Summer Bean Soup With Tomato Brown Butter Food

SUMMER BEAN SOUP WITH TOMATO BROWN BUTTER

Steps:

• To make the soup:
• Combine the dried beans and kombu in a large container and cover with plenty of water to soak for at least 4 hours or overnight; skip this step if using fresh beans.
• Drain the beans and kombu and add them to a large pot with enough water to cover by about 1 in. (if using fresh beans, add the kombu now). Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; meanwhile, halve the tomatoes and cut the celery, carrot, and leek into about 3 in. pieces. As soon as the water boils, decrease the heat to medium-low and add the vegetables to the pot, along with the whole shallots and minced garlic. Continue to cook at a gentle simmer until the beans are very creamy, 60 to 90 minutes for dried beans and about half that for fresh.
• Remove the pot from the heat and use a slotted spoon to reserve the tomatoes; remove and discard the other vegetables.
• Set up a sieve over a heat proof container and strain the beans (there should be about 3 cups or 480 g), reserving all the cooking liquid.
• In a blender, combine 1 cup (160 g) of the cooked beans with 2 cups (480 ml) of the cooking liquid, plus the tomatoes, anchovies, oil, maple syrup, salt, red pepper flakes, and mustard. Purée until extremely smooth, pour into a large bowl, and fold in the reserved cooked beans by hand. At this point, you can serve it right away or transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days, gently rewarming over medium-low heat when you're ready to serve.
• To make the baked beans:
• While the bean soup is cooking, preheat the oven to 325°F. Cut the bacon into ¼ in. lardons; reserve 3 whole beans for garnish and cut the rest into 2 to 3 in. pieces.
• In a medium saucepan or Dutch oven, spread the bacon in an even layer and cook over medium-low heat until it starts to turn golden and crisp, about 10 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to remove the pieces but leave the fat behind.
• Increase the heat slightly, and sauté the shallots until translucent, 5 to 10 minutes. Stir in the chopped beans, bacon, and red pepper flakes. Cover with a lid or a tight layer of foil and bake until the beans are very soft, 60 to 90 minutes. Stir in the lemon zest, juice, and garlic as soon as the beans come out of the oven and cover again; the residual steam will cook the garlic.
• To make the salad:
• Thinly slice the pickled green beans on the bias. Combine with the cherry tomatoes, oil, and vinegar.
• To serve, ladle the bean soup into bowls with a big spoonful of the baked beans on top. Garnish with the pickled green bean mix, a swirl of tomato brown butter, crumbled feta, and torn fresh herbs. Leftovers can all be refrigerated in separate airtight containers, though the green bean salad is best on the day it's made, when the beans are most crisp and the tomatoes are fresh.
• Basic wet salt method:
• This works for any amount of dense vegetables or dense, underripe fruit, either whole or cut up, such as carrots, turnips, beets, winter squash, onions, green beans, Brussels sprouts, green tomatoes, small apples, underripe peaches, and whole baby cabbages. Peel off any tough skins, such as on beets, winter squash, and onions, and trim the tops. Leave the vegetables whole or cut them into the desired finished shape. Place the vegetables in a nonreactive container and pour water to completely submerge them; as you do so, keep track of how much water you're adding since the amount of water will dictate the amount of salt (generally 3.5 percent salt by weight of the water for most vegetables, although cucumbers can handle 4 to 5 percent and the increased salt assists with keeping their texture crispy). With a long wooden spoon, stir kosher salt into the brine (or add the salt, cap the jar, and give it a hearty shake) until the salt is dissolved. Place a weight on top of the vegetables to keep them submerged in the brine. Seal the container, using a lid with an airlock if you have one. If you don't have an airlock, you'll just need to open the container every few days or so to release carbon dioxide buildup and check for mold. Place the container in a clean, low-light area with an ambient temperature of 60°F to 68°F until the pickles taste sour, about 3 weeks. Refrigerate indefinitely.

TOMATO AND WHITE BEAN SOUP WITH LOTS OF GARLIC

Steps:

• Peel the garlic, then smash the cloves using a meat pounder or the bottom of a heavy skillet until wispy and flat.
• In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, heat the olive oil, then add the crushed garlic, and cook, smashing with the back of a wooden spoon and stirring occasionally, until golden brown and beginning to stick to the bottom of the pan, 3 to 5 minutes.
• Add the white beans and their liquid, crushed tomatoes, stock or water, and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then partly cover, reduce heat, and let simmer until thickened and fragrant, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Using an immersion or regular blender, purée the soup until smooth. Add cream or stock or water to thin as desired. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Drizzle with heavy cream before serving.

