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

Soup Recipe Exchange

This week has been pretty busy leading up to the First Annual Souperama!-picking a soup, buying enough ingredients for 200 people, and finally making the soup itself. With all of that and life in general, I haven't had enough time to provide a super extensive soup recipe exchange, BUT these selections are some of my favorites from the week and maybe a smaller list will enable you to make all three (if you are up to the challenge). Hope you enjoy these selections and swing by Jimmy's No. 43 this weekend for the Souperama! Also, a special welcome to the newest soup blogger-soup chick aka Lydia Walshin who actually has been blogging for some time now on The Perfect Pantry. Her new project will showcase seven soups every Saturday from different blogs, in addition to "cookbooks, soup pots, bowls and tureens," as stated by the soup chick. Can't wait to see what recipes show up on her site!

• Black Bean and Sweet Potato Soup- Created for her hubby, Maria of Two Peas in a Pod made a scrumptious looking soup composed of black beans and sweet potatoes. I loved how she included sweet potato (personal fav of mine) that she had lying around, along with roasted red peppers, tomatoes, cumin and cilantro that resulted in a tasty, filling, and nutritional soup with a kick.

• Dried Bean and Rosemary Soup- If I had to pick a favorite herb rosemary is definitely in the top three, so when I saw this dried bean and rosemary soup I was instantly attracted to this concept. Created by Brent Ridge of the site-Beekman 1802, this soup uses some basic components (chicken, garlic, onions) and fuses them with dried beans that soak overnight and lard to create a tasty puree. I also love the garnish option (lemon, parsley, and truffle oil), which Ridge states "adds depth to the earthy beans."

• ABC Meatball- Created by Steamy Kitchen, this ABC Meatball was designed for her kids as a simple and hearty soup that even sneaks in a heaping amount of veggies. The turkey meatballs on their own sound amazing, along with the use of fun ABC-shaped pasta and veggies (carrots, celery, and bell peppers) that is a certainly a healthy dish for adults and kids alike.

Seriously Soupy Serena

Garnishing with Vegetable Chips

Garnishing with veggies is a simple way to enhance your soup, and one that can be done in its raw form or changed up a bit, by turning veggies into a crunchy chip. Probably best placed on top of a thicker soup, like say a butternut squash and not water-based one, veggie chips can enhance the flavor and texture of your soup or just be a tasty side to your dish. I tested our making a veggie chip with carrots (had them on hand), but this recipe can work with sweet potatoes, regular potatoes, beets, and squash, etc-it's really limitless and easy to use for virtually all root veggies.

Vegetable Chips
Ingredients:
10-15 baby carrots, cut lengthwise-(I had the baby ones, but whole carrots would have been better)
bunch of fresh mint
pinch of celery salt
pinch of sea salt
pinch of pepper
approximately 1 tablespoon of olive oil 


Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cut the carrots lengthwise on place them on a sheet of aluminum foil or a baking sheet. Cut up the fresh mint and place it on top, along with the celery salt, sea salt and pepper. Let cook for 30-45 minutes, let dry and place on a soup of your choice or simply eat as is.

Soups That Work With Veggie Chips

• Butternut Squash Soup
• Asparagus Soup 
• Sweet Potato Soup
• Mushroom Soup or Cream of Mushroom Soup

First Annual NYC Souperama!

In case you haven't read on my facebook or twitter pages Seriously Soupy is participating in the First Annual NYC Souperama this Saturday, March 6th. Held at Jimmy's No. 43, you'll be able to sample a soup from me, as well as from the 15 other soup enthusiasts all afternoon (1pm-5pm) for 20 bucks (all money is donated to the charities-Harbor Hope and the Fresh Air Fund). Since I found out about this event this week I have been trying to come up with the perfect soup-one that is a. obviously tasty and original and b. is also not too intricate to make since I have to cook for 200 people (it is only 2ounce servings, but still). Going back-and-forth between some of my favorites, I finally decided on the soup and it is definitely one I hadn't planned on featuring, but now makes sense. I know, no real info there, but I will say that it is a soup that I have featured on the site and one that is my new favorite (hint, hint). Hope you can make in down to Jimmy's No. 43 and I look forward to eating some soup with you!

