Tuscan Bean Soup

Autumn is a great time to try out new soup recipes. A heart-warming bowl of soup is just the thing after a day of chilly air and crunchy leaves. I have assisted with several soup and stew focused classes at Cook’s Warehouse this season. At the last one, the chef made a delicious white bean soup, so when I saw this recipe, I knew it was the one I wanted to tackle next. Italian Tuscan Bean Soup. (FYI: White beans = white kidney beans = cannellini beans.) To make this soup, my first step was to saute white onions, green onions (the recipe called for shallots, but the market had none), garlic, and potatoes. Next I added chicken broth (in lieu of veggie because I had an open container in the fridge) and the reserved liquid from the can of beans. Yes! The recipe did actually call for canned beans! I let this mixture simmer for a spell then I added shredded cabbage, herbs, and the beans. This was my first time using savoy cabbage. I usually just use the generic grocery variety. This was also my first time making (and I think eating) cabbage in soup. Shredding the cabbage in the food processor gave it a nice consistency that added to the texture of the soup, but was not intrusive. The herbs that I used are oregano and parsley. These lent a really fresh flavor to the soup and made me want to use fresh herbs more often in my cooking. I’m not sure why I don’t use them more. They are such a great way to add healthy flavor to a dish. I shall make a point to use them more often. Too bad I am so inept at growing them. Seriously. The touch of my hand causes cilantro to bolt. But I digress… I let the concoction simmer a bit longer then I placed about a third of the soup in the food processor. I pureed it until smooth then added it back to the soup. I had never done this before, but the chef demonstrated it in class the other day. He actually just set an immersion blender in the pot for a minute or two. However you go about it, pureeing a portion of the soup is a great idea! It really helps to give the soup a viscosity that I think is important in making soup feel like a “meal”. After just a few more minutes of simmering, I served the soup with a sprinkling of parmesan and more herbs. Yum. I was quite fond of this bowl of soup. Pleasant flavor. Appealing texture. Healthy and light. Not too difficult or time-consuming. I think this is the best soup that I have made to date. I might just go and eat the leftovers right now…