Tuscan White Bean Soup

The origin of Tuscan white bean soup goes back hundreds of years to humble peasant meals, where local veggies and leftover ingredients were transformed into delicious and nourishing meals.

As traditional recipes make their way into modern days, we understand how simple, nourishing, and sustainable they are.

With our recipe, we hope to bring this timeless Italian recipe into your kitchen.

We simplified some steps, shortened the cooking time, and substituted some ingredients so you can make this recipe at home with little effort.

While doing so, we tried to preserve the essence of this recipe, which is a rustic, earthy, creamy, tasty, and nutritious white bean soup.

Quantities are in the recipe box at the bottom of the page.

Flavor base

The flavor base is the most crucial step when making soup. It’s called “soffritto” in Italian, and it is used to add a rich base of flavor to this Tuscan white bean soup.

To make it, you’ll need:

• Olive oil: best if extra virgin olive oil. It’s used to cook the veggies gently.
• Onion: it adds sweetness and depth of flavor. You can use white or yellow onions.
• Celery: it adds fresh notes to balance the sweetness.
• Carrot: it adds color and sweetness.
• Garlic: it adds a mild pungent aroma.
• Leek: traditional in Tuscan soup, it adds even more freshness and sweetness.
• Tomato paste: it confers a light red color to the dish, and it adds a rich, savory flavor and umami.

Aromatics

Fresh thyme would be the most authentic as this herb is used in Tuscany for white bean soup.

Substitute dry thyme, oregano, a sprig of rosemary, a couple of bay leaves, or some sage leaves for thyme.

If you like some heat, add 1/4 teaspoon of red pepper flakes or a finely chopped chili pepper.

Leafy greens

Tuscan white bean soup uses many leafy greens, more specifically, cavolo nero, savoy cabbage, and Swiss chard combined.

Feel free to change them up based on what you have available. Also, you can use one, two, or all three leafy greens.

• Cavolo nero: also known as Lacinato Kale or Dinosaur Kale, this dark leafy green adds a rich and hearty taste with peppery and slightly bitter notes. Substitute curly kale or spinach for cavolo nero.
  
• Savoy cabbage: savoy cabbage has a mild, delicate, nutty, and slightly sweet flavor. Substitute green cabbage or Chinese cabbage for savoy cabbage.
  
• Swiss chard, or chard, has a buttery, mild flavor that reminds us of spinach and beets. Substitute Bok Choy for chard.

Vegetable stock

You can use either vegetable stock or chicken broth.

Using vegetable stock is a simple way to reduce meat consumption if you are interested.

White beans

Use cannellini beans or other white beans, such as navy beans or great northern beans.

You can make this with canned beans for a quicker cooking time.

Or, if you want to cook dry beans yourself, soak them for 8 hours in cold water, then change the water and boil them until tender with a teaspoon of salt (about 1 hour).

Here’s our guide on how to cook white beans, in case you need it.

Bread

The best way to serve this white bean soup is with crusty bread, like ciabatta or a rustic loaf.

Slice the bread into thick slices, then toast it or grill it, brush it with garlic, and drizzle with good quality extra virgin olive oil.

To make this soup gluten-free, use gluten-free bread.

You can also add a sprinkle of grated parmesan cheese, although the soup is already plenty flavorful, and there’s no real need for it.

Omit the parmesan for dairy-free, and you are good to go, as there’s no cream or butter.

Our favorite way of serving white bean soup is with a thick slice of rustic crusty bread, toasted or grilled and brushed with garlic, sprinkled with a pinch of salt, and drizzled with good quality extra virgin olive oil.

Optionally, you can add a sprinkle of grated parmesan.

As an alternative to crusty bread, you can serve it with:

• No–knead focaccia that you can use to sop up the tasty juices.
• 10-minute crostini made in the oven with guaranteed crunch!
• Italian bruschetta with eggplant or tomato.

Make it guest-friendly, and serve it with different toppings. For example:

• Homemade croutons
• Vegan parmesan
• Easy air fryer croutons

Breads

Focaccia

Starters

Bruschetta

Starters

Crostini Recipe

Breads

Homemade Croutons

Make ahead: Tuscan soup is an excellent recipe for meal prep as it keeps for days, and its flavor improves as the ingredients meld together.

Refrigerator: Keep leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. The next day, the soup will be even more delicious! Reheat it in a pot with some water or microwave for 2 minutes.

Freezer: let the Tuscan soup cool down completely, then transfer it to a freezer-friendly container and freeze for up to three months.

Thaw: defrost it in the fridge over several hours, in the microwave or stovetop.

Beans, chickpeas, and lentils are some of our favorite foods! If you’re hungry for more legume recipes, have a look at these easy meals:

• Lentil bolognese with a rich and earthy sauce, a restaurant-worthy pasta!
• Easy lentil curry: a reader favorite and easy to make in about 30 minutes.
• White bean dip: a hummus recipe but with beans and an easy appetizer idea.
• Lentil vegetable soup with spinach, canned tomatoes, and dried lentils.
• Pasta e Fagioli with pinto beans, kidney beans, and ditalini pasta.
• Chickpea soup and chickpea stew.
• Pasta e ceci: Italian pasta with chickpea.
• Curry lentil soup.

Pasta

Pasta e Fagioli

Soups

Lentil Vegetable Soup

Curry Recipes

Lentil Curry

Dips and Spreads

White Bean Dip

If you’re big on soups like we are, look at these selected soup recipes. They are all easy and delicious!

• Carrot and ginger soup
• Zucchini soup is a light, easy, and tasty recipe served with homemade croutons.
• Eggplant soup with crispy air fryer chickpeas.
• Tofu soup with seasonal veggies and Asian flavors.
• Butternut squash soup with an easy bake-and-blend technique.
• Lentil soup is a super tasty Italian-inspired recipe.
• Kale soup with white beans and fresh herbs.
• Potato leek soup.

Soups

Chickpea Soup

Soups

Kale Soup

Soups

Black Bean Soup

Soups

Vegetable Soup

For more curries, stews, and soups, check out our soups category page.