Seriously Soupy Serena

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RSVP here or you can just show up!
Event Info:
Date: Saturday, March 6, 2010
Time: 1:00-5:00pm
Location: Jimmy's No. 43
43 East 7th Street
NYC
You can also find out additional information about the event on Jimmy's No. 43 blog.

Event details from the organizers:

The First Annual NYC Souperama! On Saturday, March 6 from 1:00- 5:00 PM soup-lovers should find their way to Jimmy's No. 43 for a day dedicated to delicious soups and the people who make them! $20 at the door will benefit Harbor Hope, a non-profit organization developing educational cooking programs for those with special needs, and The Fresh Air Fund, a not-for-profit agency, providing free summer experiences to New York City children from disadvantaged communities.

Approximately 15 soups will be scored by a panel of judges. Judges include:

· Cathy Erway, author of The Art of Eating In and Not Eating Out In New York.

· Jake Schiffman from The Food Network

· Gabrielle Langholz, editor of Edible Manhattan and Edible Brooklyn

· Sherri Brooks Vinton, food writer

Roasted Eggplant and White Bean Soup

 Roasted Eggplant and White Bean Soup - Seriously Soupy

Originally for today's post I wanted to feature a French onion soup - nothing to inventive, but a soup that I had never created on my own and one that I surely enjoy. Unfortunately, my not-so-reliable Caloric Ultra-Ray oven from the 1960s (one step above an easy bake oven) let me down, so the baking aspect, and thus, the French onion soup wasn't going to happen. I then thought about eggplant. I wanted to make a soup out of this hearty veggie for some time now, but due to the debunk oven I would have to pan fry it, which I wasn't 100% sure I wanted to do for this soup. Then all of sudden the pre-historic oven was up and running again (stomping my feet in rage had nothing to do with that), but the French onion concept seemed dull, or least not right for now compared to my new idea--roast the eggplant in olive oil, salt and pepper and fresh basil while a soup broth is cooking with white beans, onions, fresh mint, and some seasonings. I completed this by blending it all together and instantly one of my new favorite soupy's was created. Also, I didn't really set out for this, but dairy didn't seem necessary, so the soup is dairy-free, then I realized it's essentially white beans and eggplant, so it's also vegan, low-fat, and gluten-free, but certainly not free on flavor.

eggplant getting ready to roast with olive oil, salt, pepper, and fresh basil

Roasted Eggplant and White Bean Soup
Ingredients:
2-3 cups of water
1 medium-sized organic eggplant
1 can of cannelloni white beans (I would use dry, but this was a last minute idea)
1 clove of garlic
1 yellow onion, chopped up
2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 quart (32oz) of Pacific Natural Foods Organic Low Sodium Vegetable Broth
1 package of fresh basil
1 package of fresh mint
pinch of celery salt
pinch of thyme
pinch of sea salt
pinch of pepper
Serves: 6-8

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cut the eggplant in half and cut into medium-sized squares (along with the skin), making sure to discard of the top part. Place the eggplant on a sheet of aluminum foil (or an oven-safe baking pan), cut open the garlic and place the whole clove on top, along with a sprinkle of olive oil, salt, pepper, and a few sprigs of fresh basil. Cover and place in the oven. Let cook for 45 minutes to one hour, periodically checking on it. About 20 minutes into the cooking time, add the water and half the container of broth to a pot. Cut the onion and add to the pot and let simmer on a low heat. When eggplant is finished roasting (should be browned and soft), add it to the pot and the remaining broth, as well as another cup of water. Add the beans, more olive oil, basil, and mint and let cook for 15-20 minutes. Start to taste-adding salt, pepper, thyme, and celery salt, adjusting based on your preferences.Turn off flame, let cool, and blend (I used a hand blender, which left the soup semi-chunky). Taste if more seasonings are needed and enjoy!

P.S. I can't say enough about this soup. As I mentioned, it has definitely become one of my favorites, but a little crunchy bite would have been ideal to top off the soup, like say, a crouton! I love this recipe from Savory Sweet Life, but maybe for this soup I would have used fresh basil or mint instead of parsley to complete the already bursting-with-flavor soupy. Oh well, there is always next time.

What type of eggplant soup have you made?
Seriously Soupy Serena

Roasted Eggplant and White Bean Soup