Sunday Soup #83: Jalapeño Popper White Bean Soup

Helloooooooo, Souper Troopers! This past weekend, my wife and I were camping in one of the most beautiful natural settings in the U.S., the majestic California redwoods in the national/state parks near the CA/OR border... I wasn't sure I was going to make a soup, but I found something that looked simple, so I decided to give it a go, and I am SO glad I did!

Before I get to the recipe itself, let me share with you Ryan's Soup Triangle... There are three key characteristics that primarily affect my opinion of any soup, all of which can make a difference in whether or not I decide to make a particular recipe again: Taste, Ease of Prep, and Cost.

While Taste is the most important factor in how I score a soup (and whether I would make it again), if a soup takes too much trouble to prepare or costs more than I like to spend on a single meal, it can limit my enjoyment and make me question whether it should be considered a recipe to repeat in our house. But, when a soup nails it in all three of these categories (i.e., it tastes great, was easy to make, and uses inexpensive ingredients), I believe it needs special recognition (like previous Sunday Soup #66: https://soupersleuth.blogspot.com/2018/08/sunday-soup-66-slow-cooker-chicken-and.html).

Such was the case with the soup I made on Sunday... I normally save my opinion until the end of the post, but I'm just going to tell you upfront on this one: it tasted great, it was super easy to prep, and it called for only simple inexpensive ingredients! AND, the icing on the cake was that this soup is relatively healthy and nutrient-dense, coming as it did from a recipe collection that nutrition outfit Stronger U (https://strongeru.com/) makes available to its members!!

This recipe came from: The Stronger U Recipe Book (available to Stronger U members)

*Pic 1 - Picture from the Stronger U Recipe Book

My Version of the Recipe: (made about 22 servings of 1/2-cup each*)

32 oz chicken stock
14 slices smoked bacon
6 fresh jalapeño peppers
2 cans (15 oz each) white kidney beans
1 can (15 oz) red kidney beans
1 can whole kernel corn, drained
1 packet Hidden Valley Ranch dip mix
8 oz Philadelphia 1/3 Less Fat Cream Cheese

1. Dice the bacon. De-seed and dice the jalapeños. Take the cream cheese out of the fridge to soften (and slice into smaller cubes, if desired, to facilitate melting).

2. Cook the bacon in a large soup pot, THEN add the jalapeños to sauté. (*If using pre-cooked bacon, add the peppers and diced bacon to the pot simultaneously.

3. Sauté over medium-high heat until the peppers have softened (about 5 minutes).

4. Add remaining ingredients (except for the cream cheese) and bring to a boil, stirring often.

5. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and cook for about 10 more minutes.

6. Add the cream cheese and stir until fully melted or incorporated.

7. Remove pot from heat and serve immediately.

*Each 1/2-cup serving is 15g carbs, 7g protein, and 3g fat.

*Pics 2 & 3 - Pictures from when I made it

General Thoughts: So, not much mystery here, since I gave you the BLUF (i.e., "... it tasted great..."), but I'll expand just a little... There were not any exotic ingredients in this soup (unless you count the packet of ranch dip mix), just stuff you will find in literally every grocery store at reasonable prices. And, other than dicing the jalapeños and bacon (which you could probably both buy in pre-diced form, if you were feeling particularly "lazy"), there really is no prep time required for this soup. Yeah, you have to sauté the bacon/peppers and stir a bit while it is coming up to a boil, but it took very little attention, as I stirred with one hand and played cell phone games with the other. ;-)

One of my favorite things about this soup was how well-rounded it was. The taste was rich, salty, smokey, and hit the savory target perfectly. I personally would have liked a little more spice, but that is just a function of how spicy the jalapeños are from shopping trip to shopping trip. The texture was spot-on, giving me a nice creamy broth to go with the hearty beans and corn and the chewiness of the bacon; every spoonful was heaped with goodness! I am not usually a fan of corn in my soups, but I can't imagine this soup without it.

Potential Improvements? I am not sure I would change a thing, particularly since keeping it a little more mild has broader appeal, and I can always add hot sauce to my personal bowl in the future.

Polling the Fam: I loved this one (duh!), and I can't wait to make it again. Becky was the only other guest for this dish. She liked it but thought there was too much bacon (is there such a thing?!) and that it could have used even more beans and corn.

Verdict: Loved it! (5 stars)