Tuesday: Smokey Ribollita Soup

Soup?  Again?  hell yeah.  I truly find that my girls will eat just about anything if it's in some sort of broth.  Never made this soup before...never heard of it either.  But, I just love the taste of fire roasted tomatoes.  (and I love that I can buy them in the can and not have to worry about making them myself)  I make another recipe ( Four-Cheese Stuffed Shells with Smoky Marinara)  that uses the fire roasted tomatoes and I just love that smokey taste.  
I'm sure for you die hard carnivores out there, tossing in some pancetta or even Italian sausage would taste great with this too.  ;)  

Smokey Ribollita Soup


Ingredients:

1.    1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2.    3 large celery ribs, diced
3.    3 medium carrots, diced
4.    2 medium onions, diced
5.    4 garlic cloves, minced
6.    1 teaspoon sweet smoked paprika
7.    1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
8.    One 28-ounce can chopped fire-roasted     
9.      tomatoes and their juices
10.     3/4 pound Tuscan kale—stems  
11.     discarded, leaves coarsely chopped (8 
12.     cups)
13.    4 thyme sprigs
14.    1 rosemary sprig
15.    1 bay leaf
16.    Salt and freshly ground black pepper
17.    2 quarts vegetable stock
18.    Two 15 1/2-ounce cans white beans,    
19.    such as cannellini, drained
20.    2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
21.    1/4 cup grated pecorino cheese

Directions:

1. In a large pot, heat the oil. Add the celery, carrots and onions; cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, 8 minutes. Stir in the garlic, paprika and crushed red pepper and cook until fragrant, 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, kale, thyme and rosemary sprigs and the bay leaf and cook, stirring occasionally, until the tomato juices have evaporated, 5 minutes. Season with salt and black pepper.
2. Add the stock and beans to the pot; simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes. Discard the rosemary and thyme sprigs and the bay leaf. Stir the vinegar into the soup and season with salt and black pepper. Ladle the soup into bowls, sprinkle with the pecorino and serve.

SERVE WITH Crusty bread.