/ 18 October 2022

What’s On My Table – With Alexandra Dudley

Alexandra Dudley is a food columnist, cookbook author and host of the Come For Supper podcast. In this monthly column, she takes us inside her east London kitchen to show us what she’s cooking and the tools she’s loving. This time, it’s a truly autumnal soup – plus, three of her top serving accessories…

By Alexandra Dudley /

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Ribollita is a classic Tuscan soup usually made with stale bread and white beans. I’ve kept this one gluten free and made it all about the butterbeans. It takes so little time to prepare and there is something incredibly soothing about cooking soup for oneself. I tend to make a batch of this on a Sunday afternoon and enjoy it throughout the week. Look for good-quality jarred butter beans for this as it makes all the difference. I love Bold Bean Co.

As for something to serve alongside it, I’ve recently been loving these bubbly white wine spritzers from Uncommon wine. They are low ABV and perfect for a midweek post-work drink. I love the single serve element of the can, too.

Butter Bean Ribollita

Serves

Total Time

45 Minutes

Ingredients

1 white onion

1 large carrot

1 fennel bulb

5 cloves of garlic

1 tsp of Aleppo chilli flakes

Salt and pepper

1 can of plum tomatoes

1 bunch of cavolo nero, sliced into thick ribbons

½ glass of white wine

500ml of chicken or vegetable stock

Parmesan rind (optional, but adds depth and flavour)

450g (drained weight) jar of butter beans

Juice of ½ lemon

Small handful of chopped parsley, plus more to serve

Method

Step 1

Dice the onions, carrot and fennel, and peel and finely chop the garlic. In a large, heavy-bottomed pot heat a generous glug of olive oil over low-medium heat. Add the vegetables and chilli flakes and cook gently for about 10 minutes until soft.

Step 2

Pour the plum tomatoes into a bowl and just crush the tomatoes using your hand. Rinse and drain the butter beans.

Step 3

Add the wine, crushed tomatoes, and cavolo nero to the pan and stir. Then add the stock (and cheese rind if using). Cover and cook for 5 minutes until the cavolo nero has slightly wilted down.

Step 4

Bring the soup to a gentle simmer. Stir in the butterbeans and cook for 8 minutes until the butterbeans are warm and cooked through.

Step 5

Add the lemon juice and taste for seasoning.

Step 6

Stir in fresh parsley then serve. Drizzle with your best olive oil and sprinkle over more fresh parsley if you like.

The Three Things Alexandra’s Loving This Month…

Striped Plate, £35 | Vaisselle Boutique

I enjoy collecting plates, and mixing and matching them for dinner party puddings. This hand-painted plate from Vaisselle is a wonderful way to store jewellery, too.

Visit ConranShop.co.uk

Tablecloth, £85 | Atelier Raff

I can’t get enough of this vibrant Indian summer-inspired collection from Atelier Raff. The tablecloths and napkins are 100% linen, and come in bold and beautiful clashing colours. Perfect for bringing some colour to an autumnal table.

Visit AtelierRaff.co.uk