Itsy, Bitsy, Teenie, Weenie

In a few weeks, I'll be going here..........

Ahhhh....beautiful, Little Dix Bay (my husband is not thrilled with going to a place called "Little Dix" for his birthday....doesn't appreciate the irony)

Where I'll be sitting in one of these for most of the week......

Which means I'll have to put on one of these......

Minus the huge, softball sized fake boobages and the washboard abs.  But I still have to put one on.

I've never been one of those women who obsesses about their weight.  Mine has gone up and down for most of my life.....and, yes, there have been times it's been more "up" than it should be, but over the last several years, it's been under control for the most part.  But, like everyone else, I over-indulged over the holidays, so because I have to put one of those on, I've been watching my P's (pies) and Q's (quadruple glasses of wine) the last couple of weeks!  I've also been trying to log a couple extra miles on the treadmill.  And while we're on the subject of losing weight, can I just say that I hate men.  Mr. B went for his annual check-up last week and his Doc said he needed to drop a few LB's.  Which is just freaking hilarious.  The dude is 6'7" and basically perfect, but because of the "cholesterol gene" he's supposed to watch it.  So, Mr. B agreed and by the time he got home from his appointment, that extra 10 pounds was gone.  Ass hole.  I'm just sayin....he thinks about losing weight and ten minutes later, shit is gone.  Whatev.

I digress.

So, like I was saying....been trying to cook a little healthier than that shizzle I was cooking over the holidays.

Today I made one of my favorite Ina soups....Rosemary White Bean Soup.  Love. It.

I've made this several times before, but I usually start by browning some applewood smoked bacon, removing it, and using it as a garnish later.  But I was a good girl today and made the recipe as written.

Other than the olive oil (and I reduced it a tad) this is basically a fat-free recipe.

And REALLY delicious!  I like mine with some texture, so I only puree about 3/4 of it and leave the rest chunky.

Here's the recipe:

Rosemary White Bean Soup

from The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook

This soup is a simple and satisfying as any soup we do and always reminds me of Tuscany.  Fresh rosemary is truly essential.

1 pound dried white cannellini beans

4 cups sliced yellow onions (3 onions)

1/4 cup good olive oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 large branch fresh rosemary (6 to 7 inches)

2 quarts chicken stock

1 bay leaf

2 teaspoons kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

In a medium bowl, cover the beans with water by at least 1 inch and leave them in the refrigerator for 6 hours or overnight.  Drain.

In a large stockpot over low to medium heat, saute the onions with the olive oil until the onions are translucent, 10 to 15 minutes.  Add the garlic and cook over low heat for 3 more minutes.  Add the drained white beans, rosemary, chicken stock, and bay leaf  Cover, bring to a boil, and simmer for 30 to 40 minutes, until the beans are very soft.  Remove the rosemary branch and the bay leaf.  Pass the soup through the coarsest blade of a food mill, or place in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade and pulse until coarsely pureed. (I use my food processor, but puree this in batches as hot liquid tends to expand.)   Return the soup to the pot to reheat and add salt and pepper to taste.  Serve hot.