FARINATA DI CAVOLO NERO, INFARINATA ALLA GARFAGNANA

Thick Soup with Black Cabbage

Recipe

200 gr. yellow polenta flour

350 gr. borlotti beans or dried beans

one red onion

one clove garlic

chili pepper (optional)

one good size black cabbage

2 tablespoons tomato puree

1 sausage or 100 gr. salted streaky bacon or lardo

olive oil, salt & pepper

Boil the beans in 1 litre of cold water or stock . When cooked, pass half the beans through a vegetable mill and mix the puree with the cooking liquid.

Put the other half aside.

Then, over a low heat, fry the chopped garlic and the sausage (for best results use a terracotta pot on an old-fashioned range) and when the onion is lightly browned add the tomato, salt and pepper and cook for

10 minutes.

Pour this mixture into the saucepan with the bean puree and bring to the boil, at which point add the cabbage leaves without the stalks or hard veins and cut into strips.

Cook for 30 minutes and then sprinkle into the mixture, a little at a time, the yellow flour.

Stir continuously to avoid lumps.

Cook, stirring continuously for half an hour.

Last of all add the remaining cooked beans.