Vegetarian Ribollita

What's better on a chilly, rainy Sunday than a big bowl of hearty soup?

Okay, lots of things, but for the purpose of THIS blog, you have to admit that soup ranks right up there on the comfort food scale and the warm fuzzy feeling it evokes. I do, however, feel it is my duty to warn you NOT to make this (or any other food involving a knife) if you're also indulging in my other favorite rainy-Sunday past time: watching football. Fortunately for me- although not so fortunate that it happened in the first place- I nearly sliced my finger tip off early on in the veg chopping process instead of at the end. That means that not much was contaminated before I could slap a bandage on my finger and get on with things, namely, grabbing a new cutting board, washing my knife, and throwing away a small pile of diced carrots and starting fresh. Oh well. Other than hurting like a mother and making it difficult to type, this time wasn't nearly as bad as the last time I got on the wrong side of my 7" Santoku knife... but that's another story. ;)

Vegetarian Ribollita

Ingredients:

olive oil

1 onion, diced

2 carrots, diced

1 rib of celery, diced

1 bell pepper, diced (preferably red, yellow, or orange)

1 cup of cherry tomatoes, diced

1 zucchini, diced

1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes

1 bay leaf

1 Tbs. herbes de provence

1 Tbs. dried basil

1 tsp. dried rosemary, crushed

1 tsp. dried thyme

1 tsp. garlic powder

1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes

salt & pepper to taste

6 cups vegetable stock

2-3 inch piece of Parmesan rind

2 (15.5 ounce) cans of beans, drained and rinsed (I used pinto & cannellini this time)

6 ounces of spinach (fresh or frozen)

multi-grain bread, cubed and baked at 350 degrees until golden brown and crunchy

Directions:

In a large soup pot over medium heat, saute the onion, carrots, celery, and bell pepper in olive oil for 8-10 minutes or until the vegs starts to soften. Add in the cherry tomatoes and zucchini, continuing to cook for another 5-7 minutes. Dump in the canned tomatoes and all spices and simmer for several minutes before adding the vegetable stock and Parmesan rind. Lower the heat and simmer, covered for 10-15 minutes. Lastly, add in the beans and spinach and simmer for another 10 minutes or until the spinach is wilted. To serve, drop several cubes of toasted bread in the bottom of the bowl, cover with ribollita, and toss a few more croutons on the side. Finish with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and you're set.

Enjoy!