Summer Ribollita with Basil-Pinenut Pistou
/Summary: This is a marvelous way to use up many of the veggies that have accumulated in your fridge. The foundation for this recipe is a soup from winneab, a Food52 cook, as well as my sister's Tuscan ribollita.
Yield: serves 6
Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 large onion, peeled and chopped
- 2 large cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 leek, trimmed and sliced thinly
- 3 carrots, peeled and chopped
- 2 ribs of celery, chopped
- 1 zucchini, chopped
- 4 cups vegetable or chicken stock (I used mushroom broth + water)
- one 15-ounce can chickpeas, preferably organic, lightly drained
- one 28-ounce can of peeled San Marzano tomatoes, with their juices
- salt
- 1 cup kale, chopped fine (I used chard leaves)
- 2-3 Pecorino or Parmesan rinds
- 1 cup basil, chopped finely
- 1 clove garlic, peeled and minced/smashed
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
- 6 slices good quality, crusty, slightly stale bread
Instructions:
Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat.
Add the chopped onion, garlic and leek. Cook, stirring occasionally, over medium heat until softened.
Add the chopped carrot, celery, and zucchini, and stir around for a minute or two.
Add the stock, chickpeas, and tomatoes, crushing them with your hands or wooden spoon as you go. Add a few generous pinches of salt (be judicious if your stock is salted already) and the Pecorino rinds. Bring the soup to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 30-40 minutes.
Add the chard. While it softens, make the pistou by combining the finely chopped basil, olive oil and smashed garlic in a small bowl. Let sit.
When the soup is ready, place a slice of bread in the bottom of each bowl. Ladle soup over, drizzle with pistou and sprinkle some toasted pine nuts on top.