swiss chard + bean {soup}

Notice something new? Thought you had clicked into the wrong blog? Don’t worry, it’s me. I just redecorated. I’ve been meaning to switch out of Blogger and join the happy WordPress crowd for a long time, but was a bit scared of change. I’ve always heard of people losing half their blog (or all of it!) or other horrible stories and so I’ve been avoiding the big changeover until things settled down a bit. With my book just handed in, and the next big project still on the horizon, now seemed as good a time as any to jump off the cliff.

As you can see, I survived. And so did my blog. Thanks to my friend Nicolee for pretty much giving up sleep the last week to bring me into the WordPress fold, I’ve arrived with almost no hiccups. There’s lots of new bells and whistles that I haven’t quite figured out yet (recipe and restaurant sections, specially formatted recipes, etc) so please have patience while I get used to this brave new world. Most of the links are working, but you may still get the odd ‘error’ message. I think I’ve got the comment section working now, so please do let me know what you think, and if any particularly big bugs stand out make sure you tell me.

Rather than stay tied to my computer this past weekend, tweaking and anxiously checking on the transfer, I headed out to Todi with a houseful of friends. While Domenico played with his friends pruning all of our fruit trees, I took walks in the woods looking for wild asparagus, listened to Gillian’s son play the guitar and – of course - cooked up a storm. All of which managed to take my mind off things digital (I left that to Nicolee).

Whenever we have a full house, soup usually makes an appearance, and this weekend it was bean soup. I brought up a gorgeous bag of beans that I’d bought at DOL Bottega del Gusto. Mustard yellow in color, I grabbed them off the shelf because they were so pretty. And sorry, but I have to admit I have no idea what they are called. I put them to soak on Friday evening, after having enjoyed too many glasses of wine, and threw away the label. They are definitely from Lazio, that much I can tell you. Like all beans, they turned a pinky beige color when cooked, so I am giving you free range in the bean-choosing department for this recipe. But please. Use dried beans, not canned. Especially for this soup, which is minimal, it makes all the difference.

The rest of the soup was made up of what I could scavenge from the vegetable garden. It’s a sad sight these days, twixt winter and spring. Not much left to pick, but I did manage to find enough Swiss chard to turn the bag of beans into a huge pot of soup, big enough to feed everyone.

Seasonings were harvested too. A few sprigs of rosemary and a couple of bay leaves.

Since the chard had wintered over, and survived many frosts, it was incredibly flavorful. So flavor-packed that there was no need for stock or bouillon. The chard, along with the cooking liquid from the beans, made their own rich, green broth.

After a calming bowl of this soup (with some amazing cheeses and cured meats, also from DOL) more wine, a nap and another long walk I finally checked back in with my blog.

Which had miraculously survived the jump off the cliff.

5.0 from 1 reviews
Print swiss chard bean {soup}
Recipe type: soup Serves: 8
Ingredients

• 500 grams/ 1 pound dried beans (cannelini or borlotti)
• 1kilo/ 2 pounds Swiss Chard (use the stems too)
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 5 sprigs fresh rosemary, chopped very finely
• 2 bay leaves
• 5 tablespoons olive oil

Instructions

1. Put the beans in a bowl of water and soak for at least 6 hours or over night. Drain and put in a large pot, fill with water and bring to a boil. Skim off any foam that appears, add a teaspoon of salt, and simmer until tender. This will take anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour and 15 minutes depending on your beans. For this soup it doesn’t matter if they get over done. Turn off heat, but don’t drain.
2. In the meantime prepare the Swiss chard. Wash and trim away any very tough stems. But if the stems are looking good, and not too stringy, you can use them too. Chop everything up and put in a bowl.
3. Pour the olive oil into a big soup pot. Add the onions, garlic, rosemary and bay. Let cook until the onion is softened, about 10 minutes. Add the Swiss chard, and a tsp of salt. Stir, and let the greens wilt. After about 8 minutes, when the greens have reduced in volume, add the beans and their cooking water. You may have to add a cup or two more of water if it looks like there isn’t enough. The liquid should come up a inch or so over the top of the beans and greens.
4. Stir well, and let simmer, with the lid on, for about a half hour or so.
5. Taste and adjust for seasoning. I like to use an immersible blender to mush up about a third of the soup, to thicken it.
6. Serve as is, or with toasted croutons.

3.2.1283

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