White bean soup
8 servings
Ingredients
| Quantity | Ingredient | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | pounds | Dried cannellini beans |
| 8 | cups | Cold water |
| 2 | Fennel bulbs -- rinsed | |
| 2 | tablespoons | Olive oil |
| 4 | mediums | Onions -- diced |
| 4 | Cloves garlic -- coarsely | |
| Chopped | ||
| 1 | Smoked ham hocks | |
| 10 | cups | Chicken broth |
| 1 | teaspoon | Dried thyme |
| 4 | Allspice berries | |
| 2 | Bay leaves | |
| 2 | Carrots -- diced | |
| 3 | Plum tomatoes -- diced | |
| ½ | cup | Sour cream -- for garnish |
Directions
Rinse the beans and soak overnight in the cold water. Drain, rinse and set aside. Remove the ferns from the fennel bulbs. Coarsely chop them and set aside. Trim the bulbs and cut into ½" cubes.
Place the oil in a heavy soup pot. Add the fennel bulbs, onions and garlic; wilt the vegetables over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes. Add the beans, ham hock, broth, thyme, allspice and bay leaves. Bring the soup to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer, partially covered, until the beans are tender; about 1½ hours.
Remove the ham hock, allspice, and bay leaves. Let the ham hock stand until cool enough to handle, then shed the meat from the bone. Puree 2 cups of the soup in a food processor or blender until smooth. Stir the puree back into the soup along with the fennel ferns and meat from the ham hock. Reheat over low heat. Meanwhile, cook the diced carrots in boiling water to cover until just tender, 3 to 5 minutes.
Drain and stir into the soup. Serve the soup in large shallow bowls, garnished with diced tomatoes and a dollop of sour cream.
Recipe By : All Around the World Cookbook From: Meg Antczak Date: 08-25-95 (21:41) (159) Fido: Cooking