Hearty White Bean and Spinach Soup with Rosemary and Garlic Recipe (2024)

FAQs

When to add rosemary to soup? ›

When it comes to soups, season with salt and pepper early and check the seasoning often. Herbs are always a must in soup — I add fresh rosemary at the beginning in this one which help to add a herby backbone to the broth. Later I add the thyme which is the the perfect partner to rosemary when it comes to flavour.

Add Flour Or Cornstarch

You can thicken soup by adding flour, cornstarch, or another starchy substitute. For the best results, never add flour or cornstarch directly to your soup. If you do, it will clump up on top. Instead, ladle a small amount of broth into a separate bowl and let it cool.

Add more cornstarch or flour as needed until the soup reaches your desired consistency. Alternative thickening agents include gelatin, potato starch, and tapioca starch. 3. Purée the beans.

Milk or Half-and-Half: This is the other magical ingredient that turns your homemade chicken noodle soup into the creamiest soup ever.

Gently stir the rosemary into the soup, then continue cooking until the soup reaches a simmer. Reduce heat to medium, and simmer for an additional 5 minutes until the broth has your desired level of rosemary flavor. (You can add in more rosemary if needed.)

You can either add the sprigs after cooking to finish a dish, or you can cook roasts, soups, and other meals with full sprigs of rosemary. Like bay leaves, rosemary sprigs that are cooked with foods are typically removed before serving.

Simple method with things I'd almost guarantee you have in your kitchen - take two tablespoons of butter and two tablespoons of flour; mix it into a “paste” like consistency, then mix it into your soup until it dissolves. Your soup will be thicker and creamier.

Cornstarch, or corn flour, can be used to thicken soup through its high starch content. Cornstarch is a great thickener for soup because only a little bit is needed to significantly thicken a soup, and it will not affect the flavor profile of the soup.

Can you overcook bean soup? ›

Overcooked beans are perfectly safe to eat, but while they may be edible, they'll be less pleasant to consume. Signs that your beans are overcooked include them being very soft and mushy. Tender beans are ideal, but if they lack firmness and don't keep their shape, they have probably simmered for too long.

Garlic and onions will bolster the taste of bean soup. Be sure to take a portion of the beans and mash or purée them for extra texture. Aromatics like celery or carrot will add more complex flavor notes. Despite being expensive, both mushrooms and Parmesan cheese will add some real umami (i.e., mouth feel) to the soup.

Use what you love! Cream: Half and half, heavy cream, light cream or thickened cream all yield similar results, however heavy cream adds richness. Flour: We need flour to create that delicious, creamy texture mushroom soup is loved for.

Cream is one of the most delicious ways to thicken a soup — all that rich milk fat helps to emulsify the soup and make it even creamier. Cream can curdle with the long cook time of the slow cooker, so I prefer canned milks like evaporated milk or coconut milk for thickening instead.

If you started the soup with broth, stock or water, I would wait until the end to add the cream. You can warm the cream, or “temper” it, which is what I do. Take about half a cup of the hot broth and slowly add your cream to that, stirring constantly.

Fresh herbs should be added close to or at the end of cooking because you want to preserve their delicate, fragrant qualities (ex. parsley on pasta or mint on meatballs). It's not as important in cold dishes like salsa and ceviche, though cilantro will look and taste brighter if added closer to serving time.

Most recipes call for rosemary leaves, which can be easily removed from the stem. You can also add the whole sprig to season soups, stews and meat dishes, and then simply remove it before serving.