White Bean and Thyme Soup

Winter is one of my favorite food seasons.  With my heavy hand in the kitchen I feel like I have more space in the winter to use more fats and bolder flavors.  It is also a great time for hot soups.  Since I am still on a bean kick, I wanted to make a nice bean soup but wanted to it be a little different than what I have been making.  I came up with this delicate combination and shared it with my friends:

White Bean and Thyme Soup

5 cloves of garlic (chopped)
1/2 yellow onion (chopped)
4 cups of cooked white beans
3 cups of vegetable broth
3/4 cup of fresh thyme leaves
2 tablespoons of oil
1 tablespoon of salt
3/4 tablespoon of pepper
1/2 tablespoon of paprika

Heat 1 tablespoon of oil, the garlic, onion, and 1/2 of the thyme on low heat until the onion is soft.  Add 1 and 3/4 cups of the white beans and mix.  Allow to "fry" for about 5-8 minutes so the flavors can meld.  Add 1 cup of broth and mix again.

Add the mixture to a blender and puree until mostly smooth.  Add more broth if needed.

Return to the pot on a low heat adding the remaining white beans, remaining oil, remaining broth, paprika, pepper, salt (if your broth has a high amount of salt, cut back on the salt added), and all but 1 teaspoon of the thyme leaves.  Allow to cook for about 15 minutes stirring to avoid burning.  Do not let it simmer.  The longer the soup is allowed to cook the more together the soup will taste.

Serve hot and topped with the remaining thyme leaves for garnish.