Italian White Bean and Kale Soup

Garlic, fennel and dried red chillies combine in a simple but perfect seasoning for this beautiful hearty and warming Italian bean and kale soup. I'm posting this recipe as a hint of the vegetarian soups to come in this month's No Croutons Required round-up.

Cannellini beans, also known as white kidney beans, are essential to lightly seasoned Italian recipes like this for their own rich flavour and texture, so make sure to look for them if you don't already have some instead of substituting navy beans.

Italian White Bean and Kale Soup

Recipe by Lisa Turner Cuisine: Italian Published on February 13, 2008 A simple, nourishing, warming and perfectly seasoned italian cannellini bean and kale soup Print this recipe Ingredients: 1 1/4 cups dried cannellini beans 1 pound fresh kale, stemmed and coarsely chopped 2 tablespoons olive oil 2 medium onions, finely chopped 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced 4 dried red chillies, crumbled 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds 2 cups vegetable stock 1 medium tomato, seeded and finely chopped 1/2 teaspoon sea salt fresh ground black pepper Italian bread, cut into 1/2-inch thick slices and toasted Instructions: Soak the beans overnight in a medium saucepan covered with 2 inches of water and with a little yogurt whey or lemon juice added. Drain and rinse, then transfer to a medium or large saucepan and cover with several inches of fresh water. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 40 - 60 minutes until the beans are tender but still firm. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Meanwhile, prepare an ice bath in a large bowl. Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil. Add the kale and cook for just 3 minutes. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Plunge the cooked kale into the ice bath for a few moments, then drain and set aside. Once the beans are cooked and set aside along with some of their cooking liquid, heat the olive oil in a large saucepan or soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté for 5 minutes until soft. Add the garlic, chillies and fennel seeds and cook, stirring occasionally, for 2 more minutes. Stir in the vegetable stock, tomato and beans along with the reserved cooking liquids from the beans and kale. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Simmer for 30-40 minutes until the beans are soft. Stir in the salt and fresh ground black pepper and taste for seasoning. Remove the soup from the heat and stir in the kale. Serve hot or warm in wide shallow soup bowls with a piece of toasted Italian bread on top Makes 6 servings