White Bean And Celery Soup - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1/2 lb dried white beans
4 tbsp butter
1 None onion, peeled and finely chopped
1 head celery, 1/2 cup finely diced, the remainder coarsely diced
4 cups vegetable stock
3/4 cup heavy cream
4 sprigs fresh parsley, coarsely chopped
1 clove garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped
3 tbsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp cumin
1 pinch cayenne
5 tbsp olive oil
2 slices stale bread, finely diced

Preparation

Bring the beans and 4 cups water to a boil. Simmer for 1 hour and 45 mins. Remove from the heat and drain. Set aside.
For the soup, melt 2 tbsp butter in a saucepan, saute onions and coarsely diced celery for 2-3 mins. Season and add to the cooked beans. Deglaze the pan with stock and cream. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 15-20 mins. Mix with the cooked beans then puree with immersion blender. Season.
For the pesto, place the parsley, garlic, lemon juice, cumin, and cayenne powder in a food processor and pulse. Gradually add the olive oil, while pulsing, to create a pesto.
For the croutons, heat the remaining butter in a pan, add the finely diced celery and saute for 6-8 mins. Add diced bread and saute for 4-5 mins. Season then remove from pan.
Serve the soup in deep dishes. Sprinkle with the croutons and drizzle with the pesto.