Ingredients
- 3 tbsp Olive oil
- 3 Large onions
- 4 Garlic cloves
- 2 Bay leaves
- 4 cups (2 lbs) Dried white beans, preferably new-crop, picked over, and rinsed
- 2 lbs Smoked ham hocks
- 12 cups Water
- 1 tbsp Fennel seeds, ground fine in a mortar or spice mill
- 1 tsp Red pepper flakes
- Salt and Pepper
- 1 tsp Rosemary Oil
Zuppa di Fagioli with Rosemary Oil
Meal: Lunch
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredient: Vegetables
Season: Fall
Contributor: David Tanis
Directions
The first cold weather wants bean soup. If possible, eat this soup outside, preferably with a little fire going, after raking leaves or chopping wood. Sometimes the soup is the whole meal: white bean soup with ham hock is especially satisfying, though if you’re not thinking Italian, you could cook up a pot of pinto beans with bacon, or lentil soup with chorizo. A bean soup needs gentle cooking and cannot be rushed. Make the soup the day before you plan to serve it. Just before serving, embellish the soup with cooked pasta (tubetti or small shells, perhaps) and wilted greens, if you like.
Directions
- Warm the 3 tablespoons olive oil in a heavy bottomed soup pot over medium heat. Add the diced onions and cook gently until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and bay leaves and cook for a minute more.
- Add the white beans and smoked ham hocks. Cover with the water and bring to a boil. Skim off any surface foam and turn the heat to low. Simmer gently for an hour, stirring occasionally.
- Add the ground fennel, red pepper flakes, and a good spoonful of salt. Continue cooking for 1 hour more, or until the beans are quite tender and the smoked pork has begun to fall apart.
- Taste the soup and season with salt and pepper. Cool to room temperature, then refrigerate, uncovered, overnight.
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