I have an obsession with cannellini beans.
As I mentioned in my last soup post, they add a wonderful creaminess to just about everything. They are humble yet luxurious. Earthy yet mild. They pair perfectly with strong, hearty herbs, like rosemary and sage. They can definitely take on those more aggressive flavors.
Enter roasted garlic. Pungent. Sweet. Savory. Velvety. Delicious. I love the stuff.
My parents used to roast garlic off in large batches in the winter time and serve it to us like butter – just spread on toasted baguette. Heavenly! They even had one of those little roasting crocks just for garlic. You must try it out, if you haven’t already.
I decided to top this soup with a fresh herb oil…to lighten up the denseness of the soup. I threw some fresh rosemary, sage, and chives into my food processor and gave it a whirl with some grapeseed oil.
Holy cow.
I greatly underestimated what a wonderful addition this is to a soup like this. The soup is creamy and earthy and very savory, and the bright, fresh flavor of the herb oil brings everything alive again.
The color ain’t too shabby either!
This soup is warm, and not just in the literal sense. It is thick, creamy, and comforting and makes you feel like you just ate a warm, garlic-tinged hug. I just burst out laughing at that thought. That would be gross. Ew.
Please ignore me.
But make this soup! SO. MUCH. FLAVOR.
Oh, and eat it with toasted, crusty bread! SO. MUCH. TEXTURE.
What more could you ask for?
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Roasted Garlic & White Bean Soup with Herb Oil
- Total Time: 1 hour 40 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
Description
This Roasted Garlic & White Bean Soup with Herb Oil is a creamy, luxurious vegetarian take on soup. It’s flavored with roasted garlic, shallots, and tons of fresh herbs. The cannellini beans add richness and creaminess. The herb oil not only adds a punch of beautiful color but bright and fresh flavor as well. This is a vegetarian soup that will make any meat eater happy!
Ingredients
For the Soup:
- 3 whole heads of garlic
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil
- 2 tablespoons of unsalted butter
- 2 shallots, thinly sliced (roughly ⅓ cup)
- ¼ cup fresh sage leaves
- 1 large sprig of rosemary, leaves removed from the stem
- 1 large russet potato, peeled and chopped (roughly 1 cup)
- 1 (15-oz) can of cannellini beans, drained and rinsed well
- 4 cups low-sodium vegetable (or chicken) broth
- ½ cup heavy cream or half-and-half
- Salt and pepper, to taste
For the Herb Oil:
- ½ cup neutral flavored oil (canola or grapeseed work great)
- ½ cup fresh chives, chopped
- ¼ cup fresh sage leaves, chopped
- 1 sprig rosemary, leaves removed from stem
- Salt and pepper, to taste
For Serving:
- Sour cream or heavy cream, for garnish
- Toasted bread
Instructions
For the Soup:
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- Halve the garlic heads and place them on a baking sheet lined with tin foil.
- Drizzle over 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and season generously with salt. Wrap the heads of garlic with another piece of foil and bake for 45-60 minutes, or until the garlic is caramelized and soft.
- Allow the garlic to cool a little bit before handling.
- While the garlic is cooling, heat a large pot over medium heat and add the remaining olive oil and the butter.
- Once the butter is melted, squeeze the roasted garlic from the skins directly into the pot. Add in the sliced shallot and a pinch of salt. Cook for 5 minutes, or until the shallots are softened.
- Add in the fresh sage and rosemary and stir to combine. Cook for another minute.
- Add in the potato and beans and stir everything well to combine. Stream in the broth, another pinch of salt, some black pepper and bring the mixture to a simmer.
- Simmer over medium-low heat for 20 minutes or until the potato is super tender and falling apart.
- Puree the soup until completely smooth – either transfer to a regular blender (in batches) or blend directly in the pot using an immersion blender.
- Return the soup to the pot and stir in the cream. Season, to taste, with additional salt and pepper. Keep warm until ready to serve.
For the Herb Oil:
- While the soup is cooking, make the herb oil by combining the oil and herbs in a food processor. Run the machine for a minute, pausing to scrape down teh slides of the bowl as needed. You want the herbs completely pulverized.
- Use the herb as is or strain through a fine-mesh strainer if a smoother consistency is desired (as shown in the photos of this post).
To Serve:
- Ladle the soup into bowls. Garnish with a drizzle of cream (or a dollop of sour cream) and a drizzle of the herb oil.
- Sprinkle each bowl of soup with fresh chives. Serve immediately with toasty bread on the side.
Notes
- This soup will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days.
- This soup freezes very well. Cool the soup to room temperature and transfer to freezer-safe containers. Freeze for up to 6 months.
- This soup could easily be made vegan by subbing out the butter for more oil and swapping the heavy cream out for full-fat coconut milk. A drizzle of coconut milk over top when serving would work beautifully as well!
- Prep Time: 1 hour (mostly inactive)
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Category: soup
Hi There. I'm Molly. I'm a food-obsessed, self-taught cook and I can't wait to share my passion for all things culinary with you. My love for egg yolks is just the tip of the iceberg!
This soup looks delicious and the herb oil adds such a nice color!
Thanks, Rachel! It balances everything out.