Cheesy White Bean Soup

Need a pot of yummy soup for that cold weather gathering or football party? This rich and savory recipe is sure to please everyone! Gluten-free and super easy to prepare too. Use dried or canned white beans for a nutritious treat!

Creamy White Bean Soup

Yield: 8 – 10 servings

Ingredients:

1 pound bag of Navy beans, soaked (or 4-15 ounce cans, drained)
3 tablespoons olive oil
4 – 5 cloves garlic, minced
1 large or 2 medium yellow onions, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
5 cups chicken, pork or vegetable broth
1 cup half and half (regular or fat-free)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 large or 2 small bay leaves
3 – 4 leaves fresh sage, chopped
2 cups grated cheeses, 1 cup each… cheddar and pepper jack

Equipment needed:

Cutting board
Chef knife
5 – 6 quart soup kettle or Dutch oven
Measuring spoons
Liquid measuring cup
Rubber spatula
Hand Immersion or Standard blender
Ladle

I love a great pot of soup… and my hubby loves beans! Add cheese and it’s fabulous!! What’s better than cheesy bean soup? Many bean soup recipes I have eaten were either bean or cheese, but not both. I still had a bunch of sage in the garden too, so why not try it in my soup? The resulting pot of yum was amazing, so grab your soup kettle and let’s get cooking!

If you’re not a great cook, don’t be afraid of this recipe! The end result is blended, so however you chop, dice or mince doesn’t really matter... it will be fabulous! If using dried beans, begin by soaking the beans by placing them in a large bowl and covering them with warm water. Make sure they are covered by about 2 inches and let them soak for a few hours or when a bean squeezed falls apart. Drain them and set aside. I often start soaking in the morning or after lunch ... by late afternoon the beans are ready to use.

** If you’d rather use canned beans, that’s fine too. No preplanning needed, just drain them a bit and use!

1) Dice the onion and celery, mince the garlic and you’re ready. Preheat the soup kettle over medium high heat for about 3 minutes with the olive oil and sauté the vegetables for about 5 minutes or fragrant. Add the broth, beans and bring to a simmer. (If desiring more of a vegetarian soup, use vegetable broth or water and vegetable soup base.)

Time to add the seasonings! I try to use fresh herbs when my garden too.

2) Add the seasonings and allow the pot ‘o yum to simmer for about 20 –30 minutes and beans are super soft.

Almost done! I place leftover chunk or sliced cheeses into a food processor to grate them up or sometimes use shredded bagged cheese too. Pepper jack is really soft and difficult to grate, so cubing it works well.

3) Add the cheeses into the hot broth about a cup at a time and stir well as it melts.

4) Blend it all together, but first remove the bay leaves. Carefully blend soup using a hand immersion blender until smooth or ladle the soup into a blender. Be careful to only fill the blender half to two-thirds full as warm liquids expand and don’t want soup exploding everywhere.

5) Last ingredient to add is the half & half to add to the creamy goodness.

**I often use low fat milk with 2 tablespoons of flour added to replace the thickness of the half & half with less fat!

Dinner is ready!! This soup holds well in a crock pot for gatherings on low/medium heat. Garnish with a bit of extra shredded cheese or chopped sage... or both! Serve with a salad and crusty garlic bread for an amazing, balanced meal... Enjoy!!