Lots of good-for-you beans and leafy greens make this a full-meal, hearty soup. Enjoy some of the soup now and freeze the rest for when you need a quick, homemade meal on a busy day.
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cooking Time: 1 hour and 20 minutes
Standing Time (dry beans): 8-12 hours
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients:
2⁄3 cup dried Great Northern beans
2 teaspoons olive oil
2⁄3 cup chopped onion
½ cup chopped carrot
1⁄3 cup chopped celery
3 cloves garlic, minced (1½ teaspoons)
1 smoked ham shank (10 to 12 ounces)
3 14-ounce cans reduced-sodium chicken broth
1½ cups water
2 bay leaves
2½ cups chopped
Swiss chard
1 plum tomato, seeded and chopped
Freshly ground black
pepper (optional)
Preparation:
- Sort through and rinse beans in colander under cold running water. Place beans in 6-quart stockpot or Dutch oven; cover with cold water to 2 inches above beans. Cover and let stand for 8 to 12 hours or overnight. Drain beans; set aside.
- Heat oil in the stockpot over medium heat; add onion, carrot and celery. Cook for 4 minutes, stirring often. Add garlic; cook and stir for 1 minute more. Add beans, ham shank, broth, water and bay leaves. Bring to boil; reduce heat. Cover and gently simmer about 1¼ hours or until beans are just tender.
- Remove and discard bay leaves. Remove ham shank; cool slightly and separate meat from bones. Discard bones; cut meat into bite-size pieces.
- Add chard to soup mixture; cover and cook about 5 minutes or until tender. Add meat and tomato; cover and cook about 1 minute or until heated through. If desired, season to taste with pepper.
Per Serving (1½ cups):
calories: 140; 45 calories from fat
total fat: 5 g; 1.5 g saturated fat, 0 g trans fat
cholesterol: 15 mg
sodium: 490 mg
total carbohydrates: 15 g
fiber: 5 g
sugars: 2 g
protein: 10 g; vitamins: vitamin A (60% DV), vitamin C (15% DV)
minerals: calcium (6% DV), iron (10% DV)
exchanges: 0.5 med. fat meat, 1 starch, 1 vegetable
