This hearty and healthy White Bean & Escarole soup is the perfect wintertime meal, and is quick to make!

White Bean and Escarole Soup - In Soup Bowl with Parmesan on Top

I think soup is something that most of us forget about a lot of the time.

How often do you open your refrigerator door and peer in at all the ingredients and think, oh yes I would like to make some soup!? For me, it’s almost never. And it’s really quite a shame because every time I happen to have soup, I’m reminded of how wonderful it is.

This reawakened love for soup came to me over the holidays when I went back to my California hometown. My dad and stepmom eat a lot of soup and salad, and eating in their kitchen for two weeks got me seriously hooked on soup. I could open up the fridge at any time of day and find quarts of assorted soups, and my first spoonful sent my brain into unending thoughts of “why don’t I make soup more often?”

Head of Escarole on Cutting Board

Seriously though, why do we always forget about soup?

It’s warm and comforting.

It’s often one of the healthier things we can eat.

It’s relatively low calorie (as long as you don’t go crazy with the cream).

And it’s also really filling.

So here’s to more soup!

This white bean and escarole soup is one of my favorites. If you’re wondering what on earth escarole is, it kind of looks like a head of romaine, but it’s much sturdier and has a more cabbage-like texture to it.

Cutting Head of Fresh Escarole with knife

Like most soups, this one starts off with lots of softened onion, with some fresh thyme for extra flavor:

Sauteed Onions in Pan with Thyme Sprig

After you’ve softened the onions, you add some garlic and a bunch of escarole:

Wilting Fresh Escarole in Pot

Wilt the escarole for a couple of minutes, and then it’s time to add the chicken stock and beans.

Wilted Escarole in Soup Pot with Spatula

Give the beans and stock a few minutes to heat through, adjust the seasoning to taste, and it’s ready to serve! Yup, that’s it. This is a pretty low maintenance soup, and it tastes awesome.

Escarole Soup - With White Beans and Onion in Footed White bowl

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Escarole and Bean Soup with Parmesan

White Bean and Escarole Soup

Servings: 8
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes
 This hearty and healthy White Bean & Escarole soup is the perfect wintertime meal, and is quick to make!
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Ingredients

  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 softball sized yellow onion finely chopped
  • 2 sprigs fresh thyme
  • 2 cloves garlic minced
  • 12 oz head of escarole chopped
  • 16 oz can cannellini beans drained and rinsed
  • 4 cups chicken stock + 2 cups filtered water
  • salt and pepper
  • freshly grated parmesan for serving

Instructions 

  • In a large pot, add the olive oil, chopped yellow onion, thyme, and 1/8 tsp salt. Set the pot over medium or medium low heat and cook the onions for about 20 minutes until they are soft and translucent. Pay attention to the heat and make sure the onions don’t brown (turn the heat down if the onions are browning instead of staying clear).
  • Once the onions are softened, add the garlic and escarole, and cook for about 5 minutes until the escarole is wilted. Add the white beans, chicken stock, and water, and bring to a simmer by bumping the heat to medium high. Once the white beans are heated through (about 5-8 minutes), taste the soup for seasoning, adding salt and pepper to taste. Serve the soup with freshly grated parmesan on top. Enjoy!

Nutrition

Calories: 140kcal, Carbohydrates: 20g, Protein: 8g, Fat: 3g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 4mg, Sodium: 555mg, Fiber: 5g, Sugar: 3g

Nutrition is estimated using a food database and is only intended to be used as a guideline for informational purposes.

Course: Soup
Cuisine: American
Author: Fifteen Spatulas