With all of the freezing cold weather that we have been having over the last few weeks I have been in full on soup mode and I have been trying some new ones. By far my favourite so far is this soup from the description of one of the soups of the day at Porchetta & Co here in Toronto. The soup was described as containing cabbage, double smoked bacon, sausage and white beans and it was topped with a garnish of grainy mustard. I was immediately sold on the idea and I knew that I would have to try the soup! The only problem was that as a daily soup I could not count on it being there when I went so I decided to make it myself.
I started out by cooking some hot Italian sausage long with the double smoked bacon in a saucepan to start building up the flavour. I then moved on to the soup trinity of onions, celery and carrots which I cooked in the rendered bacon grease followed by healthy dose of garlic. The soup was described as being creamy and since it also contained beans I decided to get some of the creaminess by pureeing half of the beans in a food processor so that I would be able to cut back a bit on the heavy cream. To maximize the flavour I use a homemade chicken stock which was pretty much the final piece of the soup.
This creamy cabbage and double smoked bacon soup is easy to make and it is just packed with flavour! The beans add a really nice creaminess to the soup and I especially enjoy the smokiness that the bacon adds. I have been hooked on grainy mustard ever since I discovered it a while ago and using it in soups is particularly nice. In the past I have simply mixed a tablespoon or so directly into the soup but using it as a garnish on the soup like I did here was also amazing! Luckily I have enough of this tasty soup leftover to keep me warm for the rest of the week!
Creamy Cabbage and Double Smoked Bacon Soup
A hearty creamy soup with double smoked bacon, sausage and cabbage that is just packed with flavour.
ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 pound Italian sausage, casing removed
- 1/2 pound double smoked bacon, cut into 1 inch pieces
- 1 onion, diced
- 2 carrots, diced
- 2 stalks celery, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 (15 ounce) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
- 4 cups ham broth or chicken broth or chicken stock
- 1/2 small head cabbage, thinly sliced
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1 bay leaf
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 1 handful parsley, chopped
directions
- Heat the oil in a large sauce pan over medium-high heat add the sausage and cook until cooked, about 7-10 minutes, breaking it up as you go and set it aside.
- Add the bacon to the same pan and cook until the fat renders, about 7-10 minutes and set it aside reserving 1 tablespoon of grease in the pan.
- Add the onion, carrot and celery and saute until tender, about 10-15 minutes.
- Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, about a minute.
- Puree half of the beans in a food processor with some of the chicken stock.
- Add the chicken stock, sausage, bacon, beans, pureed beans, cabbage, oregano and bay leaf and bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until the cabbage is tender, about 10-15 minutes.
- Season with salt and pepper, mix in the cream and parsley and remove from heat.
- Serve garnished with grainy mustard.
Catherine says
February 16, 2011 at 12:21 amThis soup sounds hearty and satisfying. I love the addition of the grainy mustard. Blessings, Catherine
Amy @ What Jew Wanna Eat says
February 16, 2011 at 12:33 amBacon AND sausage? It is 75 now in Texas, but I may just have to make this soup anyways.
Danger Kitten says
February 16, 2011 at 12:46 amA tasty looking recipe made with cabbage! Thanks for posting this–I am always looking for cabbage recipes, but they don't often sound very good. This one sounds delicious. Also, thanks for your Thai lemon shrimp posting. I made it for my husband for Valentine's day and he loved it. Hope you don't mind, but I linked to your blog from mine. http://dangerkittenbakes.blogspot.com
PKSPZZ! says
February 16, 2011 at 12:53 amOh… its my first time in this blog…. wow! thanks 4 the recipes
Anonymous says
February 16, 2011 at 2:59 amThis soup is loaded with deliciousness! Love it all.
Prerna@IndianSimmer says
February 16, 2011 at 4:37 amIf u just take out the bacon then this soup is so similar to Indian vegetable soup with all those lovely ingredients! Lovely recipe!
peachkins says
February 16, 2011 at 5:54 amThis is the ultimate soup, kevin!
~ Lyndsay The Kitchen Witch says
February 16, 2011 at 6:20 amOh YUMM Kevin! This one really appeals to me. I love cabbage soup – childhood comfort food, and this version looks amazing. I have tried many of your recipes to great success and can't wait to make this one!
xo
Rosa's Yummy Yums says
February 16, 2011 at 6:42 amA fabulous soup! so tasty and comforting.
Cheers,
Rosa
Paula says
February 16, 2011 at 7:34 amwhat a delicious looking soup! yum!
Anonymous says
February 16, 2011 at 7:49 amWhat a fabulous soup idea – cabbage and bacon and sausage meat!
🙂 Mandy
Peabody says
February 16, 2011 at 9:02 amAlways looking for recipes with cabbage, I love it. And the fact that there is bacon makes it better.
