Recipe: Tuscan White Bean Soup

It's fall and so I've been starting to crave warm and hearty soups. I wanted something that was easy to make, would provide a few meals and was also low in calories/fat. Enter Tuscan White Bean Soup. I found a recipe online and modified it a bit to make it lower in calories/fat.

Tuscan White Bean soup

3 cans white navy beans (drained)
5 stalks celery (diced)
1 onion (diced)
3-4 carrots (diced)
Dried oregano, thyme, rosemary
Salt & Pepper to taste
2 tablespoons Olive oil
5 cups vegetable broth


Heat Olive oil in heavy bottomed stock/soup pot. Add diced onions. Cook onions, stirring frequently for about 5 minutes or until they begin to soften.
Add chopped celery and Carrots. Cook for 10 minutes. Add spices and salt and pepper. Pour in beans and stock. Bring to a boil. Cover and lower heat, let simmer for an hour. Stirring occasionally. Take out 3 cups of soup and put into blender (or use hand blender). Puree and then add back into remaining soup (to thicken).

I garnish with freshly grated Parmesan cheese and it's a great final touch. You can also drizzle a little extra olive oil on the top if desired.

This is an easy recipe to modify and make your own. Spinach would be great in this, as would chicken. I'd even add some elbow pasta in to make it even heartier.