Tuscan White Bean Soup

Why You’ll Love this Recipe

This is a hearty, meal-worthy soup that has plenty of veggies and beans. Every year when soup season starts, I am always looking for different versions of vegetable soup and stew to take me from fall to winter. They start with a base of similar ingredients, but then they find their own way with spices, herbs and other additions.

The soup is freezer-friendly. Add this to your list of recipes that’s perfect for meal prep. Make a pot of soup and stretch it into multiple lunches and dinners.

You can easily make this soup vegan. Just leave out the Parmesan cheese and use nutritional yeast to garnish it when it finishes simmering.

What is Ribollita Soup? How is this Recipe Different?

Ribollita is from Tuscany, Italy. Traditionally it is made with vegetables, greens and day-old bread. That stale bread is actually used to thicken the broth. In Italian the word ribollita means “reboiled.” It is a peasant soup that puts everything in the kitchen to use, so there is no waste.

Rather than thickening the soup with bread, I add a half-cup of mashed beans. Since I always think ahead to leftovers, soup with mashed beans in the broth has a better consistency when you reheat it, whether it was refrigerated or frozen. I still top each bowl with croutons that I toast in the oven while the soup is on the stove.

The Ingredients

This is what you need:

• White beans: You can use cannellini beans or great northern beans for the soup. I prefer these bigger beans to smaller navy beans. Once you have rinsed and drained the beans from the cans, take a fork and mash a half-cup of beans.
• Onions, carrots and celery: This trio is the starting point for lots of soups. They sauté in olive oil before the rest of the ingredients make it into the pot.
• Tomatoes: I include a can of diced tomatoes, so chunks end up throughout the soup with the other vegetables.
• Kale: In the last few minutes of simmering, I add chopped kale that wilts from the heat. Since this is such a robust leafy green, it still keeps some of its bite. Use lacinato kale or you can substitute with swiss chard. Remove the ribs before chopping the leaves.
• Red pepper flakes, salt and pepper are the dried seasonings in the soup.
• Fresh rosemary: I add a few sprigs of this fresh herb to the broth as it bubbles on the stove. You can substitute with 1/4 teaspoon of dried rosemary, but I recommend going with fresh for the best taste.
• Garlic: The recipe calls for 2 minced cloves. If you are really into garlic, you can add more if you want.
• Vegetable broth: To keep the soup vegetarian/vegan use low-sodium vegetable broth. You can substitute with chicken stock.
• Parmesan: I garnish the soup with shaved Parmesan. And even before that, I like to throw a Parmesan rind into to the soup as it simmers. If you don’t do this already, you should save these rinds for sauces and soups. They add good umami flavor, and they are very appropriate for this recipe, which finds its roots in using everything.
• Bread: For the croutons, I prefer country bread with a good crust considering it will be partially submerged in the broth.
• Olive oil is needed for toasting the bread in the oven and for sautéing the onions, carrots and celery.
• Parsley: I sprinkle each bowl of soup with chopped fresh parsley.

How To Make Tuscan White Bean Soup

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

1. Toss the bread with olive oil, salt and pepper on a sheet pan. Spread it out, so it is in a single layer.

2. Toast the bread until it is golden brown. You can do this while you are making the soup on the stove.

3. Heat the olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat.

4. Sauté the onions, carrots and celery for about 4 minutes until they start to soften.

5. Stir in the garlic, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Cook for 1-2 minutes until fragrant.

6. Add the whole beans, mashed beans, tomatoes, vegetable broth, rosemary and Parmesan rind. Bring the soup to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes, letting the soup thicken slightly.

7. Stir in the kale. It will wilt in 3-4 minutes. Discard the rosemary sprigs and Parmesan rind.

8. Divide the soup into bowls and top with toasted bread, Parmesan and parsley.

Serving

Since the soup already has bread in it, I skip serving bread on the side. Instead I like to focus on fresh greens like a basic Arugula Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette, an Italian Chopped Salad, or a Brussels Sprout Caesar Salad. 

Leftovers & Freezing

You can store the soup in an airtight container in the fridge up to 3 days. Reheat it in the microwave or in a small saucepan on the stove over low heat. Keep the croutons in a separate container at room temperature. If there are croutons in the soup you are planning to store, take them out or they will be soggy.

You can freeze the soup up to 1 month. I recommend toasting a fresh batch of bread. You can skip the bread if you want, which might be better for those who want it to be gluten free.

More Soup Recipes

Hearty Vegetable Soup
Cauliflower White Bean Tahini Soup
Minestrone Soup
Rosemary White Bean Tomato Soup
Pasta e Fagioli
Roasted Tomato Soup