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Butter Bean,
Leek and Bacon Soup from www.cookuk.co.uk |
Soak the beans overnight by covering them with cold
water, or you can boil them for 10 minutes then leave them to soak for 2
hours before making the soup. Whichever way you choose do remember to
drain them off before cooking.
KEY POINTS
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Preparation Time: |
30 mins |
Cooking Time: |
1 hour |
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How Difficult |
Medium |
Freeze? |
Yes |
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Servings |
4 portions |
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INGREDIENTS
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Metric |
Imperial |
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225 g dried butter beans |
8 oz dried butter beans |
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110 g smoked streaky bacon |
4 oz smoked streaky bacon |
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2 tablespoons of oil |
2 tablespoons of oil |
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1 bay leaf |
1 bay leaf |
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25 g butter |
1 oz butter |
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1 onion finely chopped |
1 onion finely chopped |
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1 leek cleaned, trimmed and
finely chopped |
1 leek cleaned, trimmed and
finely chopped |
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2 small stick of celery
finely chopped |
2 small stick of celery
finely chopped |
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1 garlic clove |
1 garlic clove |
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1 litre water |
1½ pints of water |
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150 ml milk |
5 fl oz milk |
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Salt and freshly ground
black pepper |
Salt and freshly ground
black pepper |
Preparation Before Cooking
Preferably soak the beans overnight by covering them with cold water
and drain them before use.
Start by cleaning and finely chopping the vegetables.
This part is rather tedious, it takes quite a while to chop the
the veg, but it is worthwhile as it takes less time for the soup
to cook.
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Now, heat up one of the tablespoons of oil in a
medium pan and cook the bacon for about 5 minutes till it is lightly
crispy and golden brown. |
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The next step is to add the bay leaf, 1½
pints (1 litre) of water to the pan along with the soaked butter beans.
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Bring the mixture to the boil then reduce the heat and simmer for
approximately 25 minutes or until the beans are tender. Skim off any
scum that appears on the surface.
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Heat the butter and the rest of the oil in another saucepan and add the
remaining chopped vegetables. Stir well and coat everything in the
butter and oil and cook over a low heat for about 10 minutes until they
are soft.
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Tip everything into one pan and mix together well, throwing away the bay
leaf. Next add the garlic, cover and simmer for a further 10 minutes
until the beans and vegetables are really soft. Mash the beans
against the side of the pan with a fork, this allows the beans to thicken
the soup. Pour in the milk and season with salt and freshly ground
black pepper and stir well. |
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Serve immediately and sprinkle the top with freshly chopped parsley.
Absolutely delicious with warm crusty bread. |
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