Well, we’re back from Ashland (where it’s very cold at night) and had a great time. I really need to recap some of our recent trips and out of town restaurants and all of that. Port Townsend, WA, Livingston, MT and Ashland, OR all coming soon.
But today it’s soup.
In the Fall and Winter, I seem to go through quarts of chicken stock like crazy, whereas in the Spring and Summer? Not so much. I think this is because the kitchen turns into soup central when it is cold out. And this was the first real soup that I made this Fall. It’s somewhat based off a recipe by Ina Garten but not too much. I’ve added much more garlic, lemon, white wine and thyme.
This goes very well with crusty bread or even crackers. Give it a try. For a little extra garlic flavor, only saute four of the cloves. Add the last minced clove right before blending so it’s mixed in raw. Excellent.
Rosemary White Bean Soup
3 tbsp olive oil
1 white onion, diced
1 carrot, diced
1 large branch fresh rosemary (6 to 7 inches), cut into smaller pieces if you want
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 cans white cannelloni beans, drained
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/4 cup white wine
1 quart chicken broth
1 tsp kosher salt + more to taste
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
juice of 1/2 – 1 lemon (depending on your taste)
In a large stockpot over low to medium heat, saute the onions, carrots and rosemary with the olive oil until the onions are translucent, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic, bay leaf and thyme and cook over low heat for 5 more minutes.
Add the wine and deglaze the pot. Next, add the drained white beans and chicken broth. Cover, bring to a boil, and simmer for about 20 minutes.
Remove the rosemary branch(es) and the bay leaf. Process the soup through the coarsest blade of a food mill, or use a food processor and pulse until coarsely pureed. You can also use an immersion blender (that’s what I did) or even use a potato masher if you have no electric mode of mushing the beans up.
Return the soup to the pot to reheat a little and add salt and pepper to taste. Add the lemon juice and serve hot.
Sounds yummy. I just got my immersion blender at the end of the winter last year, so I’m looking forward to making soups with it.
Thank you for posting this, I am in a real soup mood this week. Can’t wait to try it.
This looks delicious.I love the idea of the garlic added at the last moment…. glad to are home safely. WA is such a wonderful state….so is Oregon! You are so fortunate to live out West!
I made this last week and it was so good. The only think I changed was that I only juice half a lemon and it was plenty “sour”. Is it a sour soup?
Um, it was a little lemony when I made it. But I liked it that way. Plus, all lemons give different amounts of juice, I suppose. I amended the directions to add the juice of 1/2 – 1 lemon, depending on taste!
Glad you liked it, though! 🙂
I’m looking forward to trying this recipe, but I do have a question: I’d like to add chicken meat to this recipe. Any suggestions on amount and preparation methods for the chicken?