Souper Friday

I'm bookending this week with yummy, easy, healthy soup recipes to celebrate fall.  I love making soups in the fall and winter.  They're relatively quick and easy, and with only two of us in the house, one pot of soup can last all week (or be frozen for easy meals when we're short on time or just don't feel like cooking).

This is a recipe that I adapted from several others that I've seen and made throughout the years.  This would also be great to make in a crock pot.  Just wait until right before serving to add the pasta and spinach.  (You could also easily make this a vegetarian dish by eliminating the bacon and using veggie stock instead of chicken. I just happen to like the background flavor that the bacon provides.)

Beans and Greens Soup

Ingredients: 

• 5 slices bacon 
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 medium yellow onion
• 8 cups chicken stock 
• 2 15 oz. cans of kidney beans
• 2 15 oz. cans of great northern beans
• 1/2 box of small pasta (I use ditalini, but elbows or farfalle or orecchiette would be good too)
• 20 oz. washed baby spinach (I just use the pre-washed, bagged type)
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions: 

1. Slice bacon and onion and add to a large soup pot with olive oil and garlic. Saute until bacon begins to crisp and onions are translucent (about 10 minutes). 
2. Add stock to pot.  Rinse beans and add to stock, along with salt and pepper.
3. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. 
4. Once soup has come to a boil, add pasta and return to boil for approximately 5 minutes. 
5. Reduce heat, add spinach, and simmer until spinach is wilted, 2-3 minutes. 
6. Serve immediately. 

The longer that this soup sits, the thicker it becomes (the beans and pasta absorb a lot of the broth).  So, if you're not planning to eat all of this right away, you may want to add some more broth before reheating.  Otherwise, it turns into a sort of sloup, which is still super yummy.  

Enjoy!