This poorman’s dish is a type of bread soup made from leftover vegetables boiled with stale bread and dressed with good olive oil. Essential ingredients for ribollita are beans and black cabbage.
Ribollita is prepared by boiling beans and then making a puree from part of them. To this puree, you add herbs and sliced black cabbage. After this mixture has boiled, you add the stale bread (cut into pieces) and the remaining whole beans. Add pepper and let the soup sit for a short while so that the flavours can mix well.
Ribollita is found typically around Siena and in the province of Florence. Typical trattorias in these areas frequently offer this simple yet flavourful dish.