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Cheddar White Bean Soup with a Cilantro Flavor Bomb - CaliZona

10 – 12 servings

Ingredients

  • 2 1/2 Cups White Beans - soaked overnight
  • 2 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 1/2 Onion – 1 1/4 Cup – Diced
  • 1 Cloves Garlic
  • 1 Vegetable Boullion Cube - unsalted
  • 6 Cups Filtered Water
  • 2 Tablespoons Butter
  • 2 Tablespoons White Rice Flour
  • 2  Cups Milk or Half and Half
  • 8 oz or 2 1/4 Cups Sharp Cheddar Cheese – shredded
  • 2 - 3 Roasted Poblano - diced
  • 1 Tablespoon +2 Teaspoons Sea Salt or to taste

Cilantro Flavor Bomb

  • 1 Bunch Cilantro
  • 1/2 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 1 Cloves Garlic
  • 1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice
  • 1/2 Teaspoon Sea Salt

Garnish (make ahead)

  • Cilantro Flavor Bomb - recipe above
  • Roasted Poblano - diced
  • Cilantro - roughly chopped

Instructions

Beans

  1. Sort through the beans to remove any rocks and rinse well.
  2. Cover beans with about 2 inches above beans with water.
  3. Carefully remove any floating beans as these tend to stay hard.
  4. Soak the beans overnight.
  5. Drain the water from the beans, rinse and set aside.
  6. Dice the onion and add to a 5 1/2 quart soup pot along with the oil and saute on medium-low heat until onions are soft and translucent.
  7. Add in the garlic and when the garlic becomes golden.
  8. Add the bouillon with a tablespoon of water and mash it up until it becomes a paste then add the 6 cups of water and the beans.
  9. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to between medium-low and low for about 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours or until beans are soft.  (older beans take longer to soften) .

Peppers

  1. Roast peppers on the stovetop on medium-high heat.  A gas stove works the best but it will work fine on an electric stove.
  2. Char the peppers on all sides turning with a pair of tongs.
  3. When good and charred, steam them for 10 minutes in a covered dish or a paper bag rolled shut to hold in the steam.
  4. Take a paper towel and rub off the char.   It’s ok to leave a little of the char.
  5. Slice in half and remove the seeds and stems then dice them.

Cilantro Flavor Bomb

  1. Add everything to a food processor and puree. Scrape the sides and bottom at least once.

Cheese Sauce

  1. Shred the cheese and set it aside.
  2. In a large straight-sided pan, melt the butter over medium-low heat.
  3. When the butter is melted, add the flour and whisk for about a minute.
  4. Slowly whisk in the half and half a little at a time. It will clump and then smooth out.
  5. When the half and half is hot, slowly add the cheese a little at a time whisking constantly.
  6. When all the cheese is added and melted, add to the soup.

To serve

  1. Serve it with the flavor bomb, diced roasted poblano and topped with roughly chopped cilantro.