Hearty Italian White Bean Soup with Coconut Milk in the Slow Cooker Recipe
This Hearty Italian White Bean Soup is a comforting and nourishing slow cooker recipe packed with creamy coconut milk, sun-dried tomatoes, white beans, and fresh spinach. Perfect for an easy weeknight meal, it blends rich Italian flavors with wholesome ingredients, featuring rotini pasta for added heartiness.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 2 hours
- Total Time: 2 hours 15 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
- Category: Soup
- Method: Slow Cooking
- Cuisine: Italian
- Diet: Gluten Free
Ingredients
Scale
Main Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 1 14oz can full-fat coconut milk
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes, drained of oil
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 28oz can diced tomatoes with Italian seasoning
- 2 (19oz) cans low sodium white beans, drained and rinsed
- 3 cups reduced sodium vegetable broth
- 2 cups chopped fresh spinach
- 1 cup whole grain or regular rotini pasta (gluten-free if needed)
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Optional: freshly grated parmesan cheese and fresh basil for garnish
Instructions
- Sauté the onion: Heat the olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add the diced onion and cook until softened and fragrant, about 3-4 minutes. Alternatively, if your slow cooker has a sauté function, you can perform this step directly in the slow cooker.
- Prepare the coconut milk mixture: In a blender, combine the full-fat coconut milk, minced garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, Italian seasoning, and salt. Blend on high speed until the mixture becomes smooth and creamy.
- Combine ingredients in slow cooker: Transfer the sautéed onions and the blended coconut milk mixture into the slow cooker. Add the canned diced tomatoes with Italian seasoning, drained white beans, and reduced sodium vegetable broth. Stir everything together to combine.
- Cook the soup: Set your slow cooker to low and cook for 4 to 6 hours, or on high for 2 to 3 hours, allowing flavors to meld and ingredients to soften.
- Add pasta and spinach: With about 30 minutes remaining on the cooking timer, increase the slow cooker heat to high if it isn’t already. Stir in the dry rotini pasta to the soup. Then, about 5 minutes before finishing, add the chopped fresh spinach and stir to combine.
- Season and serve: Taste the soup and season with additional salt and pepper as desired. Serve warm, garnished with freshly grated parmesan cheese and fresh basil leaves if you like.
Notes
- If your slow cooker doesn’t have a sauté function, use a stovetop pan to soften the onions before adding to the slow cooker.
- For a vegan version, omit the parmesan cheese garnish or use a vegan parmesan substitute.
- Gluten-free rotini pasta works perfectly if you need to keep the soup gluten-free.
- You can adjust cooking times depending on your slow cooker model; check pasta doneness when adding to avoid overcooking.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days; reheat gently on stovetop or microwave.
Keywords: Italian white bean soup, slow cooker soup, healthy soup, coconut milk soup, vegetarian soup, gluten-free soup