Ribollita

Drain the canned white beans (400 g) in a colander and rinse under cold water. Cut the onion, 2 celery stalks and 2 carrots into small dice, and finely chop 3 cloves of garlic. Strip the tough stems from the cavolo nero and savoy cabbage, then slice the leaves into 2 cm strips. Peel 2 potatoes and cut into 1.5 cm cubes, and tear the stale bread by hand into 3 cm pieces.

Heat 3 tbsp olive oil in a wide heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Add the onion, celery, carrot and garlic and sauté for 8 minutes, stirring, until softened but not browned.

Add the peeled canned tomatoes along with their juice, crushing them with a spatula right in the pot. Cook for 5 minutes over medium heat so the liquid reduces slightly and the sauce thickens.

Add two-thirds of the beans to the pot whole, and mash the remaining beans with a fork into a purée, stirring that in too — this will naturally thicken the soup. Add the potatoes, dried rosemary and 1 L hot water. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover with a lid and simmer for 20 minutes until the potatoes are half-cooked.

Add the cavolo nero and savoy cabbage, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Simmer uncovered for another 12 minutes, until the cabbage leaves are tender.

Stir the stale bread pieces into the soup, pressing them down into the liquid with a spoon, and simmer gently for 8 minutes, until the bread softens and partially breaks down, thickening the soup further. If it seems too thick, add a little more hot water.

Remove the pot from the heat, cover with a lid and let the soup rest for 10 minutes — it's this reheating that gave the dish its name "ribollita," which means "reboiled" in Italian.

Before serving, reheat the soup for another 2-3 minutes, ladle into bowls and drizzle generously with the remaining olive oil (3 tbsp) and freshly ground black pepper.