Leftover Bean Soup aka White Bean Puree Soup

 White Bean Puree

As I mentioned, I participated in the First Annual Souperama! this weekend where I entered my roasted eggplant and white bean soup. It didn't win, but I had an incredible experience meeting 15 other soupy lovers-professional chefs, caterers and people who simply just love soup (I'll be posting more about that exciting event tomorrow and Wednesday). After the soup was done, I miscalculated the amount of beans I needed where I ended up with over three cups of cannelloni white beans. Now, I could have either made some sort of white bean puree, placed them in my cupboard and saved them for another use, but true to soupy form I decided to keep cooking and use the beans for a soup. Similar to the beans in the cupboard soup concept of using what I had, I added in some carrots, edamame, along with the leftover broth and some seasonings-creating a simple soup whose ingredients can be altered based on what you have and your  taste preferences. Enjoy and be sure to check out tomorrow's posts of the Souperama!

Ingredients:
3 cups of white beans (approximately)
3-4 cups of water
1 container of Pacific Vegetable Broth
1 onion, cut up
1 clove of garlic, minced
10-15 baby carrots
1 cup of edamame
3-5 bay leaves
pinch of tumeric
pinch of salt
pinch of pepper
bunch of fresh basil
bunch of fresh mint

Directions:
Soak dry beans until shell loosens up (about 2-3 hours) and start boiling water. Add the garlic, onions and white beans and let cook for 45 minutes to an hour. While the beans are cooking, add water to a separate pot and when boiled add the edamame and let cook for 10 minutes. Drain the water with the edamame, let cook and de-shell, placing the peas in the pot. Add the carrots, seasonings (tumeric, basil, salt and pepper) and let cook-testing the taste and adding more water (if necessary). When beans are soft, turn off the flame and blend the ingredients together. Enjoy

P.S. I used a hand blender to puree the soup, which left it semi-chunky. If you are seeking a smoother consistency, I would suggest to use a blender.

Seriously Soupy Serena

Leftover Bean Soup Aka White Bean Puree Soup