Bacon and Butter Bean Soup
A wholesome, deeply comforting soup crafted from slow-simmered stock, aromatic garden vegetables, and fresh herbs, served with crusty bread.
Ingredients
- • low-calorie cooking spray
- • 225 g smoked bacon medallions, (diced)
- • 1 onion, (peeled and finely diced)
- • 2 carrots, (peeled and finely diced)
- • 2 garlic cloves, (peeled and crushed)
- • 1 tsp dried thyme
- • 1.2 L chicken stock (1 chicken stock cube made up with 1.2L boiling water)
- • 2 400g tins butter beans, (rinsed and drained)
- • 100 g reduced-fat cream cheese
- • freshly ground black pepper
Preparation Steps
Spray a saucepan with low-calorie cooking spray and place over a medium heat. When hot, add the bacon and fry for 5 minutes, until lightly browned.
Add the onions, carrots, and garlic, and cook for further 5 minutes, until the onions have softened.
Stir in the thyme.
Add the stock and bring to the boil. Stir in the butter beans, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cover with the lid and allow to cook for 20 minutes, until the carrots are soft.
Stir the cream cheese into the pan, until it has melted. Pour 3 or 4 ladles of soup into a jug, and use a stick blender to blitz the mixture, until smooth and thick. Return this to the pan. This will thicken the soup, but leave plenty of chunky beans and veg for texture.
Season with pepper, you shouldn't need any salt. Then serve!