Joanne says
February 16, 2011 at 11:23 amI have to admit, I was a little wary when I read the title of this…but then I realized it had white beans. And bacon. And the doubt lifted. Beautiful!
Lael Hazan says
February 16, 2011 at 11:54 amA hearty soup, perfect for the cold winter weather. Have you ever made your own sausage?
Distilled says
February 16, 2011 at 12:14 pmThis sounds lovely and I may have to make it tonight.
I used your guidance for my French Onion soup the other day – yum yum!
Ana Powell says
February 16, 2011 at 12:39 pmFabulous and well delicious.
For sure a great hit ♥
Chiara "Kika" Assi says
February 16, 2011 at 2:55 pmI'm sick as a dog today… your soup would make me feel a 100 times better…. wish I could reach into the screen and grab some.
daphne says
February 16, 2011 at 2:55 pmahh..it was 39C today in Perth but I can see myself having this in June later in the year…
Anonymous says
February 16, 2011 at 4:15 pmwow, Kevin, what a layering of flavors! Your photo looks as tempting as all the ingredients going into this soup! Great recipe as always!
Maria says
February 16, 2011 at 5:24 pmThat sounds fantastic! Looking forward to the cooler weather here in Sydney so I can try this 🙂
Antonia says
February 16, 2011 at 6:02 pmWhat an incredible-lookings soup this is. Just perfect for the cold weather we're having here in the UK this week. Those are some of my favourite flavours and garnishing with the grainy mustard is a really original idea. I love it!
Katia says
February 16, 2011 at 6:05 pmI just love winter and soup, especially one that is packed full of meat and vegetables. Yum!
Heather says
February 16, 2011 at 9:11 pmThis sounds sooooo good! I've been craving bacon, and I have some cabbage I need to use. The weather is nice and mild here in Alabama, but I like soup anytime. Now I just need the energy to go to the store and cook 🙂
Mónika says
February 16, 2011 at 9:47 pmThis looks very delicious! In Hungary we eat this kind of soup very often.
Congratulation to your blog, I saw lots of fantastic recipes.
Les rêves d'une boulangère (Brittany) says
February 17, 2011 at 5:22 amKevin – sorry I haven't visited in a while. All of your dishes look so fabulous and this one is no exception.
Kaneez Bano says
February 17, 2011 at 5:42 amgr8 blog 🙂
pastaitaliano.blogspot.com
Kevin says
February 17, 2011 at 11:51 amLael Hazan: I have not tried making my own sausages yet, though I was just thinking about it the other day. I am definitely going to have to look into it as it sounds like fun!
homegrown countrygirl says
February 17, 2011 at 12:06 pmKevin, this looks like some seriously good soup… thank you so much for sharing this recipe!!!
Stefania says
February 17, 2011 at 1:45 pmUna meravigliosa crema, ciao
fridays with coco says
February 17, 2011 at 1:54 pmYummm, you've got an amazing recipe list. Can't wait to make them. So hard to pick! Will post them on my blog too. Thanks for sharing 🙂
foodie and the chef says
February 17, 2011 at 2:09 pmThis is definitely a recipe for me to come back to as soon as winter kicks in here in Sydney. Looks absolutely delicious!
priest's wife says
February 17, 2011 at 11:00 pmthis looks so good- I'll have to give it a try- my husband loves cabbage
you might like this recipe I posted
http://remnantofremnant.blogspot.com/2011/02/garlic-je-taime.html
Kelly @ Evil Shenanigans says
February 17, 2011 at 11:20 pmDouble Smoked Bacon … let me just take that in. The soup sounds delightful! I know some of the best soups I have made have been inspired by flavors I had out. I love taking those flavors and making them my own!
Barbara says
February 18, 2011 at 9:17 pmI just had to write and let you know I tried this recipe today…well it was the inspiration for my soup. I used chorizo instead of italian sausage because that is what I had. Also, I added the rind from a parmigiano reggiano
This soup is excellent especially with the addition of the cream. This is a keeper.
VIAJANDO E PULANDO says
February 19, 2011 at 6:20 pmI loved your blog congratulations, I'm hungry and I loved seeing these foods
Anonymous says
February 24, 2011 at 5:18 pmAmazing! Easily in the top 5 easiest and best recipes. An instant staple for cold weather that will impress at dinner parties. Thanks for the post.
Jenn Sutherland says
February 28, 2011 at 1:48 amKevin – this soup looks AMAZING. I'm always down with any new way to use cabbage – it's my absolute favorite vegetable, and it really pairs with bacon so well. I'm definitely going to try this one!
