Tuscan Pot Soup with Garlic and Herb Ricotta Dumplings
Butter beans, carrots, leeks and cavolo nero mingle in this simple hearty Tuscan Pot soup. Served with crispy fried garlic and ricotta herb dumplings, this dish is a substantial feast for a weekend meal with family and friends.
Introduction
We can’t tell you the number of times we’ve made this soup. The dumplings are so light and make it more substantial if you think soup by itself won’t fill you up. It’s often requested by our friends for lunch.
Ingredients
| 1 | leek, green part only, chopped |
| 1 | smallish onion, finely chopped |
| 3 | carrots, finely chopped |
| 2 | celery sticks, finely chopped |
| 100ml | olive oil, plus extra for frying the dumplings |
| 2 | bay leaves |
| ¼ tsp | fennel seeds |
| 120g | cavolo nero, shredded |
| 100g | Savoy cabbage, or other greens, shredded |
| 2 | fresh tomatoes, chopped |
| 1 x 400g tin of | chopped tomatoes |
| 2 x 400g tins of | butter beans, in water |
| 1 | bouquet garni sachet |
| 1 | Parmesan rind (or similar hard cheese rind; optional) |
| 1 tsp | vinegar |
| Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper | |
| For the ricotta dumplings: | |
|---|---|
| 300g | ricotta |
| Handful of | herbs (parsley, tarragon, dill), chopped |
| 100g | plain flour |
| 50g | Cheddar, finely grated |
| 1 tsp | mustard powder |
| Good pinch of | white pepper |
| 50g | Parmesan, grated, plus extra to serve |
Method
Put the leek, onion, carrots and celery in a large pan with the olive oil and cook over a medium heat for 5 minutes. Add the bay leaves and fennel seeds, cook for a minute, then stir in the cabbages and cook for a few minutes. Add the fresh and tinned tomatoes, as well as the beans with the water from the tin. Stir and season well, then drop in the bouquet garni, Parmesan rind, if using, and the vinegar. Add enough water to cover the ingredients (about 400ml) and simmer for 1 hour. When cooked, use a ladle to squash some of the beans.
Meanwhile, make the ricotta dumplings by mixing all of the ingredients together (except the Parmesan) in a bowl and forming into small balls about the size of a conker. Place the balls in a tray of the Parmesan and coat the dumplings.
Heat about a 2cm depth of olive oil in a frying pan, drop the dumpling balls in the hot oil and shallow fry, turning, until crisp. Drain.
Remove the bouquet garni from the soup. Ladle the soup into bowls, top with a few dumplings and a grating of Parmesan.
Tip: You can put whatever you like in this soup. It lasts a couple of days and we just keep topping it up with extra stock and veggies.
Reviews
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