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This Tuscan white bean soup gets loads of flavor from adding cheese rind in while it simmers on the stove.
I was inspired by a recipe for white bean soup I found, so I adapted it a little and came up with this recipe. I had some white beans leftover from when I made the Spanish Style White Bean, Kale, and Chorizo Soup. This was a great opportunity to use them up.
This rustic soup delivers a flavorful, delicious texture in a bowl of goodness. There is nothing quite as satisfying as hearty beans and healthy greens in this Tuscan White Bean Soup.
Let me show you how I made it…
Canned or Dried Beans
You can use can beans or dried beans to make the soup. It’s a matter of personal preference. Dried beans are cheaper, but take a little more effort to prepare. While there won’t be a dramatic difference, the dried beans will have a better flavor.
How To Prepare Dried Beans
I chose to use 16 ounces of dried northern white beans, instead of canned beans. I soaked them overnight and before I went to work the next morning, I drained and rinsed the beans. Then I added them to a crock-pot with 32-ounces of vegetable stock.
The liquid wasn’t covering the beans enough so I added a little water until the beans were covered with at least two inches of liquid. I cooked the white beans on low heat for 8-hours. I drained the beans from the liquid and added them to the soup.
How To Make Tuscan White Bean Soup
In a pot, heat oil over medium-low heat. Sauté onions and garlic until translucent.
Add in stock, water, beans, thyme, rosemary, oregano and cheese rind.
Bring the soup to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Add in carrots and celery. Place lid on top of the pot, leaving it slightly ajar. Let the pot simmer for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
Remove rind (if not completely dissolved). Add in salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, to taste. Then add in the spinach a little at a time. Cook the spinach until it wilts; about 3 minutes.
Use caution when seasoning this soup. Make sure you taste it before adding more salt. The cheese rind seems to add some salinity to the soup than I expected.
Such a hearty, stick to your bones kind of soup. Perfect for those cold winter nights or for Meatless Monday!!
Using canned beans? Make sure you drain and rinse them. Click [HERE] to find out why.
Tuscan White Bean Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 onion chopped
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 4 cups vegetable stock
- 2 cups water
- 14 ounce white beans (Great Northern), canned rinsed and drained
- ½ tablespoon fresh thyme
- ½ teaspoon fresh rosemary
- ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
- 2×3 inch parmesan cheese rind optional
- 1 cup carrots chopped
- ¼ cup celery chopped
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste
- 4 cups fresh spinach
Instructions
- In a pot, heat oil over medium-low heat. Sauté onions and garlic until translucent. Add in stock, water, beans, thyme, rosemary, oregano and cheese rind.
- Bring the soup to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Add in carrots and celery. Place lid on top of the pot, leaving it slightly ajar. Let the pot simmer for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
- Remove rind (if not completely dissolved). Add in salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, to taste. Then add in the spinach a little at a time. Cook the spinach until it wilts; about 3 minutes.
- Serve this soup hot with crusty warm bread. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
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This recipe looks awesome! We do meatless Monday at our house too. Found you on Foodieblogroll. Nice blog!
Thank you for visiting my blog!! I totally love the challenge of coming up with new Meatless dishes. But it is also really easy to make a pbj sandwich if i don’t feel like cooking. I hope you’ll try this recipe and let me know what you think. 🙂
This sounds tasty! I buy beans in bulk…is a “package” a cup and a half dry or more? Also, I’m vegan…do you think it would suffer much without the cheese rind?
The package if beans I bought was 16oz (2cups). I do not think it would suffer at all without the cheese rind. Thanks for visiting my blog!
Great soup! I used chopped kale and so cooked it a little longer. I added some nutritional yeast instead of Parmesan rind to keep it vegan… Yum!
I’m so glad you liked it! Thanks for your comment. Have a great evening!
Needs more beans and fewer veggies. Too much like a minestrone with beans rather than pasta.
Make it your own John. 🙂
Yum, I love a good bean soup! Pinning!!