Dinner!

One of my great passions apart from makeup is food. I love to cook, bake, and, most importantly, eat! While eating healthy is important to me, I'm also a huge fan of indulgence! Tonight's dinner, Tuscan Pumpkin White Bean Soup, combines the best of both worlds. It's packed with antioxidants and protein, is low in fat and calories, yet tastes creamy and delicious. Pureeing the beans gives the soup the texture of a hearty, cream based soup with none of the guilt and tons of flavor. Homemade crostini don't hurt either!
(The bubbles are from the immersion blender!)

Tuscan Pumpkin White Bean Soup:

• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 clove minced garlic
• 1 15 ounce can of packed pumpkin puree (I find that the organic has much more flavor)
• 3 1/2 cups chicken stock (I use low sodium and add my own salt later)
• 1 15 1/2 ounce can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/3 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (optional)
  
• Salt and Pepper to taste

• Saute onion in olive oil until tender and translucent, about 5 minutes
• Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about another minute or so. Be careful not to burn the garlic!
• Add pumpkin, broth, beans, salt and pepper, and pumpkin pie spice. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to a simmer. Simmer 10 minutes.
• Puree soup with an immersion blender until smooth and creamy. Add more seasoning if necessary
• Serve with homemade crostini (I slice a baguette, coat with olive oil, salt and garlic and bake until browned)

Yum! What are you having for dinner?