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1
Place the onion, celery, tomato, and wild greens in a wide, heavy pot. Pour over the 1.2 litres of cold water and a thread of olive oil. Salt well. Bring to a steady simmer over a medium flame and cook, uncovered, until the vegetables are fully soft and the broth is fragrant with the character of the greens — about 30–35 minutes. The broth will be clear, not opaque; the vegetables spent, their flavour surrendered to the water.
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2
Add the soaked porcini and their strained liquid to the pot. Simmer for a further 5 minutes. The broth will deepen in colour and carry a faint earthiness beneath the bitterness of the greens. Taste and adjust salt.
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3
Raise the broth to a gentle but active simmer — bubbles rising steadily without violence. Slide the four eggs in one by one, spacing them apart. Poach for 3–4 minutes only. This step decides the dish: the white must be just set and opaque, the yolk visibly trembling and wholly liquid beneath its thin veil. A fully cooked yolk cannot serve as the sauce the dish requires and cannot be corrected.
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4
Place one slice of toasted stale bread in the base of each warmed bowl. Ladle the hot green broth and vegetables generously over the bread; it will soften and absorb without collapsing, its structure holding the bowl together. Lay one poached egg over the surface of each portion.
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5
Finish each bowl with a thread of raw extra-virgin olive oil poured directly over the egg and bread. Crumble Pecorino Toscano over the surface if serving in the shepherd's manner. Serve immediately: the egg, bread, and green broth are the complete dish and will not hold.