Garlicky White Bean Soup

If you love garlic, this creamy white bean soup, a bowl of simple, wholesome comfort, is for you! It needs just nine ingredients but it has tons of flavor from the garlic and rosemary.

Garlicky soups are my ultimate comfort food in winters. They infuse your belly with that warm glow while also being gently healing and kind to your body.

A soup I frequently make when the weather begins to bite is this amazingly creamy Garlicky White Bean Soup. It uses pantry ingredients, is incredibly simple to make, but it always hits the spot.

Garlic is a delicious immune booster and it is an especially good food to eat in the winter (and in these times). It has long been used to fight coughs, colds and the flu, and it has many more health benefits, from improving cardiac health to lowering blood pressure and warding off diseases like Alzheimer's, among others.

In this soup recipe the garlic melds nicely with the bland navy beans. The beans soak in the flavors of the garlic and the rosemary (also an herb with powerful health and immunity-boosting benefits) and turn amazingly flavorsome. Other white beans, like cannellini beans or lima beans, would work just as well in this recipe.

You can make this soup with canned or dry beans. If you use dry beans, you will need to soak and cook them, which will add to your cooking time. But if you're used to cooking beans from scratch you know that's easy enough and economical. I frequently cook my beans from scratch because canned beans have additives and preservatives (although you can find brands that do not and it's good to seek them out).

I hope you'll try this tasty, healthy white bean soup this winter, and if you do, I'd love to hear.

Why you'll love this white bean soup

• It's delicious. The soup is truly comforting and hearty. If you love garlic, you'll be happy to learn there's a whole bulb of garlic in this recipe. But if you want to scale down on the garlic you can definitely do that.
• It's easy to make. The soup itself takes under 30 minutes to pull together, and you'll love the simple ingredient list, which comes mostly from the pantry.
• It's hearty and comforting. Soups simply have to make you feel good, and this soup does not disappoint. You will lick the spoon and the bowl! Maybe even the pot. 😉
• It's everyone friendly. The soup is soy-free, nut-free, gluten-free and it is, of course, vegan.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil. If you are oil-free, use ¼ cup water or vegetable stock instead.
• 1 head garlic, approximately 12 medium-sized cloves. You can scale down on the garlic if that's your preference.
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 small onion
• 4 stalks celery
• 1-2 teaspoons rosemary. I used dry rosemary and because I love it so much I used two teaspoons. Rosemary is a strong herb so you might want to add a teaspoon first and then, if you want it, add the rest. Even if you're using dry, it's a good idea to run a knife through the needles to chop them into smaller bits so they infuse better through the soup. If using the fresh herb, use one to two tablespoons. You can replace the rosemary with sage or thyme.
• 1 cup dry white beans, cooked, or 2 15-oz cans. I used navy beans but any white beans, including cannellini beans, lima beans, or great norther beans, are fine. You can try this soup with black beans as well and it would be delicious.
• Zest and juice of 1 lemon
• Salt and ground black pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoon parsley, for garnish.

How to make the white bean soup

• Heat the olive oil and crushed garlic together in a large pot over medium low heat.
• When the garlic begins to smell fragrant and turns lightly blonde, add the bay leaves.
• Stir in the onions and celery along with a generous pinch of salt and ground black pepper. Saute until the onions turn soft, about three to four minutes. Don't let them brown.

• Add the rosemary and stir it in.
• Add the white beans with 2 cups of cooking stock (if you cooked the beans yourself) or water or vegetable broth. Mix well, bring to a boil, then lower the heat to simmer and cook 10 minutes for the flavors to meld together.

• At this point, you can remove a cup of the soup to a blender and blend it into a smooth puree before returning it to the pot. This step is optional but it makes a really creamy soup. You can also use an immersion blender or just mash a few beans in the pot with a ladle.
• Add another cup of water or vegetable stock if the soup looks too thick. You can make this as soupy or stewy as you wish.
• Add salt and pepper as needed. Turn off heat and stir in the lemon zest and lemon juice. Garnish with fresh parsley and serve with an optional drizzle of olive oil.

Substitutions and other tips

• You can make this soup with black beans for a differently delicious dish.
• You can add more veggies to this soup, if you like, to make it even healthier. Chop up some carrots and add them with the celery and onions. Or add bell peppers or zucchini.
• Make this soup as thick or thin as you wish. I use about three cups of water in total, but you can use less if you like a stewy consistency, and more if you like the soup soupier. Wait until you have finished adding all the other ingredients and the soup has cooked before you thin it out. Always remember to adjust seasoning after adding more water and make sure you bring the soup back to a boil.
• You can replace the rosemary in the recipe with sage, which will be just as delicious. Both are strong herbs, so add less to begin with and then add more if you prefer.

Storage and freezing instructions

• This soup can be stored in the refrigerator for up to three days.
• To freeze the soup, place in a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to three months. Thaw completely before reheating.

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• Also check out 60+ Easy Vegan Pantry Recipes