Amazingly Flavorful Bean Soup, Low Calorie & Highly Satisfying Simmered with Parmesan Chunks

It had long been held to save the rinds from hard cheeses to flavor soup.

I am obviously in soup mode with a high degree of comfort food woven throughout!  The day is cold, clammy, and grey.  But my house smells unbelievable.  I came across a recipe on Food52 that inspired me and I have adapted it a bit to our likes.  The combination of navy beans and great northern beans yields a bean the semi dissolves and thickens and one that does not but holds together more, which my family likes. I have flavored this with a quart of my home canned tomatoes, a couple of rinds from Parmesan cheese I had saved to flavor soups with and aromatics. 

I had enough Parmesan rind for two nice chunks.

Ingredients for Amazing Bean Soup:

1 C. dry northern beans
1 C. dry navy beans
1 large onion diced
6 large cloves of garlic peeled and minced
1-2 stalks celery in bite size chunks
1-2 carrots diced in bite size chunks
1/4 t. dry thyme
1/4 t. crushed rosemary
2-3 T. olive oil
1 T. kosher salt
1/2 t. ground black pepper
1 t. sugar
1 quart home canned tomatoes or a 28 ounce can of whole tomatoes + 1/4 C. water
3 1/2 C. good chicken stock
1-2 chunks of Parmesan cheese rinds about 2" x 1" x 1/2"

Soup, beautiful soup!

Place the beans in a large heavy bottomed kettle and cover 1" with water.  Cover and bring to a boil.   Boil exactly 1 minute.  Turn off the heat and leave covered for 1 hour.  Drain the beans and return them to the kettle.  Add all of the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil.  Reduce to simmer and cook an hour.  Taste and correct the seasoning. Remove the cheese rinds and discard.  When the beans and vegetables reach the desired tenderness serve steaming with additional Parmesan cheese.