Ahhh…winter soup. Can you get any better than this? I mean, aside from righteously swillin’ a fine glass of bordeaux on Les Champs-Elysées, arm in arm with a loved one, wearing little more than a smile.
Okay, so you can get a little better than a nice winter soup.
There are many ways to go with this soup. Add a bit more salt? That’ll work. Top it with Creme Fraiche? That also will work. Chop up a little bit of Scallions? Perfectly okay. This is one of those soups that is very adaptable.
- 6 cups water
- 8 oz. fava beans, shelled.
- 1 large onion, finely chopped
- 2 celery sticks, thinly sliced
- 3 large potatoes, peeled and diced
- 2 tbsp. combined herbs (parsley, chives, rosemary), finely chopped
- 1 large bay leaf
- 3 cloves garlic, crushed
- 1 tsp. allspice
- 3 cloves
- 2 tsp. salt
- 3 tsp. coarsely ground black pepper
- 2 cups smoked Gruyere, grated
- 1 cup half and half cream
Bring water to a boil in a stock pan. Add beans, onion, celery sticks, potatoes, garden herbs, bay leaf, garlic, allspice, cloves, salt and black pepper. Boil rapidly for 15 minutes.
The soup will look gray at this point. Do not panic. It’s supposed to look this color.
Reduce heat and simmer (185 degrees F) for 1 hour and 45 minutes until smooth. Add gruyere and cream to the soup and stir well. Simmer for 15 minutes. Ladle into serving bowl and top with any remaining chopped herbs.
The end result? A nice bean soup, perfect for any cold day.
serves 6
