Description
A hearty and flavorful Simple Bean Soup featuring cannellini beans, fresh herbs, and a vibrant Picada topping. This vegetarian soup is easy to make on the stovetop, perfect for a comforting meal served with crusty bread.
Ingredients
Scale
Bean Soup:
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 large garlic clove, minced
- 1 large brown onion (about 180g/6oz), finely chopped
- 1/4 tsp fresh thyme, chopped (or 1/8 tsp dried thyme)
- 1/4 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped (or 1/8 tsp dried rosemary)
- 1 fresh bay leaf (or 1/2 dried bay leaf)
- 1/3 cup tomato passata
- 4 x 400g (14oz) cans cannellini beans, drained
- 3 cups vegetable stock, preferably homemade or low sodium store bought
Picada (makes 4 tbsp):
- 1 cup fresh parsley leaves, roughly chopped
- 1 medium garlic clove, roughly chopped
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup whole hazelnuts, skin on (or almonds)
- 1/2 tsp cooking/kosher salt (or 1/4 tsp table salt)
Instructions
- Saute onion and herbs: Heat the olive oil in a large heavy based pot over medium heat. Add the minced garlic, finely chopped onion, fresh thyme, rosemary, and bay leaf. Cook, stirring regularly, for 8 minutes until the onions become a deep golden brown and sweet.
- Cook tomato passata: Add the tomato passata to the pot and reduce heat to low. Cook gently for another 8 minutes until the tomato thickens and darkens, developing rich flavor. Do not skip this crucial step.
- Simmer the soup: Stir in the drained cannellini beans followed by the vegetable stock. Adjust the heat so the soup bubbles very gently and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes to meld the flavors.
- Blitz portion of soup: Carefully transfer about 2/3 cup (150ml) of the soup into a jug suitable for a stick blender. Blend until smooth and then stir this back into the soup to thicken the broth.
- Prepare Picada and stir in: Just before serving, mix 2 tablespoons of the Picada into the soup. Taste and adjust salt as needed since canned beans vary in saltiness. Serve immediately.
- Serve: Spoon the soup into bowls and dollop 1 teaspoon of the remaining Picada on top of each serving. Serve with crusty bread such as artisan, no yeast bread, or French brioche for a satisfying meal.
- Make Picada: Preheat a small skillet over medium heat. Toast the hazelnuts by shaking the skillet until golden and fragrant. Transfer toasted nuts to a clean tea towel and rub vigorously to remove most of the bitter skins (skip this step if using almonds). Roughly chop nuts and place in a blender with parsley, garlic, olive oil, and salt. Blitz until mixture forms a coarse pesto texture, not completely smooth. Use as instructed above.
Notes
- Passata is strained pureed tomatoes, thicker and smoother than canned diced tomatoes or tomato sauce. Available in many supermarkets.
- Any white beans can be used, including navy, lima, or butter beans. Colored beans like kidney or black beans will work but change the soup color.
- For best flavor, dried beans can be used instead of canned (2.5 cups dried beans = about 7 cups cooked). Soak and cook thoroughly before using.
- Homemade vegetable stock enhances the soup’s flavor greatly, but low sodium store-bought works as well.
- Adjust salt depending on canned or dried beans used; canned beans often contain sufficient salt already.
- The original recipe includes clams for a non-vegetarian version, which can be added near the end of cooking if desired.
- Cooked soup stores well for up to 4 days; Picada stirred in loses some green color but flavor remains intact.
- Leftover fresh Picada topping can be kept for 2 days refrigerated due to raw garlic content.
- Serving suggestion: Pair with crusty artisan bread or French brioche for a delicious meal.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 bowl (approx. 300g)
- Calories: 280 kcal
- Sugar: 3 g
- Sodium: 400 mg
- Fat: 8 g
- Saturated Fat: 1 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 7 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 40 g
- Fiber: 10 g
- Protein: 15 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
