A healthy, delicious recipe for Tuscan White Bean Soup also known as Ribollita – made with Cannellini beans, lacinato kale, and vegetables, drizzled with a Lemon Rosemary Garlic Oil. Hearty, nourishing, and easily vegan-Adaptable. (With a Video.)
You may also like 25 Cozy Vegetarian Soup Recipes!
This day will never come again. ~Merton
This hearty flavorful Tuscan White Bean Soup, called Ribollita, originates from hilltop villages throughout Tuscany where, during the Middle Ages, hungry, hard-working peasants who served table-side to their wealthy landowners, would pocket the leftover crusts and crumbs and bits of meat after abundant feasts and add these to their soups and stews at home.
Ribollitta translates to “re-boiled”.
Nothing was wasted. Traditionally, it’s a big pot of soup made with simple garden vegetables like onions, carrots, celery, kale, tomatoes and cannellini beans (or white beans) in a flavorful broth, thickened with bread, then reheated and eaten several days in row, getting better and better each day.
White Bean Soup (Ribolitta) | 50-sec video
Why I love this recipe
This recipe is just so wholesome and cozy and full of so much flavor. A meal unto itself! It’s a perfect winter soup that can be made vegan or vegetarian – the pancetta is totally optional and can be omitted altogether if vegan or vegetarian.
How to elevate White Bean Soup
- For extra depth of flavor, add a bit of whole, Parmesan rind to the simmering soup, which will give it amazing flavor.
- To me, what really elevates this recipe is the “finishing oil” – a drizzle of olive oil infused with lemon zest, garlic and rosemary which gives this sometimes somber soup a delicious brightness.
- Serve it with or over Crispy Sourdough Toast– like you see here in our Brothy Beans Recipe!
How to serve Ribollita
Serve Ribollita with crusty bread to mop up all the tasty flavors, and a drizzle of Lemony Rosemary oil.
It’s hearty enough for dinner, just on its own, and gets better and better each day…so I like making a big pot of this and eating it throughout the week.
Expert Tips
To thicken the soup, you can blend a cup of the beans into a puree, or add torn pieces of day-old bread into the soup itself, cooking the bread down. It will add a delicious heartiness.
However personally, I’m a broth fan, so I leave this brothy and un-thickened so there are more juices to dip the crusty bread in while eating. Of course, this is a personal preference, so do as you like.
On the homefront: Several years ago now, my group of girlfriends and I took a trip to Tuscany together. After years of planning, saving and dreaming, the time came when we were finally there, in a little hilltop village, soaking up all the Tuscan sunshine, wine and food we could handle.
Time seemed to slow way down, the hillsides were golden and glittery, so much beauty and detail to absorb.
There is something truly special about making the decision to go somewhere, and then to actually go. Life is so short. I feel it getting shorter every single day, and I guess I just want to impress upon you to do the things you’ve always dreamed of doing, and not to wait too long.
This is where this soup came from…
More White Bean Soup Recipes
- Brothy Beans on Garlic Toast
- Creamy White Bean Soup with Gremolata
- Tuscan Cannellini Bean Soup
- Smoky Tomato White Bean Soup
- Instant Pot Chicken and White Bean Soup
- Pumpkin Soup with Leeks and White beans
- Brothy Tortellini Soup w/ Spinach, White Beans & Basil
- Instant Pot Minestrone Soup (Vegan!)
Have a delicious weekend! Let us know how you like Ribollita in the comments below!
xoxo
Print
Ribollita (Tuscan White Bean Soup)
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 50 mins
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 6-8 1x
- Category: Main
- Method: stove top
- Cuisine: Italian
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
A hearty flavorful Tuscan White Bean Soup called Ribollita with lacinato kale, cannellini beans and garden vegetables served with crusty bread and drizzled with a flavorful lemon rosemary oil. See notes for vegan option.
