Minestra of Cabbage, Sausage and Beans

This Abruzzo style soup can be a meal in itself. It is rich and satisfying. It is particularly delicious if done with fresh Borlotti beans during their short season. Usually you can find them at the market just before Christmas (southern hemisphere). If you are too busy then to make this soup, or if the weather is too hot to enjoy its richness, then the beans can be blanched, peeled and put in the deep freeze and left for winter use.

Or you can make this any time with the dried Borlotti beans. The combination of leafy vegetables with the beans is a particularly healthy one.

Serves 6

Ingredients

1/2 kilo Borlotti beans
water, salt
1 large carrot, cut into chunks
1 stalk celery, cut into chunks
1 onion
one pork rind
1/2 medium white onion
1/2 head of kale
6 stalks of Chinese celery leaves
250 grams of Arborio rice
(can add hot chilli at end)

Method

If using dry beans, soak overnight in warm water with a little bicarbonate of soda Next day, rinse and then cook in fresh salted water. Bring to the boil and then pour off and put in fresh water before adding carrot, celery, onions. Later, strain off vegetables. Keep the beans and the cooking water.

Boil pork rind for several hours and each time it comes to the boil, drain off water and put in fresh water. Do this at least three times to purify the rind

After rind is cooked, take out and (if you are diet conscious - strip off the fatty part. This is the best part though, it adds flavour and richness) Or you can strip off fat and use it to fry the kale. If you prefer, use butter. (In Tuscany they eat a lot of cabbage and beans with pork rind)

Coarsely chop the kale and wash (to take off fertiliser, there's not usually any dirt in the leaves) Cut the pork rind into strips.

Cook sliced white onion in pork fat, then add strips of pork rind, the kale, then add the water (strained of the vegetables) that the borlotti beans have been boiled in. Put lid on and let simmer together for 5 minutes.

Boil Arborio rice separately in salted water until it has absorbed all water.

Serve a mound of rice in soup bowl and pour over the bean and kale mix around and broth over.

Just before serving, pour over some olive oil (the oil must be cool, not warm)

This soup can be served with grated pecorino cheese (dry not fresh cheese).

Note

The flavours of celery leaf and pecorino are particularly good together