Sonja says
March 1, 2011 at 3:54 amI ACTUALLY made this soup tonight (not just drooled over the picture), and it tastes just as good as it looks! My husband loves it! It was wonderful–loved the mustard! If you stir in the mustard, you get the taste with each bite, and the grains pop between your teeth…so good.
Donna says
March 11, 2011 at 5:06 pmIncredibly good soup. Dollop of spicy, grainy mustard was a stroke of genius.
Anonymous says
January 7, 2012 at 2:15 amI've been following your blog for a while now and tried many recipes. Every single recipe has turned out fantastically for a mediocre cook like me. Please keep posting because I absolutely love your ideas!
Anonymous says
October 9, 2012 at 10:11 pmMaking this right now!!! I'm so excited for this dish! My boyfriend is very excited as well, I had him at bacon 🙂 Made double batch btw, I just know I'll want leftovers 🙂
Anonymous says
November 5, 2012 at 2:54 amNot sure what double smoked bacon is. Grainy mustard? and the type of beans… The recipe sounds wonderful and I would like to make it.
Kevin says
November 7, 2012 at 11:15 amAnonymous: Double smoked bacon is a smoked bacon that went through the smoker two times. Any smoked bacon will work though. Grainy mustard is a mustard where all of the grains of mustard have not been ground into a paste. You should be able to find the grainy mustard in most grocery stores in with the other mustards. (I commonly use the Maille brand.) I use cannellini beans but any white bean such as Great Northern and Navy would also work.
Anonymous says
November 29, 2012 at 11:39 pmKevin, just made a chicken veg soup, cooking right now and just came across this recipe – this one I will have to make down the road-weather here in Alberta has been cold-minus 17 – soup weather, just have to make sure to pick up the sausage and other stuff for it, Question for you – have you ever tried "orzo" I just picked up a package and want to cook it in a tomato sauce base for a casserole with left over cooked chicken, but I keep coming across the way to cook it "follow the direction on the package to cook it" thanks and keep up the great blogging.
Germaine
Kevin says
November 30, 2012 at 12:10 pmGermaine: Orzo is a pasta and it is cooked like other pastas, about 7 minutes in boiling water and it should work well in a casserole! I hope that you do get the chance to try the soup!
Anonymous says
November 30, 2012 at 11:55 pmI'm going to try this soup for a potluck next week and have to triple the recipe. Any problem with that?
All your recipes sound so good. I'm sitting here Pinning away
Kevin says
December 8, 2012 at 4:37 pmAnonymous: If you have a pot large enough for it tripling it will be ok. Enjoy!
Manny Christjansen says
January 20, 2013 at 5:03 amOh wow….I've been meaning to make this for days and I finally got the chance this evening. What an incredible soup! Definitely making it again. A huge hit with the whole family 🙂 I didn't have celery but I subbed in Bok Choy (added the leafy parts later on so they wouldn't get super mushy) and it's delicious! Thanks!
Vijay says
January 21, 2013 at 9:19 pmKevin – this looks so good! I have a half head of cabbage that's looking for a home and I think this should be it!
Anonymous says
March 9, 2013 at 12:17 amHoly Smokes! I made this soup tonight for dinner and it was deeeelicious! Excellent combination of flavours. The seedy mustard was definitely a nice touch!
Alisha says
February 28, 2014 at 3:28 pmThis soup was even better than you made it look. I made it last night and we both loved it. It is, of course, even better today. The grainy mustard just made the soup! Only regret is not making a double batch… I'm thinking of making your "Hungarian Mushroom Soup" today…. and if I can find the last ingredients locally (gochugaru and mochi) I will be starting your Kimchi 2.0 recipe today!
Anonymous says
July 17, 2014 at 10:27 pmjust made this tonight. was fantastic. I had added some parmesan cheese just b/c it was sitting in the fridge and seemed like it would pair well, and it was fantastic.
I could see replacing the meats for strong smoky cheeses for a vegetarian version – maybe gouda and parmesan. also thinking cauliflower could be a good addition – especially for a vegetarian version as it would add some better texture.
also, you cut out some of the cream for extra beans, but people who are on a diabetes or ketogenic diet could go the other way – go halfsies on the beans (I used 1 can beans for a double recipe, and it was still wonderful) and add the cheese and cream for thickening.
Dana M. says
March 14, 2019 at 12:36 amThis was an absolutely delicious cabbage soup. It was so tasty and filling too! I followed the recipe exactly and my whole family just raved about it. The grainy mustard was the perfect final touch! I am so happy that this recipe made so much because that means leftovers 🙂
Joyce holmes says
March 21, 2019 at 5:34 pmI just made this soup using fresh sausage ,both ham and chicken broth. I added three sliced potatoes. It is absolutely delicious. A definite keeper. I had enough to freeze a couple quarts for future lazy days. Thanks for the great recipe!