Go Back
Bowl of thick potato, cabbage and bean soup topped with grated Casera and crisp sage on a wooden table

Simmered Mal Maridada Valtellinese with Potato and Cabbage

A one-pot Valtellina soup of potatoes, savoy cabbage, borlotti beans and ditalini, thickened by simmering and finished with Casera and sage butter.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 38 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 3 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Course: Soup / Main Course
Cuisine: Italian (Northern Italy)
Calories: 98
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Soup
  • 40 g unsalted butter
  • 150 g yellow onion finely diced
  • 2 cloves garlic thinly sliced
  • 8 fresh sage leaves divided, 4 for the soup and 4 for finishing
  • 400 g yellow-fleshed potatoes peeled, cut into 2 cm cubes
  • 300 g savoy cabbage cored, cut into 1 cm ribbons
  • 1.5 l vegetable broth hot
  • 240 g borlotti beans canned, drained and rinsed
  • 150 g ditalini
  • 100 g Casera cheese coarsely grated, divided 70 g and 30 g
  • 1 tsp fine salt adjust to taste
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper freshly ground
Sage butter
  • 20 g unsalted butter
  • 4 fresh sage leaves from the 8 above

Method
 

  1. Melt 40 g butter in a 26 cm / 10-inch (4.7 L / 5-quart) Dutch oven over medium-low heat. Add the onion, 4 thinly sliced sage leaves and a pinch of salt, and cook for 8 minutes, stirring, until soft and pale gold with no browning. Add the garlic for the last minute.
  2. Stir in the potatoes and cabbage and cook for 5 minutes, stirring often, until the cabbage has wilted by about a third and everything is coated in butter.
  3. Pour in the hot broth, add the pepper and salt, and bring to a boil. Reduce to a gentle simmer, partly cover, and cook for 15 minutes until the potatoes are tender when pierced with a knife but still hold their edges.
  4. Stir in the beans and ditalini. Simmer uncovered for 9 to 10 minutes, stirring often so the pasta doesn't stick, until the ditalini is al dente and a spoon leaves a trail. If the pot looks tight, add up to 100 ml hot water.
  5. Take the pot off the heat, stir in 70 g of the Casera, cover, and rest for 5 minutes. Taste and adjust the salt.
  6. During the rest, melt 20 g butter in a 20 cm / 8-inch skillet over medium heat. Add the remaining 4 sage leaves and cook for 2 to 3 minutes until the butter foams, smells nutty, and the leaves crisp. Ladle the soup into bowls, spoon over the sage butter, and top with the remaining 30 g Casera.

Notes

  • Soften the onion in butter for the full 8 minutes without browning it.
  • Add the pasta only after the potatoes are tender when pierced with a knife.
  • Thin with hot water, 100 ml at a time, if the pot gets too thick.
  • Make the sage butter during the 5-minute rest so it goes on hot.