Ingredients
- 1/8 cup good olive oil
- 1/2 cup chopped pancetta or bacon –optional (feel free to leave this out, or sub vegan bacon)
- 2 cups diced onions
- 1 cup diced carrots
- 1 cup diced fennel bulb (or sub celery)
- 4 – 6 cloves garlic- rough chopped
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, more to taste
- 2 teaspoons salt, plus more to taste
- 2–3 medium tomatoes – diced (or a 14-ounce can diced tomatoes)
- 6 cups lacinato kale, chopped
- Splash white wine
- 6 cups chicken or veggie stock
- Parmesan rind (optional, but adds depth and flavor)
- 3 cups cooked cannellini beans – or use 2 cans cannellini beans (drained, rinsed), or great northern white beans
- ——–
- 1/2 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves
- Grated pecorino or Parmesan – optional or try vegan parmesan
- Crusty Bread
Rosemary Lemon Garlic Oil ( for drizzling)
- 1/2 cup good olive oil
- zest of one large lemon
- 4 cloves garlic, sliced
- few sprigs rosemary (or thyme, sage)
Instructions
- Make the Lemon Garlic Rosemary Oil – place all ingredients in a small jar or bowl and let sit on the counter (or make the day before, refrigerating)
- In a large, heavy-bottom pot or dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat. Add onions and optional pancetta and saute 6-8 minutes.
- Lower heat to med-low and add the carrots, fennel (or celery) and garlic, salt, pepper and chili flakes, and cook another 7- 9 minutes until vegetables are tender.
- Add the tomatoes and lacinato kale, and a splash of white wine, and continue sauteing and stirring occasionally for 7-8 minutes.
- Add the stock and beans. Bring to soup to boil, turn heat down and simmer for 15 minutes.(You could add a Parmesan rind to the simmering soup for extra depth of flavor.)
- Stir in fresh Italian Parsley. Adjust salt if necessary.
- Serve in bowls with a drizzle of the flavorful lemon oil, grated Parmesan ( or Romano) and crusty bread.
Notes
- NOTE: If you like a thicker soup, blend or puree 1-2 cups of the soup, and add back to the soup. Or, thicken it with day-old bread, torn into small pieces and cooked with the broth. This is the traditional way. (I prefer a brothier version of this soup, so I skip both and serve with toasty bread on the side instead.)
- Keep this vegan by using veggie broth, no pancetta or parmesan. The rosemary oil will add a delicious flavor – I highly recommend it. Sometimes I’ll add a tablespoon of Nutritional Yeast for a more cheesy flavor and 1 tablespoon miso paste to add more depth. Up to you.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: with ½ cup chopped "Turkey bacon", parmesan and the finishing oil.
- Calories: 325
- Sugar: 4.5 g
- Sodium: 851.7 mg
- Fat: 18 g
- Saturated Fat: 3.4 g
- Carbohydrates: 32.3 g
- Fiber: 7.1 g
- Protein: 12.3 g
- Cholesterol: 15.7 mg
This recipe is to die for. Absolutely delicious.
I often make a similar vegetarian soup of my own devising, but the proportions of this one (minus the fennel, which I neither had nor like, and with less salt) resulted in a markedly superior version, even before the oil. The oil, though really knocked it out of the park! I thought I’d have enough left over for another evening, but the soup was such a hit with the family that there’s barely a cupful left. I look forward to making it again soon. Thanks for posting it!
Love this recipe.
So easy and so delicious. Definitely a favourite.
And the finishing oil… Yum!!!
Lovely winter dish.
“High end Italian restaurant quality” soup according to my sweet husband who knows about these things. I can not believe the depth of flavors in this soup! We have decided to try vegetarianism for one year, and this was our first meal. Not only was it a big regular meal hit, it’s going to replace the Wedding Soup we normally have on the holidays.
Thanks for the easy to understand steps (I’m not a natural!) that make, even people like me, look like they know their way around a kitchen.
Glad you both liked it Mary!
This soup was delicious! The garlic rosemary oil was the icing on the cake. Adds such depth. I used 1/2 the salt and beet greens instead of kale (my kale was buried under new snow). Thanks! This will be a staple around here!
I am vegan, so I omitted
the meat. Otherwise, followed the recipe exactly(using the fennel). This Tuscan stew is divine! Thank you so much ❤
My nephew made this soup. It was one of the best soups I’ve ever tasted. As an appetizer he served a small bowl of soup with the drizzle and we could dip square sizes of bread into the soup. He also used pecorino cheese and parsley to garnish the soup. I could ear this all week!
What a fantastic recipe Sylvia! I used to go to Tuscany often, but I never had a ribollita that was as tasty as your recipe. Simply perfect! It will go into our weekly rotation for sure. Grazie!
Awesome Alex! thanks!
The best. Rich tasting. Easy. We live at over 7,000 ft., so cooked it a little slower & a little longer. In order to not get run out of town, I added a few pinto beans with the white beans.
Haha 😂 Love it Sam.
this was amazing!!! husband made it for dinner. It was even better the next day
I don’t ever read the full blog I usually just jump to recipes but something about your blog caught my eye and so I read it and I’m so glad I did.
