Ribollita with Parmesan Toast

Thanksgiving dinner is one of my favorite meals of the year.  The aroma of the turkey roasting in the oven as all the side dishes are being prepared creates an anticipation that has us all pacing the floor until dinner is served.  And we enjoy the leftovers as much as the big dinner itself.  But, if your family is like mine, now we are ready for a break from all that heavy, rich food and are craving something light and easy to prepare.

A few weeks ago I saw a recipe for ribollita at Proud Italian Cook that I knew would be the perfect post-Thanksgiving soup - lots of fresh vegetables, tons of flavor, and easy to prepare when I'm still cleaning up the kitchen from the huge meal the day before. Marie's recipes are always first rate and this didn't disappoint.  The combination of vegetables she used is fantastic, and the addition of beans and potatoes added substance to this scrumptious soup, described by Marie as classic Tuscan peasant fare.  Rather than retype the recipe here I encourage you to visit Marie and browse through her posts where I know you will find other dishes that you can't resist.  I didn't add bread to this ribollita but rather gave the soup a few blends with an immersion blender as Marie suggested and that thickened it up perfectly.

Instead of just sprinkling grated parmesan cheese over the hot bowls of soup I toasted thick slices of crusty bread, piled on the grated cheese and put the slices under the broiler until the cheese was bubbly and browned.  The toast went into the bowl first and then steaming hot soup was ladled over the top.

My photo doesn't do this soup justice.  Sorry Marie.  I was all set up to take pictures, ladled the hot soup into a bowl, got the lighting just the way I wanted it, snapped 4 shots,  and the phone rang.  I should have let it ring, but I didn't and by the time I got back to my soup it was cold, the lighting had changed and my opportunity had passed.  But, rather than not post, I chose to go  with the best of what I had because I wanted to tell you about this wonderful recipe.  I do hope you will try it.

This weekend I'm joining Ann at Thibeault's Table and Lori at All that Splatters for  Weekend Blog Showcase.  Ann and Lori alternate hosting this event.  I hope you will drop by for a visit.