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Creamy Garlic Soup
This soup is based on one I discovered long ago in a
now-forgotten cookbook, a creamy amalgam of almonds,
garlic, bread, olive oil and chicken broth, whirled
till smooth and garnished with croutons and green
grapes. Sue got hold of that recipe, decided to
lighten it up, fat-wise, and this is the result.
Here's what she says:
“This soup goes together in a snap. It's quite
assertively flavored; if you prefer a milder garlic
flavor, use as few as 4 cloves of garlic, and simmer
them in the chicken broth for 10 to 15 minutes. We
love this with a strong garlic 'bite,' so usually
make it with the full amount of garlic: simmer 8
cloves of garlic, to mellow, then add 2 uncooked
cloves for their 'bite.' "
Soup
6 to 10 large garlic cloves, peeled (1 to 1 1/2
ounces), to taste
5 cups (10 to 12 ounces) fresh white bread crumbs
(about 3/4 of a loaf of bread, crusts removed)
15-ounce can white beans, drained
15-ounce can garbanzo beans, drained
6 cups (48 ounces, 1 large can) low-fat chicken
broth
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
8-ounce jar lupini beans, drained
Garnish*
3 tablespoons pesto
2 tablespoons hot pepper paste** or chili oil
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
16 to 18 thin slices of baguette, toasted
*Use any or all of these as a garnish. If you're
serving this to company -- or if you simply
appreciate a well-presented dish -- the green pesto
and deep orange pepper paste or chili oil perk up
the bland color of the soup considerably. And the
bread is a great texture contrast.
**See hot pepper paste recipe below.
Soup: Place the garlic (cooked or not), bread
crumbs, white beans, garbanzo beans, and 1 cup of
the chicken broth into a food processor or blender.
Process until smooth. (Depending on the size of your
machine, you may need to do this in 2 batches.) Add
the vinegar, and mix well.
Pour the soup into a bowl. Process or blend the
lupini beans until they're finely ground; they don't
become entirely smooth, but add nice texture to the
soup. Stir the beans into the soup, add the
remaining chicken broth, cover, and refrigerate for
several hours, or overnight.
Garnish: Slice a baguette thinly (slices about
1/4-inch thick), and place the slices on an
ungreased baking sheet. Bake the baguette slices in
a preheated 400°F oven for 10 to 12 minutes, until
they're crisp and just slightly brown at the edges.
Cool them completely, and store them in an airtight
container until you're ready to use them.
Mix 1 tablespoon of olive oil with the prepared
pesto, and 1 tablespoon of olive oil with the hot
pepper paste (skip this step if you're using chili
oil). Ladle 1 to 1 1/2 cups chilled soup into
chilled bowls. Use the tip of a spoon to drop dots
of pesto, pepper paste or chili oil, and olive oil
over the top of the soup. Draw a knife through the
drops to make a swirl pattern, if desired. Crumble
one or two baguette slices into the middle of the
soup. Serve extra baguette slices on the side.
Yield: 9 cups, about 6 to 8 servings.
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