White Bean Potato Soup

This soup is packed full. Packed full of flavor, packed full of vegetables and good stuff, and therefore packed full of nutrients. Did I mention it’s also vegan? Because it is, at least if you don’t sprinkle any of that wonderful cheese over the soup at the end.

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While I love beans, and I love potatoes, and just about everything else in this soup, I honestly wasn’t expecting it to be as good as it was. It is so full of flavor and so satisfying, and I didn’t even have any wine on hand to add!

This soup boasts, besides beans and potatoes, onions, carrots, garlic, kale, with a hint of rosemary, spice, and white wine to tie it all together.

While the main soup season might be coming to an end, I decided to finally post this recipe because

1. during these crazy coronavirus times it seems everyone and their brother are baking bread up the wazoo and revving their sourdough starters, at least judging by social media and the shortage of flours and yeast in the stores…and this soup pairs wonderfully with some good homebaked bread!!

2. this soup has many ingredients, but most are pantry staples which makes this ideal to whip up for dinner without having to go to the store. Even if you’re missing one or two things, this soup is so flavorful you can easily swap out vegetables or omit one with a still tasty result.

3. many of these ingredients are also cheap, which means you get a hardy meal for just a few dollars, which is helpful in these uncertain financial times

4. we’ve had an unusually cold few nights and days for April here in Florence, which made me think of this soup..

5. soups are so easy, and recipes like this are rewarding for my friends who may be deciding to expand their cooking skills with all the newfound time on their hands.

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Recipe slightly adapted from Clever Eats


White Bean Potato Soup

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

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  • 1 Tbsp oil

  • 1 medium onion, diced

  • 1 stalk of celery, diced

  • 1 carrot, diced

  • 2 garlic cloves, minced

  • 2 15oz / 400g cans of white beans, drained (any kind, such as cannellini or navy)

  • 2 potatoes, cut into small chunks

  • 1 Tbsp / 16g tomato paste

  • 1/2 tsp dried rosemary or 1 Tbsp chopped fresh

  • 1/2 tsp sweet paprika

  • 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper, optional

  • 1/2 cup / 119g white wine, or more broth or water

  • 7oz / 200g fresh or frozen spinach or kale, lightly chopped

  • 2 cups / 474g vegetable broth

  • salt and pepper, to taste

  • extra virgin olive oil and parmesan or pecorino cheese, for finishing

Directions:

  1. In a large stockpot or dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion, celery, and carrot and cook, stirring occasionaly, until onion begins to turn translucent.

  2. Add the garlic, then add the beans, potatoes, tomato paste, rosemary, paprika, and cayenne pepper. Cook for a minute or two, stirring frequently.

  3. Add the wine and stir until it is almost evaporated.

  4. Add kale, broth, and salt and pepper to taste.

  5. Raise heat and bring soup to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to low. Cook for about 15 minutes, or until potatoes are tender.

  6. Ladle soup into serving bowls, top with parmesan or pecorino cheese and drizzle with olive oil. Serve with warm, crusty bread. Buon appetito!

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Jenny’s Notes:

  • If you prefer to cook dry beans instead of using canned, as I do, a good rule of thumb is to take half the weight of called for canned beans and cook that amount of dry beans. Different dry beans absorb slightly different amounts of water, but generally speaking they double in weight when cooked. So if you need 800g as in this recipe, I would cook 400g of dry beans.

  • You can choose to peel your potatoes before chopping or leave skin on, either way is fine if you ask me! Leaving skin on is easier and more nutritious (more fiber!), just be sure to wash them well before using.

  • If you have a rosemary plant, you can also add a clean sprig straight to the soup, then remove when you are ready to serve the soup.

  • In a pinch, you can always just use water instead of broth, although you will lose some flavor depth. If you have any bouillon cubes, you can also dissolve those into the soup following the bouillon dosing instructions.

white bean soup, potatoes, kale, spinach, vegan, healthy, vegetarian, carrots, white wine, spinach, celery, onion, garlic
Soup, Dinner
American
Yield: 4-6
Author:
White Bean Potato Soup

White Bean Potato Soup

A hearty and nutritious soup bursting with flavor, featuring white beans, potato, kale, onion, garlic, carrots, and celery with a touch of rosemary and a splash of white wine.
Prep time: 15 MinCook time: 35 MinTotal time: 50 Min

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. In a large stockpot or dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion, celery, and carrot and cook, stirring occasionaly, until onion begins to turn translucent.
  2. Add the garlic, then add the beans, potatoes, tomato paste, rosemary, paprika, and cayenne pepper. Cook for a minute or two, stirring frequently.
  3. Add the wine and stir until it is almost evaporated.
  4. Add kale, broth, and salt and pepper to taste.
  5. Raise heat and bring soup to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to low. Cook for about 15 minutes, or until potatoes are tender.
  6. Ladle soup into serving bowls, top with parmesan or pecorino cheese and drizzle with olive oil. Serve with warm, crusty bread. Buon appetito!

