This hearty sausage, white bean, & rapini soup is quick to throw together and perfect for a rainy night or cold winter afternoon. Chock full of healthy greens, pasta, protein, and flavour, it checks off all the boxes!
Why you need to make this soup!
Okay, I won’t lie. Part of me wants to keep this amazingness to myself, since people who try it think I must be super-skilled to make a soup so satisfying.
But since I love you all so much, you know I gotta share. Here’s why:
This soup is easy!
Like, other than blanching some rapini for a few minutes, you’re pretty much just dumping ingredients into a pot and giving it a good ol’ heat and stir.
This soup is inexpensive!
The majority of this soup consists of pantry ingredients you may already have. Canned tomatoes, pasta, chicken stock, beans, some onions and garlic…throw in the rapini and sausage and you’re feeding a family (with leftovers) for just a few dollars a serving.
This soup is healthy!
White beans. Tomatoes. Garlic. Onions. And let’s not forget the rapini, a leafy green powerhouse full of antioxidants and phytochemicals. Add in some protein from Italian sausage and a bit of pasta for a healthy carb, and you’ve got a full, balanced meal in a bowl! C’mon now!
What is rapini?
If you’ve never had it before, you’ve got to give rapini a try. Although it resembles broccoli in some ways, it is actually part of the turnip family (I know, I know, but hear me out)!
It is known that Western diets lack in bitter vegetables (such as dandelion leaf and mustard greens). These bitter greens are nutrient-dense superfoods and provide an expansive range of health benefits.
Rapini is one of these greens. Because of the bitterness, it is often recommended to blanch it (boil them in water for 1 minute then stop the cooking by sticking them in cold water). The result is a delicious green that can be used in all sorts of recipes!
Using rapini in this sausage, white bean, and rapini soup is a great way to introduce more greens into your diet. Give it a try!
Will my kids like Sausage, White Bean, & Rapini soup?
All I can tell you is all three of my kids love it. And always have. In fact, in our house we call this recipe ‘Quinn Soup’, because my son asks for it so often! We top their bowls with a generous sprinkle of fresh parmesan, and serve with bread to dip in the broth.
I think that the salty flavour of the sausage really helps entice the kids. Granted, I don’t force-feed them, and while one child loves the rapini, another prefers the broth most, while the youngest can’t get enough of the pasta and tomatoes.
But honestly, as far as I’m concerned, if they’re dipping the bread into the broth, and eating any part of the soup, they’re getting a big hit of nutrition. And the less I worry about it, the more relaxed they are to give it a try.
(If you’re interested in strategies I use to get my kids to be (fairly) willing eaters, feel free to check out this post)
How to make Sausage, White Bean, Rapini Soup
1.Boil a small pot of salted water, and cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
2. Prepare the rapini – Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add chopped rapini and simmer for 1-2 minutes. Drain and run cold water over rapini to stop the cooking. Set aside.
3. In a large pot over medium heat, brown sausage meat (casings removed) in a bit of olive oil. Add chopped onion and garlic, and soften for a few minutes.
4. Add white (Cannellini) beans, canned tomatoes, parmesan rind (see recipe notes), and stock. Bring to a simmer.
5. Stir in rapini. Reduce heat. Simmer for 20 minutes. Remove parmesan rind.
6. To serve, add a spoonfull or two of cooked pasta to the bottom of each bowl (see recipe notes). Add soup, and top with grated parmesan.
And that’s all there is to it! So pull out your soup pot, grab your ingredients, and in no time you’ve got a very satisfying and hearty dinner ready to enjoy!
Sausage, White Bean, & Rapini Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 bunch rapini, washed and cut into 1 inch pieces
- 1 lb mild italian sausage, casings removed
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 1 can (540 ml) white kidney beans, drained and rinsed also known as cannellini beans
- approx. 400 ml canned diced tomatoes (Approx. 1/2 of a 796 ml can. Freeze the rest for future soup!)
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 rind of parmesan cheese (optional) see notes
- 1 cup small shaped, whole wheat pasta, any variety such as macaroni, small shells, or rotini
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 1/4 -1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese, to garnish
Instructions
- Bring a small pot of water to boil and cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside. (See recipe notes)
- Meanwhile: fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. Chop rapini into 1 inch pieces, including the stalks.
- Add chopped rapini to boiling water. Simmer for 1-2 minutes, then drain. Run under cold water to stop the cooking process. Set aside.
- In the same pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Brown sausage, breaking up as it cooks.
- Stir in chopped onion and garlic. Heat, stirring occasionally, until onion is softened, about 5 minutes.
- Add rinsed white beans, canned tomato, parmesan rind (if using) and chicken broth. Bring to a boil.
- Stir in blanched rapini. Reduce heat and simmer on low for 20 minutes.
- Taste and season with salt and pepper as desired.
- To serve, place cooked pasta in bottom of each bowl, then top with soup and sprinking of grated parmesan cheese.
- Serve with crusty bread, if desired.
Notes
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Feel free to give these other healthy recipes a try!
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Thanks for stopping by!
This looks amazing! I can’t wait to try it! Just looking at it makes me feel hungry
It’s so good! We make it at home at least every couple weeks, and always keep a batch in the freezer!
Finally made this last week. So delish! Thanks for the introduction to rapini! Will definitely make again.
So happy to know your family liked it! This made my day 🙂