White Bean Soup with Bacon & Collards

I love soup. Love it! I usually make a big batch, eat it for a few days/meals, and freeze the rest. This soup is great with a loaf of crusty sourdough (or Amy Chaplin’s gf Buckwheat Millet Bread) for a crowd or just for you and yours. I adapted this recipe from Ina Garten’s Tuscan White Bean Soup recipe.

photo credit: Feasting at Home

ingredients

• 1 pound dried white beans (I use creamy flageolet beans from Zürsun Heirloom Beans out of Idaho, but you can use any variety of white bean: cannellini, navy, lima, great northern - for canned beans, see note and recipe adjustments below.)

• 2 Tbls olive oil

• 4 ounces good bacon, ¼-inch diced

• 2 chopped leeks, white and light green parts

• 2 chopped yellow onion

• 2 cups (½-inch) diced carrots, scrubbed (about 5 carrots)

• 2 cups (½-inch) diced celery (about 4 ribs)

• 6 cloves minced garlic

• 8 to 10 cups chicken stock

• 2 bay leaves Kosher

• salt and freshly ground black pepper

• 1 bunch of collards, chopped

directions

• FOR BEANS:

  • At least 8 hours or the night before you make the soup, place the beans in a large bowl and add enough cold water to cover the beans by 2 inches. Refrigerate for at least 8 hours or overnight.

• FOR SOUP:

  • Drain the beans, rinse under cold running water, and drain again. Set aside.

  • In a large (10-inch) pot or Dutch oven such as Staub, heat 2 Tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat, add the bacon, and sauté for 4 to 5 minutes, until browned. Add the leeks, onions, carrots, celery, garlic, and cook over medium-low for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender.

  • Add the beans, 8 cups of the chicken stock, bay leaves, 1 tablespoon salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer, partially covered, for 1 hour and 15 minutes, until the beans are tender. Stirrig occasionally, scraping the bottom of the pot.

  • Discard the bay leaves and add the chopped collards and continue to cook for another 15 minutes.

  • Remove from the heat and allow soup to rest for 15 minutes covered.

  • Add up to 1-2 more cups of chicken stock if the soup is too thick.

  • Reheat slowly. To serve ladle into large shallow soup bowls, add a few dashes of Tapitio or your favorite hot sauce, and serve hot.

FOR CANNED BEANS:

• 2 (14-ounce) cans of white beans.

• Drain the beans, reserving the liquid. Place 1 cup of the beans and ½ cup of the liquid into the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade and puree.

• When ready to add the beans in the recipe, stir in the puree and add the remaining drained beans (discard the remaining liquid).

• Use only 6 cups of chicken stock.

• Simmer the soup for 45 minutes, rather than 1 hour and 30 minutes.

yield

3 quarts (serves 6-8 people). To reheat a second day, may need to add some water or chicken stock.