Notes

If you prefer to cook dry beans instead of using canned, as I do, a good rule of thumb is to take half the weight of called for canned beans and cook that amount of dry beans. Different dry beans absorb slightly different amounts of water, but generally speaking they double in weight when cooked. So if you need 800g as in this recipe, I would cook 400g of dry beans. You can choose to peel your potatoes before chopping or leave skin on, either way is fine if you ask me! Leaving skin on is easier and more nutritious (more fiber!), just be sure to wash them well before using. If you have a rosemary plant, you can also add a clean sprig straight to the soup, then remove when you are ready to serve the soup.In a pinch, you can always just use water instead of broth, although you will lose some flavor depth. If you have any bouillon cubes, you can also dissolve those into the soup following the bouillon dosing instructions.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

426.89

Fat

8.57

Sat. Fat

1.21

Carbs

65.80

Fiber

14.44

Net carbs

51.36

Sugar

5.02

Protein

20.23

Sodium

542.01

Cholesterol

1.07
Nutritional information is approximate. Based on 4 servings and includes using wine and toppings.
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Garlic, Oil, and Pepper Pasta - Aglio, Olio, e Peperoncino

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Aglio, olio, peperoncino is a pasta found often throughout Tuscany, and even more often on my table for lunch. It originally hails from Napoli but has become beloved throughout Italy.

It’s simple, so simple, with the classic version requiring just 4 ingredients: spaghetti, garlic, olive oil, and a hot pepper. It’s great to whip up in a pinch because it’s quick and the ingredients are those you probably have in your pantry. It can be on the table in about as long as it takes to boil and cook pasta, plus 2 minutes for mixing. Because of its simplicity, as many Italian dishes are, attention to the quality and freshness of your ingredients will really make this dish shine. (Especially with that olive oil, nice and shiny. :)

There are many slight variations, but they hardly vary more than an ingredient or two. Some use fresh hot peppers, some use chili flakes; some versions call for bread crumbs, others a bit of fresh parsley added at the end, some say to mince the garlic, others slice. Based on these variances, you can always decide to play a bit to find exactly how you like to eat your aglio, olio, e peperoncino pasta.

The version that follows I learned from my husband, the fresh pasta expert. We usually use fresh hot peppers, but will also use chili flakes if we don’t feel like running to the store. It’s pretty close to the classic recipe, with one exception. We add a bit of grated Parmigiano Reggiano and it catapults the pasta to the next level. OH YES, cheese!

A note about using fresh peppers: I’m not actually sure what kind of peppers I use here in Italy. At the supermarket there are usually bell peppers “peperoni” and hot peppers “peperoncini” with no indication what variety they might be. Bell peppers come in red and green, but not always at the same time, and the hot peppers are usually red OR green, depending on the season. I suppose they’re serrano or a similar variety because they’re spicy but not overly so, although they do vary. Apparently Italians are not pepper connoisseurs, you won’t find jalapeño, habanero, serrano, and other pepper types readily available year round! If I were writing this recipe in Italian I would just put “peperoncino,” and everyone would know to get the only kind of peperoncino available from the store. In English recipes we are used to being told more specifics, and writing “1 hot pepper” would not be as helpful. So I wrote serrano on the recipe, but just be aware that you can play around with the kind you use if you want, especially if you think serrano might be too spicy for you!

Recipe from my husband


Garlic, Oil, and Pepper Pasta - Aglio, Olio, e Peperoncino

Serves about 6

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Ingredients:

  • 500g / 16 oz spaghetti

  • 84g / 6 Tbsp olive oil

  • 4 garlic cloves

  • 1 serrano pepper, or spicy pepper of choice

  • generous 1/4 cup /30g grated parmesan cheese

Directions:

  1. Bring water to boil in a large pot over high heat. Just before boiling, add some salt.

  2. While water is heating up, mince the garlic and dice the pepper. Add the oil, garlic, and pepper to a small pot or pan.

  3. When the water boils add spaghetti and cook according to instructions on package. Meanwhile, place the small pan of oil over low heat.

  4. Simmer oil for 5-8 minutes; remove from heat when garlic is fragrant and starts to appear to dry with barely golden edges.

