Jo's Baked Garlic Soup

This soup skips the stovetop entirely. Everything goes into a buttered baking dish: fresh tomatoes, chickpeas with their liquid, sliced summer squash, onions, green pepper, garlic, basil, and bay leaves. Cover, bake for an hour, then stir in Monterey Jack, Romano cheese, and heavy cream for the last 15 minutes. The oven does all the work.

Baking the soup concentrates the flavors in a way that stovetop simmering doesn’t quite match. The vegetables roast slightly around the edges of the dish, and the chickpea liquid reduces into a thicker, more full-bodied broth. That concentrated base is what makes the cheese and cream addition at the end so rich.

The two-cheese combination is key. Monterey Jack melts into the broth and makes it creamy and cohesive, while Romano adds a sharp, salty punch that keeps the soup from tasting bland under all that cream. Lowering the temperature before adding the dairy prevents the cheese from separating and the cream from curdling.

Kitchen Tips

• Use undrained chickpeas. The starchy canning liquid adds body to the soup as it bakes.
• Butter the baking dish generously. The cheese tends to stick to the sides during that final bake.
• Don’t let the soup boil after adding the cheese and cream. Keep it at 325°F (160°C) as directed. Boiling breaks the cream and makes the cheese stringy.
• Remove the bay leaves before serving. After an hour of baking they’ve done their job.

Variations

• Spicy version: Add red pepper flakes or a diced jalapeno with the garlic for a soup with some heat.
• White bean swap: Use cannellini beans instead of chickpeas for a creamier, milder base.