Cool White Bean and Tomato Soup

White beans make a creamy base for soups, dips, and sauces, in addition to being quite companionable with the ripe tomatoes of summer. The combination of white beans and fresh tomatoes makes for a flavorful, nearly instant cold soup.

Serves: 6 to 8

Two 15- to 16-ounce cans cannelloni (large white beans), drained and rinsed
1 ½ to 2 pounds ripe, juicy tomatoes, coarsely chopped
2 scallions, green parts only, chopped
¼ cup fresh cilantro or parsley leaves (plus more for garnish)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
¼ cup green olives or sliced sun-dried (not oil-cured) tomatoes
1 teaspoon salt-free seasoning blend, or more, to taste
(such as Frontier or Mrs. Dash, or to taste)
Juice of ½ to 1 lemon, to taste
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Red and/or yellow cherry or grape tomatoes, quartered, optional

Reserve half of the beans and place the rest in a food processor along with the tomatoes, scallions, cilantro or parsley, dill, and olives. Pulse on and off until well blended, or, you can leave a bit of a chunky texture.

Transfer to a serving container. Stir in the reserved beans. Stir in seasoning blend and lemon juice to taste. Season with salt and pepper.

Serve at once at room temperature, or cover and refrigerate until chilled. Garnish each serving with quartered or halved cherry or grape tomatoes if desired, plus some extra parsley or cilantro.