This flavorful, hearty Tuscan white bean soup is the perfect option for those chilly nights! Pair it with fresh artisan bread or a side salad!
Looking for a side to pair with this Tuscan soup? Try these simple but delicious grilled asparagus with Italian gremolata!
Tuscan white bean soup, more traditionally known as Ribollita (which translates to “re-boiled” or “twice boiled”), is a delicious, healthy meal. Like most dishes that originated in Tuscany, this dish has peasant origins, mostly likely from the Middle Ages. The key ingredients are always a type of green (like Tuscan kale), pancetta, other inexpensive vegetables, and cannellini beans.
Making this Tuscan white bean soup
This flavorful soup is a great one pot dish (which you already know is my favorite thing) that’s super simple to throw together! Pro tip: when you’re buying porcini mushrooms, it’s less expensive and easier to find dried porcini mushroom and rehydrate them.
Once you have your ingredients, heat the skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat with the olive oil. Then add the pancetta and mushrooms and saute for around 4-5 minutes (after the pancetta lightly browns). Add the white wine and scrape the bottom of the pan. Reduce the wine to half the amount by simmering it. Then add all the ingredients except the kale, cheese, and 1 cup of the cannellini beans. Simmer the soup for around 20 minutes.
Instead of using roux to thicken your sauce, a super simple (and gluten-free) way to thicken your sauce is to blend your separated cup of cannellini beans with a little bit of water. Once you’ve blended it, stir it slowly into the sauce.
Add the chopped kale and Pecorino cheese and stir until the cheese melts and kale wilts. Finally, remove the Parmesan rind and bay leaves and enjoy!
Love soup? Here are more than a dozen additional soup recipes to try!
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 6 oz pancetta diced
- ½ oz dried porcini mushrooms reconstituted and chopped
- ½ cup dry white wine
- 6 cup chicken broth preferably organic
- Reserved liquid from reconstituting dried mushrooms
- 2 inch Parmesan cheese rind
- 2 bay leaves
- 1½ tablespoons fresh rosemary leaves chopped
- 3 cup cooked cannellini beans divided
- Sea salt and black pepper to taste
- 2 cups Tuscan kale washed, stems removed, leaves chopped
- ¾ cup Pecorino Romano cheese freshly grated and divided
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large, deep skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add pancetta and chopped porcini mushrooms to hot pan and sauté until pancetta is nicely browned, approximately 4-5 minutes.
- Add white wine and scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Reduce heat to medium and simmer a few minutes until wine is reduced by half.
- Add chicken broth, reserved liquid from dried mushrooms, Parmesan rind, bay leaves, fresh rosemary, and 2 cups cannellini beans. Stir to combine and season with salt and black pepper, to taste. Simmer for 20 minutes or until heated through.
- While the soup simmers, add remaining cup of cannellini beans and a little water to a blender or food processer and puree until smooth. Stir into soup to thicken.
- Add chopped kale and ½ cup grated Pecorino cheese and stir until cheese is completely melted and the kale is wilted, approximately 3-4 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings, as desired. Remove from heat and discard the Parmesan rind and bay leaves. Serve immediately with remaining grated Pecorino cheese. Enjoy!
Notes
sauces for extra flavor.
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