Fasolada (Greek Bean Soup)

It had been a while since I last cooked pulses and especially beans as in the family there is one of us who suffers from diverticulitis and pulses really bother him.

This condition is rather painful and it is caused by inflammation of little pouches that are found usually inside the large intestine.

So the only way to have pulses at home is to actually pulse them :-) after boiling them, so in other words to pass them through the blender and turn them into a cream soup.

If we like afterwards we can pass the puree through a sieve to give the soup an even more creamy consistency.

Also I have found that children really prefer having their pulses as a creamy soup.

I should add here that the legumes we use must be really fresh and nice so that they will boil quickly and turn into a delicious dish.

I really love the legumes that you can find from an area in Greece called Feneos and especially the legumes from the Dikotylon brand that are my absolute favourite.

If you live away from Greece they are not so easy to find but oh well.. Go for some nice fresh beans from your area.

Diffuculty: 1 of 3

Duration:2 hours

Serves:8 people

Ingredients

500 g of navy beans

1 tblsp. Salt

3 tbsp olive oil and some extra fro serving

2 white onions cut in 8 pieces

3 rosemary springs

10 thyme springs

2 carrots cut in thick slices

2 red peppers cut in slices

1 clove of Garlic

440 g of tomato puree

2 liters of vegetable or chicken stock

Salt and pepper to taste

Avocado slices and yogurt for serving

Method

In a big bowl filled with water and 1 tbsp. of salt we add the beans and we leave them all night to soak. Salt helps in that process.

Next day we drain, wash and drain the beans again.

In a big pot we add the olive oil, onions and we sweat them for a few minutes on medium heat.

We add the herbs, carrots, peppers and garlic and saute them for another 10 minutes.

Add the beans and the tomato puree.

Stir for a minute or two, add the stock and bring to a boil.

Lower the heat to low, cover and let the soup do it’s thing and boil till the beans are nice and soft.

Pass the soup through the blender.

Serve hot with some fresh extra virgin olive oil, pieces of avocado and some yogurt.

I had some borago flowers in the garden and I added them in as well for colour, some freshness and crunchiness.