Instructions

Pour olive oil into a large pot, along with the garlic. Heat gently, till garlic begins to soften. Let cook for a few minutes, but do not let it brown. Add the beans, and give a good stir. Add some freshly ground black pepper, and the reserved bean broth, and bring to a simmer. Let cook for about 20 minutes, covered.

Take off the heat. Using an immersible blender, blend the soup just a bit. I like to have some whole beans floating around, but also like to give the watery broth a thickness.

Taste and adjust for salt and pepper.

To serve, ladle into bowls, sprinkle with parsley and drizzle some extra virgin olive oil on top. If you want to make the dish even more filling, put a piece of toasted rustic bread at the bottom of the bowl. And if you want to add more garlic, rub the toast with a clove of garlic, before you cover it with soup.

Cooking Beans

This will make 7 cups of cooked beans

1 pound dried cannelini or borlotti beans1 carrot, peeled1 stalk celery1 onion, peeled and cut in half1 or 2 bay leaves1/2 teaspoon salt

Put the beans to soak the night before you are going to make this soup.The next morning, drain and rinse the beans and put them in a large heavy bottomed pot. Add water so it comes up 3 inches over the top of the beans.

Bring to a slow simmer. As the foam from the beans begins to form on the surface of the water, remove with a spoon and discard. Once the foam has stopped forming, add the other ingredients, return to simmer, and place the lid on, slightly askew. Cook until quiet tender, but be careful not to over cook.

Turn off heat and drain, reserving the bean broth!!

You will need 4 cups of beans for the recipe above. You can place the excess beans in a ziplock bag and freeze or use during the week for other dishes