It was cold and rainy at the end of last week, and I had canned soup two nights in a row. Now, some canned soup is excellent, but there is nothing like homemade soup, so after doing a mini lit review of white bean soup recipes, I came up with a little something that looks like this:



2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 pound Italian bulk hot sausage
1 medium onion, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
1 large potato, peeled and chopped into small dice
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 bay leaf
fresh oregano (but I only really used it because I had it in the fridge)
2 cans white beans, drained
Salt and pepper
4 cups chopped broccoli rabe and greens
1/2 cup white wine (if you have it)
2 quarts chicken stock
Grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or Romano

Cook the sausage until browned in an oiled pan. Add onions, carrot, garlic, potato and bay leaf and 1 can plus half of the other can of beans (mash the other half can of beans with a fork, and then add to the pot). Stir. Season with salt and pepper. Cook for 5-7 mins. When veggies are slightly tender, add the wine. Cut the broccoli rabe into ribbons and add to the pot, stir to wilt. Add the chicken stock and raise heat to bring soup to a boil. Cook for at least 25 minutes. Serve with grated cheese and some sort of bread to dip.



I used grilled cheese with tomato as my soup accompaniment. Italian white bread, provolone cheese and roma tomatoes with a little basil. The soup was really amazing. Next time I'd add more red pepper flake to give it more kick. It was the perfect consistency to make you warm and fill you up. And it's a really easy soup to make in about an hour.