There’s nothing more comforting than cooking up a pot-full of hearty soup and enjoying a bowl (or two) in my pajamas. I’m not sure which I enjoy most – cooking the soup or devouring the hearty bowl – but soup making is definitely my ritual when it starts to get chilly outside. Unfortunately, I have yet to venture out to very elaborate recipes (I don’t even own an immersion blender) so, at this time, my meager soup repertoire include those that only require me to chop and, well, open cans. That is probably why Ribolitta is my favorite soup to cook and eat.

But unlike the traditional recipe that requires the baking of the soup (thus the name which means to “re-cook”), I just simmer mine and enjoy it right out the pot. So I guess my version is technically not a Ribollita – perhaps it’s closer to Minestrone – but the flavors of the warm broth, nutty Parmesan rinds, robust cannellini beans and loads of seasonal vegetables are delicious enough to take me back to the streets Florence.