Cabbage, Potato and White Bean Soup

IG: @mangia.con.elena

I have never really been one to plan meals a week in advance. I know many that do, but it just does not  work for me. Even when the children were little, when I know that it would have alleviated so much stress, I just didn't. I tried, but it never stuck. 

I do my meal planning in the grocery store. I start with the fresh produce and if something looks good that week, I will buy it and decide what to make with it while in the store so that I can get the rest of the ingredients if needed. 

That is exactly how this delicious soup came to be this week. I saw a gorgeous savoy cabbage and put it in my cart.  knew I needed carrots so as I went to grab them, this soup popped into my head and voila! 

This is a simple soup with few ingredients and a unique flavour. 

The trick to its success is to saute the cabbage slowly for a lengthy time until it caramelizes. It becomes buttery and melts in your mouth. 

Another great trick is to thicken up the soup is to blend several ladles full in a processor and add it back to the soup to create extra creaminess. 

As with all of my recipes and in keeping with the traditional Mediterranean way of cooking, my measurements are just estimates and my spices are just recommendations. QB or Quanto Basta in my recipes means as much or as little as you would like and need. If you don't like an ingredient then leave it out or add one that you do like! 

Cook by eye  👁(ad occhio) and let your taste buds be your guide.  Remember to season as you go along and build the flavours slowly. Taste test frequently to make sure it is to your liking and adjust if needed! 

Ingredients

• one medium sized cabbage, washed, cored, cut into quarters and then sliced into bite size pieces
• 5 large potatoes (yellow flesh or yukon work well) peeled and cubed 
• 4 cloves fresh garlic, minced
• sea salt (QB)
• freshly cracked pepper (QB)
• 1/2 tsp thyme to start (QB)
• 8 cups of warmed up chicken broth
• 1-2 cans of white beans (cannelllini beans)- drained and rinsed
• 1 tbsp of butter (QB) optional

Directions

1. Coat bottom of large dutch oven or soup pot with olive oil and warm it.
2. Add cabbage and reduce heat to medium low. Stirring often, cook the cabbage for a minimum of 20 minutes until it has reduced by half and has begun to caramelize. 
3. Add garlic, carrots, potatoes, thyme and salt and cook for an additional 5 minutes. 
4. Add broth and bring to a boil. Turn down heat and partially cover with lid. Let soup simmer for about 20 minutes until potatoes and carrots have softened. Remember to taste test.
5. Add white beans and let warm through. Add lots of pepper. This soup tastes better with a good punch of pepper.
6. Remove some soup and blend (optional)
7. Adjust seasonings, stir in butter and soup  is ready to serve!

A Mangia,

Elena 💚