Kitchen Comforts: White Bean Soup with Rosemary and Pasta

White Bean Soup with Rosemary and Pasta

This is based on a recipe in Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone, probably my favorite cookbook. I soak the beans overnight. You can also experiment with other herbs, substituting sage, for instance, instead of rosemary. But I do love rosemary and we can keep it alive here pretty much year 'round.

The Rosemary Oil

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons finely chopped rosemary (or 2 tablespoons dried)
3 garlic cloves, finely minced

The Soup

2 cups cannellini, navy beans, or a mixture
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped rosemary
1/4 tsp hot red pepper flakes
1 onion, finely diced
2 carrots, finely diced
1 celery rib, finely diced
5 garlic cloves, sliced or minced
1/3 cup chopped parsley
1 can diced organic tomatoes, with their juice
salt and freshly milled pepper
1 cup dried small pasta - shells, elbows, or other favorite shape
grated romano cheese

1) Warm the extra virgin olive oil with 2 tablespoons rosemary and 2 garlic cloves until the garlic begins to color, about 3 minutes. Turn off the heat and set aside.

2) Cover the beans with boiling water and set aside while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

3) Heat the oil with 1 tablespoon sage and the hot red pepper flakes in a soup pot over medium heat. Add onion, carrots, celery, and cook until the onion is softened and just starting to color, about 10 minutes. Stir in the garlic and parsley and cook a few minutes more. Drain the beans and add them to the pot along with the tomatoes and 3 quarts of water. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, the simmer, covered, until the beans have begun to soften, about an hour. Add 2 teaspoons salt and continue cooking until the beans are completely tender, at least another 30 minutes.

4) Puree half the soup to give it some body - or you can leave it thin, or for a thicker, smoother soup, puree all of it.

5) Cook the pasta in boiling salted water, then drain. Strain the rosemary oil. Ladle the soup into bowls and add some pasta to each. Drizzle some of the oil over each bowl and add pepper to taste. Sprinkle with romano cheese gratings.

Posted at 08:47 AM in Autumn Menu, Family Meals, Meatless, Soups | Permalink

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November 12, 2007

White Bean Soup with Rosemary and Pasta

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