Looking for a bowl of comfort during the new soup season? How about a nourishing, vegetarian, gluten-free soup that requires minimum active time? The White Bean Kale Stew will be just the thing for your entire family. Infused with fresh rosemary and parmesan rind, this stew takes the white beans (cannellini) to the entire new level. The stew is creamy, but without any cream (parmesan rind works magic!). Because it’s hearty and mild, even your kids will enjoy it. Before you read further, here’s an important tip: When cooking beans (but not lentils) of any kind, we usually change the water twice. The recipe below, however, calls for a single change of water. If you have the time, we recommend changing the water twice and then proceeding to cook beans until they are soft.
Low Glycemic • Gluten-free • Vegetarian • Nutrient-dense • Delicious • Easy
Ever since we tried a kale white bean stew, we'd wanted to recreate one at home. Unlike the common versions, ours had to be tomato-free but still flavorful. In our initial attempts, we used leeks instead of onions, but the soup turned out unremarkable. We then turned to our favorite cookbooks for inspiration and found a perfect fix of parmesan rind and rosemary. For sure, a generous amount of parmesan rind, rosemary and thyme infused the stew with a rich creamy flavor. Try this hearty Kale White Bean Stew! It's easy, budget-friendly and nutritious and may become your cold weather staple! (Our favorite inspiration sources were The New York Times and Eating From the Ground Up.)
Drain and rinse presoaked beans. Place them in a Dutch oven and add 8 cups water. Bring to boil, skimming off foam. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 1 hour. Then drain the beans. Add cold water covering the beans up to 1.5 inch over. Add bay leaf, Parmesan rind, rosemary and garlic. Bring to boil, then reduce heat to low. Continue cooking until the beans are very soft, for at least 1.5 hours.
Half-way through cooking, stir in 2.5 to 3 cups broth from 3 broth cubes.
Remove rosemary stems (but not leaves), bay leaf and garlic.
Meanwhile, warm up olive oil in a large skillet. Add leek and thyme and simmer, stirring, for about 3 minutes, until soft. Stir in kale and 5 tablespoons water. Simmer until wilted, for 5 minutes.
Now discard thyme. Stir in kale, leeks, salt and pepper into the beans and simmer for 25 minutes, or until kale softens.
Remove Parmesan rind before serving. Enjoy the Kale White Bean Stew warm.
Ingredients
Directions
Drain and rinse presoaked beans. Place them in a Dutch oven and add 8 cups water. Bring to boil, skimming off foam. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 1 hour. Then drain the beans. Add cold water covering the beans up to 1.5 inch over. Add bay leaf, Parmesan rind, rosemary and garlic. Bring to boil, then reduce heat to low. Continue cooking until the beans are very soft, for at least 1.5 hours.
Half-way through cooking, stir in 2.5 to 3 cups broth from 3 broth cubes.
Remove rosemary stems (but not leaves), bay leaf and garlic.
Meanwhile, warm up olive oil in a large skillet. Add leek and thyme and simmer, stirring, for about 3 minutes, until soft. Stir in kale and 5 tablespoons water. Simmer until wilted, for 5 minutes.
Now discard thyme. Stir in kale, leeks, salt and pepper into the beans and simmer for 25 minutes, or until kale softens.
Remove Parmesan rind before serving. Enjoy the Kale White Bean Stew warm.
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