WHITE BEAN SOUP

WHITE BEAN SOUP
2 tablespoons butter
2 stalks celery, diced
2 medium carrots, diced
1 small onion, chopped, 2 1/2 ounces
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon xanthan gum
15.5 ounce can Great Northern beans, undrained
4 cups chicken broth, homemade preferred
2 teaspoons chicken bouillon granules
Salt and pepper, to taste
16 ounces smoked sausage, cut into bite-sized pieces *
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

In a large pot, saut?the celery, carrot, onion and garlic in butter until very tender, covered, 15 minutes. Sprinkle the xanthan gum lightly over the surface of the vegetables; stir in well. Add all but the parsley. Bring to a boil; cover and simmer 30 minutes. Adjust the seasonings, if needed, and add the parsley.

Makes 6-8 servings
Can be frozen

* Most smoked sausage has sugar in it and about 1 carb per ounce. Boar's Head Kielbasa has no sugar or carbs.

Made with Hillshire Farm smoked sausage:
Per 1/6 Recipe: 396 Calories; 28g Fat; 17g Protein; 16g Carbohydrate; 4g Dietary Fiber; 12g Net Carbs
Per 1/8 Recipe: 297 Calories; 21g Fat; 13g Protein; 12g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 9g Net Carbs

Made with Boar's Head Kielbasa:
Per 1/6 Recipe: 302 Calories; 19g Fat; 20g Protein; 14g Carbohydrate; 4g Dietary Fiber; 10g Net Carbs
Per 1/8 Recipe: 227 Calories; 14g Fat; 15g Protein; 10g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 7g Net Carbs

I was making a pot of this soup for my husband and son who aren't low carbing. This is an old family favorite recipe and it occurred to me that it's really somewhat low carb and suitable for those who have added legumes to their diet. So, I decided that I might as well post the recipe on my site. This soup is very easy to make and tastes like it simmered all day, as Rachael Ray would say.

You could use ham instead of the sausage, but then use the higher carb count since ham has some carbs. I think that this might also be good without the beans and some other veggies added instead. Perhaps some green beans or zucchini or even shredded spinach or cabbage. I liked the sound of cabbage soup, so I checked to see what the carb count would be with a pound of cabbage in place of the beans. There would be about 6-8 net carbs per serving, depending on the sausage you use and based on getting 6 servings per batch.

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