-
1
Heat the oven to 180 °C. If the bread is only marginally dry, set the slices on a rack in the oven for a few minutes until they feel hard to the touch and do not bend under light pressure.
-
2
Bring a large pot of unsalted water to a rolling boil. Add the Savoy cabbage leaves and blanch for 3 minutes. Lift them out, drain thoroughly, and press between clean cloths until no free moisture remains — the leaves should feel dry and compact, not wet.
-
3
In a deep, heavy ovenproof pot, lay a single close-fitting layer of toasted bread across the base. Cover with a layer of blanched, pressed cabbage leaves, then a layer of thin-sliced Fontina. Ladle enough hot broth over the layer to moisten it completely but not to flood it — the bread should darken and soften at the edges while the centre holds its form. Repeat the layering sequence — bread, cabbage, Fontina, broth — until the pot is filled, finishing with a layer of Fontina on top. This is where the soup lives or dies: too much broth and the layers collapse into porridge; too little and the bread scorches dry. The broth should just reach the top layer without submerging it.
-
4
Cover the pot and bake at 180 °C for 30 minutes. The smell of cabbage and melting cheese will become pronounced, and the broth around the sides of the pot will be quietly bubbling.
-
5
Remove the lid and continue baking for a further 15 minutes. The soup is ready when the Fontina on top is bubbled and a deep golden brown, and the surface holds a firm, lightly resistant crust when pressed gently with the back of a spoon.
-
6
Bring the pot directly to the table. Scoop through all layers into warmed bowls, ensuring each portion carries bread, cabbage, melted Fontina, and broth from the moist base. The Fontina should string between the spoon and the bowl.