All content copyright Katrina Hall 2008 through 2025

Tuesday, February 19, 2013

tuscan vegetable soup with cannellini beans and rosemary









The snow is still here.  Heaps of cement-hard snow, topped with fanciful icing, after the snow turned to sleet and then everything froze.  What do I expect?  It's February.  This is normal, and so is the cabin fever-want-to-go-to-Florida gloom.  It's been a very cold winter, and waking up to 5 degrees most mornings is a little disheartening.  


But, I have one of my baby geraniums beside the bed, and it is budding, so that will do.

I have been longing for my Tuscan Tomato soup, but very suddenly have to gear down eating anything too spicy or acid - a side effect after the pneumonia I got in the fall.  The winter has addled my brain, because only today did I think of adding more vegetables, less tomatoes, and no hot sauce.  But lots of rosemary, tarragon, thyme, and basil!  A little butter and a spoonful of sour cream topped the second bowlful, and now I'm happy:)

To make about 3 big bowls of soup:

1 small onion, peeled and diced
2 T. unsalted or salted butter
1 t. olive oil
1/2 cup peeled carrots, cut on a slant
3/4 c. sliced celery
1 1/2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1 1/2 cups canned Italian plum tomatoes, cut into bite size pieces, with some
   of the juices
1 can (15.5 oz) cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 t. thyme
1 t. basil
1/2 t. kosher salt
4 sprigs rosemary
1/2 t. tarragon


Place the olive oil and butter in the stockpot.  Add the onion and cook five minuts, then add the celery and carrots, the stock, the tomatoes, and the herbs and salt.  Simmer for 25 minutes, then add the cannellini beans and cook for another 15 minutes.

Serve with sour cream or curls of parmesan, or a nice thick chunk of good bread with butter.




11 comments:

La Table De Nana said...

Same frigid cold winter here..
I made soup too with Farro and veggies today..Yours looks so delicious too Katrina..
Next time maybe?:)

Barbee' said...

We had soup last night, too, and I served it over a chunk of whole wheat bread with Mozzarella shreds on top. I have a question: I can understand one who keeps a Kosher kitchen using Kosher salt, but I see Kosher salt and sea salt listed in many recipes. My question is: why those instead of just regular salt? Do you (or, anyone reading the comments) know?

katrina said...

Barbee - it's my understanding that kosher salt is about half as salty as any other salt, which includes sea salt. I started using it when I worked in a restaurant, but it does not have any iodine, so I tend to use both sea salt and kosher salt. Regular salt is too salty for my tastebuds ( the iodized salt).

katrina said...

Nana - that's something I want to explore (farro). I usually shave parmesan on top of this soup, but the cheese box was bare*sigh*... though the sour cream was wonderful! We shall get through the next month or two, you and I, I promise:)

Marianne said...

It's very cold here in St. Paul, too, only a high of 8 degrees today.
Your photos are lovely, Katrina, and the soup looks wonderful. Wish I had the right ingredients in the house. I would make your soup for supper tomorrow.

Barbee' said...

Thank you.

katrina said...

Brrrrr, Marianne! We got up in the 30's yesterday! Hang in there and pretty soon we'll be watching the daffodils come up:)



Very welcome, Barbee! I can understand why the salt issue would be confusing.

diary of a tomato said...

One of our kitchen standbys, reminds me to restock on cannelloni beans at the next farmers' market! For a lighter, vegetarian version, we use just the juices from our canned tomatoes, and through in a leftover parmesan rind to round out the flavor.

katrina said...

Dear Diary - what is the difference between cannellini beans and cannelloni beans? I just went by what the label on the can said, though I often just say "white beans", whether small or big.

Yes! I have also often used that wonderful parm rind and it really makes the whole soup taste glorious! BUT. I have been unable to find any good parmesan in this area for months, and so the cheese box is empty.

Barb said...

That sweet geranium just gives us hope for spring- and don't we all need that during this cold winter?

Stay warm and take care.

(That soup looks delicious!)

katrina said...

As always, thank you, Barb - you always say the nicest things:) My dear little geranium certainly keeps my spirits up - even when I hear on tonight's news, yes. Another storm this weekend. Another foot of snow. *sigh*