A quick creamy rich garlic and white bean soup, perfect for that unexpected cold day.
Unexpectedly, we’ve been having cold days again and I only want to enjoy a warm bowl of soup. This soup is perfect for such days.
How to make this Garlic and White Bean Soup
Making this soup is easy! Start by roasting the garlic and making the crispy bacon. Clean the garlic from its outer peel, cover in foil and roast at 200°C/390°F for 40 minutes. On a lined baking sheet, cook the bacon at the same temperature for about 15-20 minutes. Meanwhile, in a pot over medium heat add the olive oil, beans, vegetable broth and seasonings. Heat until the beans start to soften. Add the garlic. Mash the soup with a fork or a masher for a chunkier soup. Alternatively, blend it completely until velvety smooth.
Toppings for this soup
My favourite way to have this soup is topped with crumbled crispy bacon on top. However, you can add other protein such as shredded chicken, slices of meat or else fried mushrooms. Alternatively, you can add some classic croutons or cheese.
FAQs
How to store the soup?
Store it in the fridge if you are planning to eat it in the following 3 days after making it, or else freeze it. I like to freeze my soups in a ziploc bag by freezing them flat so that it saves me some space in the freezer. This soup can stay in the freezer for not more than 3 months.
How to serve this Garlic and White Bean Soup?
I like this soup a bit chunky with whole beans in it. However, you can also serve this soup velvety smooth by blending everything completely. Finish the soup with either crumbled bacon or croutons on top!
What beans can I use?
For this recipe I have specifically used cannellini beans. You can either use dried beans, they need to be soaked overnight and let cook on low heat for about 2 hours. However, you can easily also use canned beans. For this soup ideally you use any white beans, such as cannellini or butter beans. The result will be just as tasty!
Garlic and White Bean Soup
Ingredients
Garlic and White Bean Soup
- 500 g white beans cannellini or butter beans
- 1 whole garlic head
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 500 ml vegetable broth
- 1/2 tsp rosemary
- 1 tsp thyme
- 1/2 tsp chili flakes
- salt & pepper to taste
Toppings
- 4 bacon slices
Instructions
Roasted Garlic
- Pre-heat the oven to 200°C/390°F.
- Remove most of the outer peel of the garlic and cut off the top part of the head of garlic. Drizzle the exposed garlic with the olive oil.
- Wrap in foil and roast in the oven for about 40 minutes. Check the centre of the garlic clove: if it is soft you can stop baking, if not, it needs additional cooking. You can roast it in order to add some caramelisation. However, check the garlic every 10 minutes so that it doesn’t burn.
Crispy Bacon
- Place the bacon strips on a baking sheet with parchment paper. Bake at 200°C/390°F for 15-20 minutes. Remove and let cool completely.
Assemble the Garlic and White Bean Soup
- In a large pot on medium heat, add the olive oil, beans, vegetable broth and seasonings. Heat gently until the beans warm up.
- Squeeze the garlic in the pot and let it melt.
- For chunkier soup, crush the beans with a hand masher. For a smooth soup, place the beans in a blender and pulse until smooth.
- Top the soup with crispy bacon or any of your favourite toppings.
If you have any questions, feedback or comments on this recipe, please leave a comment below. Please also rate this recipe by double clicking on the stars below. If you did make this recipe, tag @apronandwhisk and hashtag #apronandwhisk, as I’m curious to see what you create!
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