I'm Dreaming of a White Bean Soup

A thousand years ago when I first decided to give a plant-based diet a try, I decided to be That Vegetarian and turn my nose up at things like tinned beans and frozen vegetables.  This was a mistake.  You can find that mistake here, but you shouldn't, really.  Follow this recipe instead.

(Inspired by this recipe, changed to make it easier for me to be incredibly lazy.  True story.)

OH.  And it's super good for you!  I don't usually think of lazy-molly food as being on the healthy end of the scale, but this one actually is!  Will wonders never cease.  Give it a go!

I'm Dreaming of a White Bean Soup

Ingredients

4-5 cloves garlic, minced
2-3 Tbsp olive oil
60 oz cannellini beans, drained
2 cups frozen spinach
2 cups milk (I use soy)
6 oz Monterrey jack cheese, shredded
4 oz Parmesan cheese
1 tsp black pepper
Salt to taste

1 egg per bowl of soup you want to serve
A bit more olive oil
A bit of water


Instructions

1. Mince the garlic.
2. Heat the oil in a big ol' soup-pot over medium heat.
3. Add the garlic.
4. While it's cooking, drain the beans.
5. Throw them into the soup-pot with the spinach and milk.
6. Bring that to a boil, then take a potato masher to the whole mess and mash up the beans.
1. Note:  I don't mash up all the beans, but that's because I am genuinely lazy about this dish.  It's more like potato soup if you mash up all the beans, but ...
7. Let that cook for 3-5 minutes, just until the spinach is nice and cooked.
8. Add the Monterrey jack, Parmesan, salt, and pepper, and stir them all around until everything's playing nice together.

When you're ready to serve the soup:

1. Heat 2 tsp olive oil in a pan over pretty darned high heat.
2. Once it's spitting hot when you drip water into it, crack your egg(s) into it.
3. Pour a bit of water (maybe 2-3 Tbsp?) next to the eggs, then quickly set the lid down over them.
4. Let them cook and steam for a minute or so, or until the white has cooked.
5. Serve atop hot bowls of soup, perhaps with a bit of black pepper on the egg for the sake of being super pretty.

P.S.  Many thanks to Chris for the delightful chat about eating less sugar.  Wouldn't've come back to this recipe without it.  Hi Chris!

P.P.S.  I managed not to call this Hoth Soup, but only just barely.  10/10 Wompas approve, though.  No lie.