Tuscan Bean Soup 

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Serves: 6 person(s)

Preparation Time: 15 mins
Cooking Time: 30 mins
Extra Time: 1 hr 30 mins (for pre-cooking beans, if necessary)

Yield: 6 x 2 cup servings

Dreaming of Tuscany? Indulge the dream a bit with this high fiber, Italian soup!

Ingredients:

1 cup chopped onions

1/2 cup chopped celery

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 Tbsp flour

3/4 tsp dried rosemary leaves (3/4 - 1 tsp)

1/4 tsp dried thyme leaves

2 bay leaves

1 whole clove

1/4 tsp black pepper

4 cans (14˝ oz each) low-sodium chicken broth

1 can (17 oz) baby lima beans or 1˝ cooked dry-packaged baby lima beans, rinsed, drained

1 can (15 oz) garbanzo or 1˝ cups cooked dry-packaged garbanzo beans, rinsed, drained

1 can (15 oz) red beans or 1˝ cups cooked dry-packaged red beans, rinsed, drained

2 Tbsp low-sodium tomato paste

1 1/2 cup cooked regular or quick-cooking barley

1 large russet potato (burbank), unpeeled, cut into ˝-inch pieces

1 cup sliced carrots

1 cup packed sliced spinach leaves

Directions:

Sauté onions, celery and garlic in oil in large saucepan 2 to 3 minutes; stir in flour, herbs and pepper and sauté until onions are tender, 2 to 3 minutes longer.

Add chicken broth, beans and tomato paste to saucepan; heat to boiling. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, 20 to 25 minutes, adding barley, potato, carrots and spinach during last 10 minutes of cooking time. Discard bay leaves.

Variations:

Although this recipe calls for a specific variety, any canned or dry-packaged bean variety can be easily substituted for another.

Sodium can be lowered by using cooked dry-packaged beans, vs. canned in brine.

For vegetarian soup, replace chicken broth with vegetable broth.

Serving suggestions are not included in the nutritional analysis.

Author:

American Dry Bean Board
American Dry Bean

Related Recipes:

Basic Bean Preparation