I completely share your passion about:-
“There is something truly special about making the decision to go somewhere, and then to actually go. Life is so short. I feel it getting shorter every single day, and I guess I just want to impress upon you to do the things you’ve always dreamed of doing, and to begin to do them now”
I tell my friends this all the time, don’t talk about you’d like to do things, go places but actually go and do them.
I see the passion in your writing and I shall be making this recipe tomorrow.
Best wishes
Mike
Awww, thanks Mike, glad this resonated. 🙂
Easy and tasty, best of you can avoid the subs. The fennel bulb was delicious and a better choice than celery, I’m sure. The one thing I might do different if just a bit more beans to make it more filling.
It really does taste better in the subsequent days
Thank you for this delicious recipe which I started yesterday and will finish off today. I find that most soups taste better after a day night the fridge.
I have a question about the garlic lemon oil.
How long can I keep this oil ? I would love to have it on hand for other dishes, but worry about mold, etc.
Thank you in advance!
Sue M.
Thanks Sue! The oil should keep 5-6 days in the fridge.:)
Made this beautiful, hearty soup today and oh my goodness, it was so delicious! Followed the recipe to the letter, I even added the Parmesan rind and it gave it so much depth. The garlic and lemon oil is amazing!
Do you know if the soup can be frozen?
Sylvia, thank you for all your wonderful recipes; they are so satisfying and nourishing for the soul!
This Sylvie! This should freeze fine!
I searched for vegetarian recipes in preparation for a dinner party with some vegetarian guests, trying to find a dish that would be enjoyed by (normally-)meat-eaters too. I was encouraged by the reviews of this recipe, but took them with a pinch of salt (being a meat-eater myself). However the reviews are more than justified – the dish was absolutely gorgeous, the meat-eaters and vegetarians were raving about it alike, and I (my own harshest critic) could not fault the dish. The parmesan rind and yeast flakes created a wonderful depth of flavour. It can be served “fine-dining” style as a main course, in wide-rim soup bowls, as a thick stew, with the sauteed (in chilli oil) vegan sausage pieces placed in a little pile on top of the stew (thank you to the reviewer who suggested this addition!), and swirls of the lemon/rosemary oil creating an artistic touch. I added a touch of chilli flakes over the top along with parmesan flakes, as I love the kick of chilli. Being a vegetarian “soup/stew” to your preference, I assumed that a light red wine such as a Pinot Noir would complement it, but the flavours were powerful and “meaty” enough such that a big powerful red wine complemented it wonderfully. Sylvia – thank you so, so much for this – I look forward to trying more of your recipes!
You are so sweet Nick! Thanks for sharing and glad you liked it!
This was amazing! Made it twice. Probably my favorite soup ever.
Yay!!! Glad you like it. 🙌
So easy to make, bursting with flavour and vitamins; a pot of joy .I have made several times, a great lunch whilst we are working from home as we are in a six week lockdown. A nice balance to the day, the lemon, rosemary oil on top compliments an already perfect dish.
So so good. Added 1 cup of small pasta to appease the hubby but it really didn’t need it. The rosemary lemon garlic oil completes this soup.
Yay!!! Great to hear. Thanks for sharing! 🙌
It was fantastic!!
Do you have a detailed nutrition info for this?
Thanks!
Just added!
This is the best
Tried both the pancetta and vegetarian versions (for our vegetarian daughter). Both were excellent. I actually preferred the freshness of the vegetarian version. My son ate the vegetarian version and said it tasted quite meaty.
Awesome Shane! Thanks for letting me know!
Made it twice already, first time with kale and second time with rapini (what we had on hand). Didn’t add pancetta as we don’t really buy or eat it but luckily had parmesan rind for the broth. DELICIOUS! And the finishing oil…excellent!
I’ve never heard of refrigerating oil. That is strange to me. What is the reason for refrigerating olive oil that is flavored with garlic?
Because raw garlic can develop harmful bacteria ( botulism) in oil, without refrigeration after a couple of days.
A great recipe to adapt into a hearty vegan soup! I used field roast italian vegan sausages, cubed. First sautéed with vegan worcestershire, a little maple, and avocado oil until caramelized, then added onions and went from there! Served with a 100% spelt boule and it was really delicious.
Love the field roast addition! Brilliant!!! Thanks so much for sharing Steph- I know others will find this useful too. xoxo
Absolutely delicious
Sorry for the typos 🙁
Oh my goodness, if you read my blog, you’ll know that typos are welcome and expected. 🙂