I’m always happy when I’ve made this creamy white bean soup with rosemary and garlic. Thanks to canned white beans, it is super simple, quick, and tastes incredible!
I love how easy this white bean soup recipe is to make. You go from cans to a creamy luxurious soup in minutes. It is incredible served with toasted bread for dipping (I especially love it with focaccia bread!).
We love white beans! They are readily available, hearty, creamy, and healthy! This is a blended soup, but for a rustic version, see our white bean soup with kale. I also love white beans in salads, and I especially love this white bean salad with prosciutto!
Key Ingredients
- White Beans: I use canned cannellini beans for this soup, but you can use whatever white beans you have available (Great Northern and Navy beans being good examples). If you want to cook your beans from scratch, I recommend looking at our chickpeas recipe for guidance.
- Onion and Garlic: Since this recipe is intended to be quick and easy, we keep the base veggies simple. I saute onion and garlic in olive oil before adding red pepper flakes (for heat and optional), the beans, and broth.
- Rosemary: I love the combination of olive oil, white beans, and rosemary. I love fresh rosemary, but dried is fine if you don’t have any! I have included tips in the recipe for dried rosemary.
- Broth: You can use your favorite store-bought broth (veggie or chicken) or make your own. I love this homemade veggie broth and this easy chicken broth.
- Cream (optional): The blended beans already make our soup super creamy, but a small splash of cream doesn’t hurt! If you are dairy-free, add your favorite unsweetened nondairy milk.
Rosemary White Bean Soup
- PREP
- COOK
- TOTAL
This is such an easy soup made with white beans, broth, and rosemary that’s full of healthy ingredients and packs in a good amount of protein! I love fresh rosemary in this white bean soup, but I have provided instructions on substituting it for dried in the recipe below.
You Will Need
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped, about 2/3 cup
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 pinch crushed red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary or 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
2 (15oz) cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed, or 3 cups cooked white beans
4 cups (946ml) vegetable broth or chicken broth
Salt and fresh ground black pepper
2 to 4 tablespoons cream or unsweetened nondairy milk
Baguette, sliced and toasted for serving
Directions
1Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until softened, about 8 minutes.
2Stir in the garlic, red pepper flakes, and rosemary, then cook for 1 minute.
3Add the beans, broth, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and a 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper.
4Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook at a low simmer, uncovered, for about 10 minutes.
5Remove the pot from the heat and blend until smooth using an immersion blender (or a regular blender).
6Taste the soup and adjust with more salt and/or pepper. To make it creamier, stir in a little cream or nondairy milk.
Adam and Joanne's Tips
- Storing: Transfer the soup to an airtight container and store it in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days, or freeze for up to 3 months. If I plan to freeze, I leave the cream/nondairy milk out and add it when I reheat another day.
- A note about blending: You can use an immersion or regular blender. If you use a regular blender, it is best to blend in batches and not fill the blender as much as usual since the soup is so hot. We like to remove the lid’s center insert and cover it with a kitchen towel while blending — this helps some of the steam release and prevents the lid from popping off (which can be a big, hot mess).
- The nutrition facts provided below are estimates. We included 2 tablespoons of cream in the calculations.
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Does this freeze well?
Yes, but I would leave out any cream and add that when reheating.
Can you serve this soup at room temp or is it best hot?
Hi Jen, We prefer this soup served hot.
After my wife Diana’s operation, she needed some tasty but fairly bland and easy to digest meals during her recovery. This soup fitted the bill nicely. I used haricot beans – the judiones ones grown just over the border in Spain and it turned out a treat. Many thanks!
This looks like a nice soup recipe, thanks for sharing. But, am I missing something? You’ve mentioned ketchup in the blending directions. I don’t see anything about ketchup in the ingredients or instructions.
Hi Brian, that was our mistake. Instead of ketchup it should have said soup. This has been fixed. There is definitely no ketchup in this recipe 🙂
OK, thanks. I wasn’t sure if ketchup was a side option that didn’t get included in the description. Thanks again.
I just had my wisdom teeth taken out and I was looking for pureed soups to eat. I am glad I stumbled across this recipe. It was easy and delicious. I am a vegetarian and used veggie broth instead of chicken and was out of rosemary. Other than that, followed the directions. Perfect and such a nice break from applesauce and pudding! Thanks for the great recipe.
Made this tonight for wife and 6 year old. Both loved it!
In my opinion, a splash of cream is never “optional” 😉 I love beans so much. I usually recommend cooking your own dried beans because the texture and flavor is superior to canned, but I would give canned a go in a recipe like this where initial texture isn’t a concern.
WOW. This soup looks so comforting and easy to prepare during these dog days of summer.
Great photo. White beans and I don’t see eye to eye but your picture makes the soup look lovely.