White Bean Soup with Crumbled Bacon and Spiced Brown Butter.
My soup game has been severely lacking this winter.
It’s a shame too, because I love a good soup backstroke. Look at that silky bowl!
I almost always make one new soup recipe a week come Fall, but we had cahrazy weather here, with it feeling like summer on Christmas, so I’m blaming it on that. I promise I’ll stop talking about the weather now, k.
Let’s make up for it now!
P.S. last Friday night I made this lasagna soup (I know, I’m so wild) and holy cow was it fantastic. Insane. Add it to your list, and make both this weekend. Done and done. I made your plans!
So. This white bean soup is almost too easy to share with you. It’s too easy for it’s own good. I used canned white beans, a big change from using dried beans, which I almost ALWAYS did before having a baby and found myself with what was apparently loads of time on my hands. As well as a working brain that remembered to do things such as soak beans.
Not minding one bit though, because this soup can come together in 30 minutes. It is pure SILK. It’s creamy and dreamy and gives you the most melt-in-your-mouth feel.
By the way, how do we feel about the term (expression?) “mouth feel?” I’m not exactly a fan.
It starts with bacon, comes together with the beans and finishes with spiced brown butter.
This butter. UGH. This butter. It’s so wonderful.
I’ve talked about it before. The curry brown butter itself is originally from Heidi’s green lentil soup, which may be one of my favorite recipes of all time. I’ve made that butter countless times (and used it on things like grilled cheese) – it takes brown butter to another level entirely. I mean, if you thought you liked brown butter before?
Just wait.
This is off the charts. So I added just a pinch of cardamom for more warming winter spice.
The best part about this is that you just need a tiny drizzle. It adds so much depth of flavor to the bowl, you won’t even believe it! Then top it with some crunchy bacon, some fresh herbs, maybe a crouton from your salad that you weren’t sure was a good idea but that ended up being an awesome idea – one big, rustic crouton is enough.
Unless you’re like me and want a bowl solely for dipping. Uhhh… YEP.
White Bean Soup with Bacon and Spiced Brown Butter
Ingredients
- 4 slices bacon, chopped
- 1 sweet onion, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 2 (14-ounce) cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
- 3 cups low sodium chicken stock
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup half and half
spiced brown butter
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/4 teaspoon curry powder
- 1 pinch of ground cardamom
Instructions
- Heat a large pot over medium heat and add the bacon. Cook until crispy and all the fat is rendered. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and place it on a paper towel to drain any excess grease. Add the onions and garlic to the pot and stir. Stir in the basil, pepper and crushed red pepper flakes. Cook until the onions begin to caramelize, about 15 to 20 minutes.
- Stir in the beans and stock. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cover. Cook for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, carefully transfer the mixture to a blender. Blend until pureed completely, then pour back in the pot. Season with the salt and taste again – you may need to season more, but remember you are topping it with bacon! Stir in the half and half right before serving.
- Serve topped with the bacon crumbles and drizzles of spiced brown butter.
spiced brown butter
- Heat the butter over medium heat in a saucepan, whisking constantly. Cook until it bubbles and the brown bits appear on the bottom (about 4 to 5 minutes) then quickly stir in the curry and cardamom and remove it from the heat. Whisk for another 10 seconds. Drizzle and drop the butter on the soup before serving.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
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I appreciate you so much!
isn’t that heaven itself?!
71 Comments on “White Bean Soup with Crumbled Bacon and Spiced Brown Butter.”
My grandad used to make a similar soup to this, beans were always incorporated into his soups and broths!
Adding bacon is always a good idea in my books ;D
I made that lentil soup from 101 cookbooks per your recommendation last winter and LOVED it. Now I will have to make yours..pure comfort food!
super wonderful, right? i need a batch now.
This will be perfect for the weekend! A lazy Sunday morning!
Anything butter + spice is my love language and cardamom is my all-time favorite spice, so this sounds amazing! Now I’m brainstorming all kinds of other things this butter could go on…
P.S. I love that steam shot! I still can’t seem to make those happen well, despite a lot of trying :/
you can totally do it! seriously if i can, you can. use back light and a darker background – this is actually just my kitchen wall but appears dark when backlit!
This looks so incredible! I’m already in love with that silky texture. And brown butter in soup? You’re my hero.
P.S. I’m with you on the whole “mouth feel” thing, it just feels weird.
This soup looks luscious. LOVE that bit of cardamom. And that shot of the steaming bowl. So glad you liked that lasagna soup – it’s an all around favorite with our family and friends. Thanks for the link – have a wonderful weekend!
brenda that soup is off the charts. i don’t even like sausage and i have NO WORDS!
Wow, love me some buttery soups! Perfect for Sunday dinner. I just did a soup post too if you’re looking for more inspo. Nothing better than a warm bowl of soup in the winter!
that soup sounds delish jesse!
You had me at spiced brown butter! Then I took one look at this creamy bowl of goodness, and I wanted to run to the kitchen.
I’m making this this weekend! Looks delish.
I’m starving right now <3 <3 :D
I haven’t eaten lunch yet and this soup is making me super hungry!
Paige
http://thehappyflammily.com
Winter has been so warm so far, I’ve barely made any soups but your recipe might change that! x
http://jessicawoods.fr
Yum!!!
OMG, don’t even get me started on how many times I’ve made Brenda’s lasagna soup! But now I think I’ll have to try this bean soup – yummers!
i think i first saw it on your blog years ago biz! crazy.
