White Bean Soup

For the past couple of days I’ve been busy preparing for my mother’s arrival here on Wednesday. It’s so exciting! This is her first time to US, so a lot of planning going on. Even though she has visited us when we were residing in Canada back in 2005, she is tensed now (me too!). Actually I’m not worried about her traveling alone, it’s that the past one year has not been good for her. So praying that nothing should get messed up.
As the day is nearing, I’m feeling so restless and don’t feel like blogging or cooking anything. But this afternoon I saw that Hetal of Isha’s Kitchen has passed me the Inspiration Award and it really inspired me to try a new recipe. Thank you very much Hetal.
Finally I made this soup from the Vegetarian Book, my husband got for me from Barnes and Nobles. It’s the bargain priced book. For $10 it’s a steal I would say, with so many wonderful pictures and amazing recipes. I think this one is a very popular book among food bloggers. I see a lot of recipes around from this book.
I made a couple of changes to the recipe like using canned beans instead of dry beans, crushed tomatoes instead of fresh ones and vegetable stock instead of water.
Ingredients:
Canned Cannellini Beans, Drained & Rinsed - 3 cups
Bay leaf - 1
Olive oil - 5 tablespoons
Onion, medium, finely chopped - 1
Carrot, finely chopped - 1
Celery rib, finely chopped - 1
Tomatoes, medium, peeled and finely chopped - 3. Alternatively you can use ½ cup of crushed tomatoes.
Garlic, finely chopped - 2 cloves
Fresh thyme leaves - 1 teaspoon or Dried thyme - ½ teaspoon
Vegetable stock/water - 3 to 4 cups
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Procedure:
1. Heat the oil in a saucepan. Add bay leaf, onion and cook.

2. Add the carrot and celery and cook until they are soft.

3. Add crused tomatoes, garlic, and thyme to the sauce pan. Cook it for another 5 minutes.

4. Meanwhile puree 1 cup of the beans either in a food processor or a blender adding little water.


5. Now add this puree, remaining 2 cups of beans and the vegetable stock to the sauce pan.

6. Simmer for another 10 minutes.

7. That’s it. Serve with your favorite bread.

I’m sending this to Sangeeth’s Eat Healthy - Protein Rich Event.
My Notes:
1. Dried beans was used in the original recipe. In that case take 1.5 cups of dried cannellini or other white beans. Clean the beans, rinse thoroughly in cold water and soak it in a large bowl overnight. Check here for detailed instructions on How to cook dried beans?
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Tags: bay leaf, cannellini beans, carrot, celery, crushed tomatoes, dry cannellini beans, onion, thyme, vegetable stock, white bean soup


June 17th, 2008 at 5:44 am
madhu, i am sure ur mom will arrive safe and sound. wow, u lucky girl will get to eat all delicious food cooked by ur mom. dont forget to post her recipes too
soup looks delicious as usual…
June 17th, 2008 at 6:41 am
Isn’t it nice to have mums around…I’m sure your mum will arrive without any hassle
June 17th, 2008 at 6:45 am
Nice to hear ur mom is coming to visit u.I miss my mom Madhu.Soup looks so healthy and delicoius.
June 17th, 2008 at 8:24 am
Madhuram,
Am sure you mom will arrive here safe and sound. Don’t worry and I think the best way to get rid of the stress is to cook and post more
Just kidding
Soup looks very good. Considering I am trying to eat healthy now, this is a keeper
Thanks!
Lakshmi
June 17th, 2008 at 8:31 am
Madhu ..nice soup
June 17th, 2008 at 9:03 am
yummy looking soup
June 17th, 2008 at 9:06 am
beautiful pictures madhu!! the soup looks delicious…my regards to ur mom! hope she has a great journey and enjoy ur time with her!!
June 17th, 2008 at 9:11 am
I am sure your mom will ariive in your place safely.
When my sis visited me last month i was also getting really restless. The day before she arrived i thought the time was going so slowly.
Enjoy your time with your mom.
I am jealous now
June 17th, 2008 at 9:40 am
Your mom will reach safely. The bean soup looks delicious. Spend those precious moments peacefully and post all ur mom delicacies
June 17th, 2008 at 10:00 am
soup is always the comfort food anytime…lovely way to use canned beans…i always run out of ideas ,what to make with canned cannelini beans…this sounds wonderful!!!have a gr8 time with ur mom madhu:)…its always nice to have parents around:)..
June 17th, 2008 at 10:13 am
soup looks appetizing as usual… and dont worry amma wud come overy perfectly fine and she will have good ales to tell u … and u both r gonig to have a gr8 time… jsut prepare for d best times coming…
June 17th, 2008 at 10:39 am
The soup looks so delicious, Madhu! I wish a very happy journey to your mom. Enjoy your time with her!
June 17th, 2008 at 11:50 am
madhu , Lucky girl , thanks for the wishes and Im sure your mom will have a great time !! The soup looks delicious!!!
June 17th, 2008 at 2:49 pm
I love Cannellini Beans, this soup looks great Madhu, mouthwatering!!! Have a blast with ur mom dear
June 17th, 2008 at 4:32 pm
Your mom will reach here just fine… I had the same butterflies in my stomach when my in-laws were travelling from India. You have some really exciting and fun times ahead! I am hoping my parents will visit us this year, will be their first visit

Have a great time with your mom! Keep us updated when she arrives
The soup looks great, I am a bean lover but cannellini is an exception. I would love to reconcile with them in this hearty soup though!
June 17th, 2008 at 5:46 pm
Madhuram,
I feel excited for you!! I hope your mum has a safe and comfortable journey to the US. I’m sure you all will create beautiful and wonderful new memories once she arrives
June 17th, 2008 at 8:24 pm
Hi Madhuram,
Don’t worry.Your mother will reach safely.Hoping to see you all on sunday evening.
June 17th, 2008 at 9:23 pm
Madhu, the pictures are excellent! Soup looks delicious.
June 18th, 2008 at 12:26 am
Madhuram I can feel your excitement..It happens with all of us..wishing you happy times with her!!
Lovely soup!!
June 18th, 2008 at 6:33 am
How exciting! I know you are worried but I am sure she will be alright and arrive safely!:)
Yummy soup. Enjoy your mom when she arrives!:)
June 18th, 2008 at 10:46 am
Madhuram- how lovely to have your mom visit you. I hope you have a great time. The soup looks delicious- cannelini beans are absolutely gorgeous, and I love how creamy they cook up.
June 18th, 2008 at 12:53 pm
Hi….
Have nice time with ur mom in US. Soup look so good. YUM!
June 19th, 2008 at 6:46 am
Hi Madhuram, theres something for u on my blog! Enjoy!
June 20th, 2008 at 4:49 am
Glad to have discovered your blog.More so because it is “eggless”.:)
I’m not particularly fond of soups but love beans. So this has to be a good one, I’m sure.
Enjoy having your mother with you. Have a great time.
June 20th, 2008 at 10:59 am
Soup looks awesome Madhuram.. enjoy your time with your mother.
June 23rd, 2008 at 11:45 am
nice one madhu..Hope u have a nice time with mom