  5. When pasta is done cooking, drain, reserving about 1/2 cup / 120g of pasta water.

  6. Return drained pasta to the pot and immediately add oil mixture, reserved pasta water, and cheese. Working quickly, use two forks to mix and toss spaghetti until oil, cheese, and water have coated the pasta in a light, creamy sauce. Serve immediately.


Jenny’s Notes:

  • These measurements are approximate, we never measure when making this, but this is pretty close to our normal. So if you decide you want to use 5 cloves garlic and 2 jalapeños, that’s fine, too, because this is not an overly precise recipe!

  • For less heat, remove the seeds of the pepper before dicing. If using chili flakes, don’t simmer them in the oil but add to the pasta with the cheese at the end.

  • Look for parmigiano reggiano, which is the best. It can only be called so if it is made and aged in the designated area in Italy according to their regulations. Even if you are a world-class parmesan maker but make it in Wisconsin, it cannot legally be called parmigiano reggiano. This pasta is also delicious with other sharp, aged Italian cheeses. I like a mixture of aged pecorino and parmigiano.

  • Keep a close eye on the simmering oil, the garlic goes quickly from perfectly cooked (barely golden) to burnt (anything golden or beyond.) Even if you happen to burn your garlic, it only takes a few minutes to start the oil, garlic, and pepper over again and could still be ready before the pasta even finishes cooking.

  • One of the great things about making this is that even if you add too much pasta water, it will eventually evaporate out while mixing. One of the first times I ever made this solo, I added way too much and had a good inch or so sitting in the bottom of my pan. I had already added the oil and cheese and it was too late to dump the extra out. So I tossed and mixed for several minutes, and what do you know, the water eventually evaporated and mixed in, and I ended up with a wonderfully creamy and cheesy sauce.

  • When making this in Italy I always use the classic spaghetti option, as this is called spaghetti aglio e olio traditionally. However, the typical spaghettis you find in grocery stores in America don’t hold up as well, so I usually opt to use linguine in the USA.

aglio, olio, peperoncino, garlic, olive oil, hot pepper, spaghetti, Napoli, pasta, Italian pasta dish,
Dinner, pasta
Italian
Yield: 6-8
Author:
Garlic, Oil, and Pepper Pasta - Aglio, Olio, e Peperoncino

Garlic, Oil, and Pepper Pasta - Aglio, Olio, e Peperoncino

A simple and classic pasta dish served throughout Italy with plenty of garlic, olive oil, spicy pepper, and a bit of parmigiano reggiano.
Prep time: 25 MinTotal time: 25 Min

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Bring water to boil in a large pot over high heat. Just before boiling, add some salt.
  2. While water is heating up, mince the garlic and dice the pepper. Add the oil, garlic, and pepper to a small pot or pan.
  3. When the water boils add spaghetti and cook according to instructions on package. Meanwhile, place the small pan of oil over low heat.
  4. Simmer oil for 5-8 minutes; remove from heat when garlic is fragrant and starts to appear to dry with barely golden edges.
  5. When pasta is done cooking, drain, reserving about 1 cup / 237g of pasta water.
  6. Return drained pasta to the pot and immediately add oil mixture, reserved pasta water, and cheese. Working quickly, use two forks to mix and toss spaghetti until oil, cheese, and water have coated the pasta in a light, creamy sauce. Serve immediately.

Notes

These measurements are approximate, we never measure when making this, but this is pretty close to our normal. So if you decide you want to use 5 cloves garlic and 2 jalapeños, that’s fine, too, because this is not an overly precise recipe! For less heat, remove the seeds of the pepper before dicing. If using chili flakes, don’t simmer them in the oil but add to the pasta with the cheese at the end. Look for parmigiano reggiano, which is the best. It can only be called so if it is made and aged in the designated area in Italy according to their regulations. Even if you are a world-class parmesan maker but make it in Wisconsin, it cannot legally be called parmigiano reggiano. This pasta is also delicious with other sharp, aged Italian cheeses. I like a mixture of aged pecorino and parmigiano. Keep a close eye on the simmering oil, the garlic goes quickly from perfectly cooked (barely golden) to burnt (anything golden or beyond.) Even if you happen to burn your garlic, it only takes a few minutes to start the oil, garlic, and pepper over again and could still be ready before the pasta even finishes cooking.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

257.59

Fat

15.37 g

Sat. Fat

2.72 g

Carbs

24.37 g

Fiber

1.09 g

Net carbs

23.28 g

Sugar

0.94 g

Protein

5.56 g

Sodium

94.52 mg

Cholesterol

4.30 mg

Nutritional information is approximate, based on 6 servings.

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