Creamy White Bean Stew With Smokey Bacon

By Thom7747

Creamy, White Bean Stew is a cozy blanket for the inside of the body; it is the warm liquid light that is needed to invert the sky’s frown on a chilly, grey, winter day. Simple, rustic and perfumed with a savory smokiness, it provides that gentle nudge to continue on with the day; the little spark that takes away at least some of the gloom, and encourages one to find the beauty in a little reflection, in a little stillness, that a grey day in the winter will bring to each of us, from time to time.

Ingredients

• 12 ounces apple smoked bacon, chopped into small pieces
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 onion, small dice
• 2 carrots, small dice
• 2 celery stalks, small dice
• 4 cloves garlic, pressed through garlic press
• 2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• Pinch or two sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper
• 6 (15 ounce) cans small white beans (or navy beans), drained and rinsed
• 4 cups chicken stock, hot
• 2 tablespoons flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice

Details

Servings 6
Adapted from thecozyapron.com

Preparation

Step 1

-Place a large Dutch oven, or heavy bottom pot, over medium-high heat; once the pot is hot, add in a small drizzle of olive oil, and the chopped bacon; crisp the bacon completely until nice and brown, then remove with a slotted spoon, drain it on some paper towel, and set it aside for a moment; reserve about 1 tablespoon of the bacon fat, and set that aside for a moment, as well; wipe out the pot, and return it to medium-high heat.

-Next, add back into the pot the bacon fat, along with the olive oil and the butter, and allow them to melt together; once melted and hot, add in the diced onion, carrots and celery, and allow them to soften and saute for about 5 minutes; next, add in the garlic, and once it becomes aromatic, add in about 2/3 of the reserved, crisped bacon, as well as the Italian seasoning, the sea salt and the pepper, along with the white beans, and stir to combine; next, add in the hot chicken stock, stir, and allow the stew to gently simmer for about 40-45 minutes, partially covered with lid; about half way through the cooking process, mash the beans a little bit with the back of your spoon, or with a potato masher, to break up the beans a little bit and release their natural starch to thicken the stew; after about 40 minutes, turn the heat off and finish the stew by adding in the chopped parsley, the lemon zest and the lemon juice; serve the stew with some nice, crusty bread to dip, and garnish with some of the remaining crisped bacon.