This looks SO good!!! What would you suggest as a sub for the bacon to get the same emptiness?
do you want to sub the bacon to cook in (to start) or top for crispiness? you could use coconut oil to start the soup and do crispy chickpeas for the topping!
This looks so delicious! Oh, the BACON! I think it’s going to be a big hit here! Oh, with parmesan toast!!!
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve made that exact lasagna soup recipe! It’s the only soup my family has gone insane over…I mean seriously, cheesy yum?!
cheesy yum is what sold me too. insane.
I don’t like curry…what can I spice up the butter with instead?
What would you recommend as a sub for the half and half? I have a dairy allergy among many other things. I’m going to try the white bean soup and hopefully not get sick. Yay to bacon :-)
michele, you could use full fat coconut milk (in the can). the lentil soup i linked in the post above is actually made with that and it doesn’t taste coconutty at all. plus the brown butter would definitely balance it out here!
That lasagna soup recipe may be my all time favorite soup EVER. I can’t even remember how I stumbled across it, but I am SO glad I did. Thanks for reminding me I need to make it again! And definitely making this one, too; I love a good white bean soup!
agreed. that soup is ridic.
Excuse me, I am an ignorant foreigner, but what is this ‘half and half’? Contextually I am assuming it is a dairy product, but I need more information. Half milk half butter? Half sour cream half yoghurt? Can I make it myself? So many questions ?
half milk, half cream! you can totally use whole milk or cream in it’s place – and probably even sour cream or yogurt, though it may give it a bit of tang.
Wow ! Looks amazing! Will definitely try this!!
Love,
Merin
http://meiasos.blogspot.co.uk
That’s so funny—I made a white bean soup too this week. It gets cold out, and all I want to eat is soup, and beans + soup = almost too easy. LOVE the idea of adding cardamom!
Rushed to the grocery after work Friday because i just HAD to make this – so glad I did!! Even the husband couldn’t get enough of it!
so glad to hear it! woohoo!
Amazing Post! Thanks for sharing the best recipe I ever heard before..
Keep Sharing
I’ve been reading your blog since probably 2010-2011. Hands down the best recipe yet. The spiced brown butter brought tears to my eyes. THANKS!!!
thank you so much cait!!
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What herbs did you top it with? Making it this afternoon. :)
i used fresh oregano, mainly because it’s what i had on hand!
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I made this last night and while I had high hopes, I don’t think I’ll be trying it again. It ended up tasting very heavy with the combination of bacon fat (though I did use some really fatty bacon), half and half and browned butter. The soup could have used a little more of a kick to help balance out all of the richness.
If you do make this, I would highly recommend sauteeing the onion first and adding the garlic at the last minute, because my garlic burned while the onions were caramelizing.
I used 2 strips of bacon and I thought that was plenty. I made per the recipe and thought it was a little thin. I added another can of beans, cooked a little longer and pureed again. I was very happy with the result. I will be making this again.
I tried to make this for dinner three times last week, and my boyfriend just complains that it’s not enough food for dinner. So just eat more, duh. I’ll make it eventually, it looks amazing!
This soup looks incredible. I love a smooth, silky soup, and there’s practically no way you can get me to soak dried beams. I love the idea of the spiced brown butter, but I’m not personally a big fan of curry. I wonder how it would taste with some cumin and chili powder instead. Could this soup take a hint of Mexican action?
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This soup was De Freaking Licious!!! It would be great without the butter but dang that’s good. This is a fancy soup! Mine came out a bit thin and I think 1/2 t of black pepper is too much. Otherwise it’s perfect. I can’t wait to make it again when I have fresh basil.
My soup also turned out thinner than the photos. Wish I would’ve read the comments first! I would have bought an extra can of beans. It was still delicious though!
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lovely <3
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This is essentially my white bean soup but for the spiced brown butter, something I’ll definitely be stealing.
The reason for my comment, however, is to say that “transfer to a blender and carefully blend” is a thing of the past since my wife xmas’d me with an immersion blender. LIFE IS COMPLEAT (sic).
Seriously, drop a blender into a pot, vrrrm. Done: soup. Usually, I’ll scoop half the sofrito out, blend the remaining veggies in the pot to create a creaminess-without-cream, and return the rest of the veggies (y’know, ’cause some people like seeing them in the soup?). Easy, tasty, healthful. Whoop.
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This was delicious! I got too lazy to make the spiced brown butter, but it was still great without it. Also I skipped the step of simmering the soup before blending. I just added the drained beans, broth, and sauteed onion mixture all to the blender, and then heated it post-blending. Still came out perfectly!
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This was quite good – used soak-’em-yourself beans, and made a minor adjustment for food on hand. a terrific recipe.
How many servings does this yield?
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Made the soup today, although the flavor was delicious my soup did not come out as creamy as yours and I followed the recipe exactly???
Really terrific soup. I used dried thyme as I didn’t have basil, added some of the curry and cardamom to the soup itself, as well as a bit of smoked paprika and cumin. My immersion blender is a favorite tool, and it turned this into a super smooth soup with wonderful warm flavors.
I’m wondering how this would turn out with the addition of some diced apple along with the onion. Might try it next time, as I’m sure there will be a next time! Thanks for the recipe!
what do I do if I have dried beans? what’s the difference in cooking method?
Hello, I’m wanting to make this soup for Christmas… About how many servings does this recipe yield?
One of my fav. Soups. Any suggestions on how to make it a bit thicker?
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