TOMATO BEAN SOUP

Steps:

• Place beans in a Dutch over or soup kettle; add water to cover by 2 in. Bring to a boil; boil for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat; cover and let stand for 1 hour. , Drain beans and discard liquid; return beans to Dutch oven. Add broth, water and bay leaves; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 1-1/4 hours or until the beans are tender. , Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook bacon, onion, celery and carrots until vegetables are crisp-tender, about 12 minutes. Add sausage, garlic and sugar; cook for 5 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon to Dutch oven. Stir in tomatoes; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 45 minutes or until beans begin to bread apart and soup thickens, stirring occasionally. Add salt, pepper and pepper sauce. Discard bay leaves before serving.

TOMATO AND BUTTER BEAN SOUP

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large, heavy-based pan.
• Add the onion, garlic and curry powder, then cook for 1 minute.
• Stir in the tomato puree, vegetable stock, tomatoes, potatoes and diced carrot.
• Cover and simmer for 35 minutes.
• Season to taste.
• Add the butter beans and parsley, then simmer for 10 minutes.

WHITE BEAN SOUP WITH TOMATOES AND HERBS

Steps:

• If using fresh herbs, make an herb packet by placing a large square of cheesecloth on a counter. Place the thyme, rosemary and half the oregano in the center, gather the ends together and tie to enclose. Remove the leaves from the remaining bunch of oregano, chop and reserve.
• Combine the beans, fresh herb packet or the dried herbs and water in a large saucepan or stockpot. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook, covered, until the beans are cooked through but still firm, 1 hour. Remove from the heat. Lift out and discard the herb bundle.
• In a large stockpot, heat the olive oil or butter over medium heat. Saute the onions until golden, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Stir in the garlic and cook just until the aroma is released, about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes and their liquid, salt, pepper and half of the reserved chopped oregano (if using fresh). Reduce the heat to medium low and cook, stirring frequently, until the liquid is evaporated. Stir in the beans and their cooking liquid and cook 5 minutes longer.
• Pour in the vegetable stock or water. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook about 40 minutes, or until the beans are very tender.
• Serve hot, garnished with the remaining chopped fresh oregano and lime wedges.

BLACK BEAN AND TOMATO SOUP

Steps:

• Place 1 can black beans and chicken broth into a blender. Cover and puree until smooth.
• Heat a large saucepan coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat; cook and stir onion and garlic until onion is tender, about 5 minutes. Stir remaining 1 can black beans and liquid, tomatoes, yogurt, lime juice, cumin, red pepper flakes, and pureed beans into onion mixture; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 25 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Garnish with cilantro to serve.

BUTTER BEAN, SUN-DRIED TOMATO & PESTO SOUP

Steps:

• Put stock in a pan with butter beans and bring to the boil, reduce heat; stir in tomato puree and pesto. Cook gently for 5 minutes.
• Transfer 6 ladles to a blender or food processor and process until smooth, then return to pan.
• Heat gently, stirring frequently for 5 minutes, then season to taste before serving.

SUMMER TOMATO SOUP WITH BASIL CREAM

Steps:

• In a heavy, medium-size saucepan, melt the butter just until it foams. Add the shallots or onion and saute over medium heat just until wilted and very lightly colored, about seven to eight minutes.
• Stir in two teaspoons of the salt and the tomatoes, cover tightly and cook slowly for about 12 minutes until the tomatoes are soft.
• Transfer the mixture to the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel chopping blade and puree until smooth. Or pass the mixture through a food mill. Return the puree to the saucepan, stir in the chicken stock and milk, season with white pepper and heat gently for a few minutes.
• In a chilled bowl, beat the heavy cream just until it forms soft peaks. Stir in the remaining salt and the basil. Ladle the soup into bowls, add a good-size dollop of the basil cream in the middle of each bowl and place a couple of basil leaves in the center. To make a decorative design, swirl the cream outwards in a circular or sunburst pattern, using the tip of a knife or spoon handle.