Marcella's Ventian cabbage soup

Ragazzi, if you search this blog, you will see that Annalena worships Marcella Hazan.  Her books, very much, defined Annalena's approach to cooking. So Annalena consults these collections from time to time.  In doing so this week, for a reason that reminded Annalena to tell you to do the same, she found a new recipe, using her vegetable of the moment, cabbage.

Cabbage is certainly not glamorous.  Most of us only know it from coleslaw, usually made badly, from cabbage that has been pre-cut, and treated for long term storage. 

LET'S GET AWAY FROM THAT AND USE THIS LOVELY VEGETABLE.  Educate yourself, and see how many different types there are. Try them all.  For example, the great Marcella says you could make this soup with any variety, even red cabbage.  For reasons she cannot explain, Annalena associates savoy cabbage with Venice.  As it is also Annalena's favorite type, she used it.  You may proceed accordingly, or with something else.

Now, what prompted the discovery of this recipe?  Annalena was making risibisi for dinner, and thought it high time to check the recipe again.  See, when you make a recipe over and over again, you may THINK you have it memorized, and maybe you do.  It is, however, a good thing to go back , periodically, and review a favorite recipe to see if you still recall it. Who knows?  You may find a good one. 

Ok, so let's get going.  First of all, as is the case with most Italian recipes, this is the ultimate in simplicity of ingredients.  The main ingredient, is time. 

First, you need to shred about 2 pounds of cabbage in thin shreds.  You should also chop up an onion.  Also chop up a tablespoon of garlic, and have a tablespoon of any vinegar ready.  Annalena always associates cider vinegar with cabbage:

 Now, we're going to start cooking.  This will sound like a lot, and it is, but you need it.  Put half a cup of olive oil in a big soup pot.  Add the onion.  Cook the onion at low heat until it darkens, almost to the point of being black in color:

This is a bit odd, Annalena knows, and this will take some time.  Ironically, the large amount of oil slows down the time to brown.  But you'll get there.  Now, put in the cabbage, all of it, the garlic, and the tablespoon of vinegar.  The cabbage will begin collapsing almost immediately:

This is what happened to Annalena's cabbage, in the 2 minutes she needed to grab her phone:  when she started, the cabbage was over the rim of the pot.  

Now, stir everything together, cover the pot, and put it on low, low LOW heat.  If you have a heat disperser, now is the time to use it.  Use a flame as low as you can get, without turning off the oven.  Cover the pot.  You're going to cook this for... NINETY MINUTES.    And this is what you get a fter 15:

And then an hour:

And after 90 minutes:

Those of you with cooking chops may be thinking French onion soup.  You're on the right track.  Now, you're going to add 2/3 cup of uncooked Italian rice, a quart and a half of stock, and then taste this to check for salt, which it will need.   Let this cook away for twenty minutes or so, and then taste the rice.  Is it cooked to your satisfaction?  If not, cook it some more, but keep in mind that, as the soup cools down, the rice will cook some more. 

What you get, is what we Italians call a "zuppa."

See, ragazzi, Italians distinguish between thick soups (zuppe), and ones with more liquid (ministre).  Indeed, Annalena thinks that "zuppe" should really be translated as "sop," but that's her view, not the prevailing one. 

What you will find is that you needed that vinegar, because this slow cooking brings out the sugar in the cabbage. That is all the brown stuff.  It is, literally , vegetable caramel.  

So go back through this recipe.  Yes, it took us a while to get here, but you did practically nothing, and you have two cups of inexpensive, delicious goodness.  

Annalena thinks herb focaccia here,  but you may have other thoughts.  Do think about making this though. Whatever else happens this winter, cabbage will be available.  You may be very glad to have this recipe.