In Tuscany in every city there is a different recipe for “zuppa”.
Zuppa is a very famous dish of the authentic Tuscan cuisine, it has different variations according to the zone where you are: it is named “ribollita”in Florence and Siena, “bordatino” in Lucca, and “zuppa” in Pisa, (of course, each person will tell you that the better recipe for the “real zuppa” is from his town).
Different recipes with the same ingredients: cabbage, beans and extra-virgin olive oil or better: “l’olio bono” (The good and fresh tuscan oil)
Every family has its own personal recipe, this is mine:
Soup for 4 people:
1 coast of celery
1 great carrot
1 middle red onion
1 clove of garlic
1 sprig of thyme
Chilli dry
Fresh basil
Extra-virgin olive oil
1 tube of tomato paste
6-10 leaves of curly black cabbage (a bunch)
Half a savoy cabbage
3 zucchini
100 g. of dry beans “cannellini” to be softened and to boil. (In Pisa we use “piattelle pisane” a type of beans typical of the zone, that however could be replaced by the easiest to find cannellini)
vegetable broth
300 g. of stale bread (without salt)
Salt and pepper q.b.
Begin the recipe by cooking the diced carrots, coast of celery, onion, thyme, chilli and garlic in a saucepan with 3 spons of extra-virgine olive oil.
When it begins to be gilded, bathe with the vegetable broth and add the black cabbage, cleaned by the coast and cut to strip. You have to keep on bathing with the broth because you don’t stick to the saucepan. Later around 10 minutes put also the zucchines and the savoy cabbage chopped, add the tube of assembled of tomato and other broth. When the cabbages will be cooked, add a cream done with halves the cooked beans (pasts in a mixers) and the other halves just whole beans.
Season with salt and pepper and put the soup in a saucepan where you will have placed some thin fettines of stale bread. If you will use tuscan typical bread without salt (or so-called “foolish”), the result it will be best.
The soup will be ready at least 3 hours until the bread won’t be bathed completely.
Soup is served with a thread of extra-virgin olive oil and fresh basil, in summer it is served cold. The real Tuscan way to serve it is with some little slices of fresh red onion and a tasty glass of red wine. We recommend our Verrucano to taste in the best way this genuine food.