Emeril's One-Pot Blogger Cooking Party: Tuscan White Bean Soup with Broccoli Rabe

Happy Friday everyone!  Wow, this has been a busy week for me as this is the last week of Emeril's One-Pot Blogger Cooking Party that I have had the honor of participating in.  Since this project fell during the same time I've been traveling a bunch, I've had to cook when I could and in spurts.  So needless to say I've been cooking my little tush off, but enjoying it all the same.  Yes, some nights were challenging because these, my dears, are not 30 minute meals.  They take some time to make and there is some real clean up involved, but the final product is worth it.  Plus, I've never been one to care too much about a recipe taking a couple hours to make - that's pretty much my style every night anyway.  I like to come home from work, do a few things around the house, then putz around in the kitchen all night and take my time cooking while I watch TV on my kitchen TV (If you don't have one of these get one... it's the best thing ever - I barely ever leave the kitchen!)

So anyway, I made this recipe on the same night I made Emeril's Pasta e Fagiole... so it was a night of soup making.  (Uh oh... Mark's gonna yell at me again for calling Pasta e Fagiole soup haha...  He's the Italian in the house after all.  I'll get more into this conversation in my next post.)  I love making soups in the fall and winter.  They make the house smell great, they're enjoyable to make, and they taste so good and so comforting without stuffing you to the gills. 

This Tuscan White Bean Soup with Broccoli Rabe, from Emeril's new cookbook, Sizzling Skillets and Other One-Pot Wonders, is a winner.  I absolutely loved it.  I'm in love with white beans in any pasta or soup and I really love broccoli rabe or in this case, broccolini.  This soup also has a brightness from the lemon and a nice back-of-the-mouth heat to it.  Served with some crusty bread and Parmesan cheese, it's pure heaven.  I would without-a-doubt make this soup again. 

After the jump, I'll show you how this soup is made AND I'm able to include the full recipe for you on this one!  Yay!  Also, don't forget to check out more recipes cooked for you by my food blogger buddies here:

Bite and Booze and on Facebook here.
Just off the Red Streetcar Line and on Facebook here.
Diabetic Foodie and on Facebook here.
Tracey's Culinary Adventures and on Facebook here.
The Boys Made Me Do It! and on Facebook here.
Mommy Hates Cooking and on Facebook here.
Farmgirl Gourmet and on Facebook here.
Cajun Chef Ryan and on Facebook here.
Savoring Today and on Facebook here.
Not Rachael Ray and on Facebook here.
Miss in the Kitchen and on Facebook here.
30AEATS and on Facebook here.
Foodhunters Guide to Cuisine and on Facebook here.
Thyme in our Kitchen and on Facebook here.
Cooking with Books and on Facebook here.
Goov-y Foody and on Facebook here.
Manges! Mangi! and on Facebook here.
The Wicked Noodle and on Facebook here.
Cookistry and on Facebook here.

Also, check out Emeril's Facebook page here: Emeril Lagasse and follow him on Twitter here: @Emeril and check out Emeril's publishing company, Morrow Publishing, blogging here: The Secret Ingredient, and on Twitter here: @MorrowCooks, and on Facebook here: Morrow Cooks.



To start this soup, heat the olive oil in an 8-quart soup pot or stockpot over medium-high heat. Add the onion, celery, bell pepper, 1 teaspoon of the salt, and ¼ teaspoon of the black pepper and cook, stirring, until the vegetables are tender, about 6 minutes. Add the garlic, dried Italian herbs, and crushed red pepper and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute.



Add the stock, beans, Parmesan rind, bay leaf, and water and bring to a low boil. Reduce the heat to simmer gently and cook, partially covered and stirring occasionally, until the beans are tender, 45 to 60 minutes.  I chose to save some time and use canned Cannelini beans, so I didn't add the beans until later since they're already cooked.  I also have no idea why this was the last step-by-step picture I took of this soup, but it is.  Haha... I must have been exhausted at this point. 



Using a slotted spoon, transfer about 1 cup of the beans from the pot to a small bowl and mash them with the back of a spoon. Return the mashed beans to the soup and add the remaining 1 tablespoon salt. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat and continue to cook, uncovered, until the broth thickens slightly, about 15 minutes. (I chose not to do this part since I was only making a half batch of soup and preferred to leave all the beans whole.)

Add the remaining black pepper, the broccoli rabe, and rosemary sprig and continue to cook until the broccoli rabe is just tender, about 5 minutes. (This is when I added the canned beans in case you decide to use them as well.  No need to add them any earlier than this.)

Stir in the lemon zest and lemon juice. Remove the Parmesan rind, bay leaf, and rosemary sprig and discard them. Serve the soup in wide, shallow bowls, garnished with grated Parmesan and a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil.  Don't forget the crusty bread for dipping! 

Again, this is a must-make soup.  It's healthy and delicious and just may prevent you from getting that cold everyone seems to be getting!  Enjoy this one and I'll be back later with the Pasta e Fagiole post!