 3 stick celery, finely chopped
• 1 large carrot, chopped
• pinch of dried chilli
• pinch of wild oregano
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed

¼

• savoy cabbage, cored and shredded
• 400g chopped tomatoes
• pinch of salt
• pinch of freshly ground black pepper
• 400g borlotti beans, drained
• 300g black kale, de-stemmed and shredded
• 400ml boiling water
• 200g stale ciabatta, broken into 2-3cm chunks
• drizzle extra virgin olive oil

Method

1. Heat the olive oil in a large pan and add the onion, celery and carrot. Cook for 10 minutes over a low heat, then add the chilli, oregano and garlic and cook for 2 more minutes, stirring well.

2. Add the shredded cabbage and tomatoes, season with salt and black pepper, stir well and cook over a high heat for 5 minutes.

3. Add the beans and shredded kale and pour in the boiling water. Stir, then bring to a simmer and cook for another 5 minutes, or until the kale is tender.

4. Remove a cupful of the soup and blend well in a liquidizer or food processor, then stir it back into the soup in the pan.

5. Bring the soup back to a simmer, then remove from the heat and fold in the chunks of bread. Drizzle with lots of extra virgin olive oil, check the seasoning and serve.