Zolfini Bean Soup from Tuscany

Delicate and full of flavour, Zolfini beans are a Tuscan treasure from the Pratomagno area, named after their yellow colour (zolfo means sulphur).
Lovely simply dressed with olive oil, puréed or in soup, they hold their shape well and should be simmered very gently to keep their texture and flavour.

350 g Zolfini beans from Pratomagno
1 carrot
1 onion
1 celery stalk
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon chopped rosemary
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
4 slices of bread
salt, pepper and extra virgin olive oil

Soak the beans overnight in a bowl of plenty of cold water.
The next day, rinse them and put them in a tall pot with plenty of cold water and 1 bay leaf. Simmer gently for about two hours.

Never salt the cooking water until the very end, otherwise the beans will never cook through completely.

Wash and chop the carrot, celery and onion. Put them in a deep non-stick pot and sauté them with 2 tablespoons of oil, 1 bay leaf and a pinch of salt. When the beans are cooked, drain them, keeping 1 litre of the cooking water. Add half of the beans to the soffritto, stir and cook over low heat. Meanwhile, blend the other half with the cooking water into a smooth cream.

Add the cream to the beans, stir, cook for another 5 minutes and turn off the heat. In the meantime, heat some olive oil and the chopped rosemary in a non-stick pan and toast the bread slices on both sides, taking care not to burn them.

Serve the soup hot with the toasted bread, freshly ground pepper and a drizzle of olive oil.