White Bean Soup

A comforting creamy white bean soup with smoky thick-cut bacon, tender vegetables and fragrant herbs—it’s warming coziness in a bowl.

Ingredients:

• 12 ounces apple smoked bacon, chopped into small pieces
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 onion, small dice
• 2 carrots, small dice
• 2 celery stalks, small dice
• 4 cloves garlic, pressed through garlic press
• 2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• Pinch or two sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper
• 6 (15 ounce) cans small white beans (or navy beans), drained and rinsed
• 4 cups chicken stock, hot
• 2 tablespoons flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice

Preparation:

-Place a large Dutch oven, or heavy bottom pot, over medium-high heat;

-Once the pot is hot, add in a small drizzle of olive oil, and the chopped bacon; crisp the bacon completely until nice and brown, then remove with a slotted spoon, drain it on some paper towel, and set it aside for a moment; reserve about 1 tablespoon of the bacon fat, and set that aside for a moment, as well; wipe out the pot, and return it to medium-high heat.

-Next, add back into the pot the bacon fat, along with the olive oil and the butter, and allow them to melt together;

-Once butter is melted and sizzling, add in the diced onion, carrots and celery, and allow them to soften and saute for about 5 minutes;

-Next, add in the garlic, and once it becomes aromatic, add in about 2/3 of the reserved, crisped bacon, as well as the Italian seasoning, the sea salt and the pepper, along with the white beans, and stir to combine;

-Now add in the hot chicken stock, stir, and allow the soup to gently simmer for about 40-45 minutes, partially covered with lid;

-About half way through the cooking process, mash the beans a little bit with the  back of your spoon, or with a potato masher, to break up the beans a little bit and release their natural starch to thicken the soup;

-After about 40 minutes, turn the heat off and finish the soup by adding in the chopped parsley, the lemon zest and the lemon juice;

-Serve the soup with some nice, crusty bread to dip, and garnish with some of the remaining crisped bacon.

Try these cozy soups too: “Philly Cheesesteak soup” and “Zesty Mexican Chicken soup”