Does anyone else suffer from “soup fatigue”? I’m talking about that feeling of losing interest after a few spoonfuls. I get bored by the flavour of every mouthful being exactly the same as the last. Not so with this soup. It’s got it all going on in terms of both flavour and texture.

I’ll warn you right now that this is not one of those soups you can throw together in 30 minutes. It calls for dried white kidney beans, so you will need to soak them for about 8 hours before proceeding with making the soup. Once the beans are soaked, they are cooked with onions, carrots and celery, which infuses the beans with great flavour. Plus, as a bonus, you use that flavourful bean cooking liquid in the soup. If you’re pressed for time, you could use canned beans, but you won’t get the same depth of flavour that cooking the beans yourself develops.

To add even more flavour to the soup I added a rind of parmesan cheese to the simmering pot. I keep the rinds in the freezer in a ziploc bag. They infuse the soup with a big boost of umami. Both regular and sweet potatoes are added along with a big handful of deep green kale.

While the soup is simmering, make a batch of coarse seasoned bread crumbs as a garnish. They add a welcome crunch to the creamy soup.