What is it about a steaming
bowl of soup that warms you up so heartily from the inside out? If you live in
the Pacific Northwest, you know that we hop, skip, and jumped our way past
autumn and headed straight into winter. With temperatures in the 30s this morning
and weekend highs below 50, parka weather has arrived. And, with the return of
my favorite down coats came my hankering for soup.
This Rosemary White Bean Soup is easily one of my favorite go-to
recipes. The aromatic, earthy rosemary adds just the right depth of flavor to
the fibrous neutrality of white beans, truly the chicken of legumes as they
take on any flavor you mix them with. This is a chop, sauté, and dump soup. It
takes three steps and many hours in the slow cooker; the hardest parts of this
recipe include not crying when chopping onions and practicing patience while
the amazing aroma of the soup fills your home for 8 hours. But let me tell you,
it's worth the wait.
Here's the recipe.
Rosemary White Bean Soup
Ingredients
1 pound dried white cannellini beans
3 diced yellow onions (about 4 cups)
4 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 bunch rosemary branches (about 6-7 sprigs)
2 quarts vegetable stock
3 bay leaves
2 teaspoons sea salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Method
In a medium bowl, cover the beans with water by about 1 inch.
Leave the bowl in the refrigerator for 6 hours or overnight. Drain, rinse, and
sort through the beans.
In a large frying pan over medium high heat, sauté the onions in
the olive oil for 3-4 minutes or until they start to turn translucent. Then,
add the garlic. Continue to sauté for another 2-3 minutes, or until the garlic
is aromatic and the onions start to brown.
Pour the onion garlic mixture into a large slow cooker. Add the
remaining ingredients and give it all a stir. Cook on low for 6-8 hours,
stirring every few hours.
When the slow cooker has timed out, test the soup to ensure the
seasoning is right. Add salt and pepper as needed. Serve with crusty bread and
a drizzle of olive oil, or my favorite way, full of crunchy croutons. Enjoy!
