This easy, creamy fennel soup with white beans is velvety, comforting, and full of mellow, aromatic flavor. Sautéed fennel, onion, and garlic create a flavorful base, while cannellini beans add body and protein. Finished with a splash of cream and good olive oil, it's a nourishing soup that's perfect for cool spring days-with easy dairy-free and vegan options included. Serve it as a first course or a light meal and enjoy it's comforting goodness.
Inspired by French-style vegetable purées (and my garden with a lot of fennel), this fennel soup recipe is mild and creamy with a texture reminiscent of classic potato soup. It comes together in about 45 minutes. The simple, pale color is beautiful in its own way, but garnishes like olive oil, cracked pepper, herbs, or a few fennel fronds add eye appeal and a final pop of flavor.
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Why You'll Like This Recipe
- Creamy and comforting - White beans create a naturally smooth texture, like potato soup but with more protein.
- Simple and nourishing - Made with clean, everyday ingredients like fennel, onion, broth, and olive oil.
- Easy to customize - Finish with your favorite toppings for extra flavor and visual appeal.
Recipe Ingredients
- Fennel - With its mild, sweet anise flavor, fresh fennel bulb adds subtle depth and aromatic complexity to this creamy soup. Save the fennel fronds for garnish!
- Cannellini Beans - Canned white beans keep the recipe quick and easy, while adding body and protein.
- Oil - Use extra virgin olive oil or avocado oil.
- White Onion - Milder than yellow onion without overpowering the fennel.
- Garlic - Fresh cloves provide the best flavor.
- Herbs - Tarragon and/or thyme. Use fresh if you have it, but dried works just fine.
- Broth - Low-sodium chicken broth or for a vegetarian or vegan version, use vegetable broth.
- Cream - A splash of heavy cream makes the soup extra smooth and rich. For dairy-free, use full-fat canned coconut milk. For dairy-free use canned coconut milk.
Please see the recipe card for measurements, sea salt, and either black pepper or white pepper (white pepper disappears).
Substitutions and Variations
- Trade up the herbs for a French seasoning blend called Herbes de Provence.
- Great Northern, navy beans, or small white beans all work just as well in this soup.
Chef's tip on buying fennel: Fennel bulbs vary in size, and how many you need depends on how they're trimmed. Some come with the feathery green stalks still attached, while others are already cleaned up. For this recipe, you'll need about 1¼ pounds of fennel after trimming. That's typically 2-3 medium bulbs. Find it year round in the store and at it's best in fall to early spring.
How to Make Fennel Soup
- Chop fennel by hand or in the food processor.
- Chop onion and garlic by hand or in the food processor.
- Saute the fennel, onion, and garlic in oil, add the herbs and cook slowly until softened, 7-10 minutes.
- Add the beans and broth, bring to a simmer, turn down heat and cook 12-15 minutes.
When vegetables and beans are all soft and flavors blended, puree until smooth in a blender. Do it in two batches if needed. If too thick, add a little more broth to serve.
Serving Suggestions
Pair this creamy fennel soup with a crusty roll or garlic toast to soak up every spoonful. For a satisfying meal, add a simple green salad on the side. It also makes a great first course for a spring or fall dinner.
For garnishes, try a drizzle of good olive oil, a sprinkle of fresh chopped parsley or chives, a pinch of red pepper flakes, crispy crumbled bacon, or a little grated Parmesan. A spoonful of pesto adds great color and flavor.
Storing and Freezing
To store: Let the soup cool completely, then transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4-5 days. Reheat gently on the stovetop or in the microwave.
To freeze: This soup freezes beautifully. Store in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating. Stir well after reheating to restore the creamy texture. If it gets too thick add a little more broth or milk.
Recipe FAQs
Yes! This soup keeps well for several days and actually tastes better the next day as the flavors meld. Just store in an airtight container and reheat gently before serving.
Not for this recipe. Since the soup is puréed, the fennel core softens completely as it cooks and blends in smoothly.
Yes, but you'll need to soak and cook them first. You'll need about 1½ cups cooked beans to replace one 15-ounce can. Be sure they're fully tender before adding to the soup.
No. Fennel has a subtle anise flavor, but once it's sautéed and simmered, it mellows into something more sweet and savory-not overpowering at all. It's delicious.
More Creamy Soups
For more creamy soups, check out these super soup recipes.
Did You Make This Recipe?
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📖 Recipe
Fennel Soup
Equipment
- Dutch oven 5 ½ quarts
Ingredients
- 1 ½ tablespoon extra virgin olive oil or avocado oil
- 1 ¼ cups chopped white onion 1 small
- 3 large garlic cloves finely chopped
- 1 ¼ pounds fennel bulbs 2-3, bulb only, trimmed of tops
- 4 cups low sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth
- 1 ½ teaspoons dried tarragon dried thyme, or both.
- ½ cup heavy cream canned coconut milk for dairy-free
- 30 ounces canned cannellini beans drained and rinsed
- ¾ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon white pepper or black
Optional garnishes
- fennel fronds
- extra virgin olive oil
- fresh chopped chives or parsley
- finely grated parmesan cheese
- crisply cooked and crumbled bacon
Instructions
Vegetable prep
- Either use your food processor to chop the fennel and onion, or chop it by hand. As the soup is a puree, both work. Chop the garlic fine.Note - there is no need to cut the pyramid-shaped core from the fennel as it will be pureed.
- Rinse and drain the beans.
Saute the vegetables
- Add the olive oil to a medium pot (5 quarts) over medium low heat. Add the fennel and onion and cook until starting to soften, 7-10 minutes. Don't let it brown or gain any color. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute, then add the herbs and some of the salt. Place a lid on the pot and turn the heat down if needed, and cook the vegetables until very soft, 12-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add the beans and the broth and bring to a simmer, allow flavors to blend and heat soup to heat through. Puree the soup in a blend, in 2 batches if needed, adding the cream at the end. Taste and season with the rest of the salt and white pepper if desired. Serve with a drizzle of extra olive oil and any other garnishes you prefer.
Notes
Nutrition
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Marnee Sigler says
Amazing and delicious! A great soup that is light in texture and rich in flavor. I would have 5x’s a week.
Sally Cameron says
Appreciate your comment Marnee. Love to hear that!
Nora Szekely says
Smooth, velvety texture, super easy to make