Thick and hearty Tomato Kale and White Bean Soup – simply seasoned with a kick of heat! Make this healthy, veggie packed soup easily in one pot – it will be ready before you know it! | Gluten Free + Vegan
I don’t know about you, but it’s been cold and grey here for days. Or has it been weeks?
If you too are in definite need of a spicy little pick me up then settle in with me here with a hearty bowl of this Tomatoey Kale & White Bean Soup.
How to Make this White Bean Soup
All in all, this soup is very easy to make. It can all be prepped in one or two pots with a little help from a blender.
Like most great soups, you start out by sautéing the onion along with some diced celery and carrots. Cook for about 5-7 minutes, giving the veggies time to soften and become more fragrant.
When the onion starts to turn translucent, it’s time to add the next layer of flavour: tomato paste, garlic and spices. Gently stir and cook the garlic and tomato paste. These don’t need long, just a minute or two will do. Both the tomato paste and the garlic will benefit and deepen in flavour if you give them time to cook.
From here, you’ll need to add the veggie stock, lemon juice or vinegar, bay leaf and beans. Give it all a good stir and then let the soup simmer for about 15 minutes.
Once the veggies have softened and the flavours have had a moment to come together, it’s time to blend. You can approach this stage in a few different ways.
- You can blend the soup up in the pot with an immersion blender. Just be careful not to over blend your soup. You still want there to be lots of texture from the beans and veggies floating around.
- You can remove about half of the soup and add it to a large, heat safe bowl. Once remove you can safely blend up that half of the soup and add it back to your big soup pot.
- If you don’t have an immersion blender, you can blend up the soup in batches using a blender or food processor. Just make sure to be careful when removing the blender lid and open away from your face and body. The soup will be hot and steamy and I can speak from experience when I say that you don’t want that coming at you full force.
What kind of white beans should I use?
There are four main types of white beans that you can use here. I used a combination of cannellini and butter beans because that’s what I usually keep in, but any of the following will work well here.
- Cannellini – large & kidney shaped with a naturally earthy flavour. They maintain their shape well in soups
- Baby (Lima) Beans AKA Butterbeans – small, smooth and creamy. They’re also fairly starchy making them great in soups
- Great Northern Beans – mildy nutty, firm flesh and holds shape well in soup
- Navy (Pea) Beans – small and very creamy making them a great option for pureeing in soups
How can I adjust the spice level?
There are a couple of ways you can lower the spice to suit your preference:
- Use regular or smoked paprika in place of the hot paprika.
- Omit the chili powder
- Reduce the chili flakes from 1 tsp to 1/2 tsp
That being said, I don’t personally find this soup to be exceptionally spicy. It’s got a gentle kick, but it’s not overwhelming so don’t shy away from the heat too much.
If you would like it to be a little more punchy then you can always play around with the spices here adding a little more here and there at the very end. Just be careful when increasing the spices. Only add a little bit at a time (1/2 – 1 tsp increase) and make sure to taste in between each addition so that you don’t accidentally overdo it.
Serving Ideas
You can serve this soup with a side of crackers. They’re great for dipping and crumbling over the top. These plain gluten free crackers would make a great side and can easily be made vegan with the use of dairy free/vegan butter. I also really enjoy these Sweet Potato Crackers – they’re super easy to make, paleo friendly and are surprisingly delicious!
You also can never go wrong with soup and a side of bread. This GF + Vegan French Bread seems like an obvious choice, but a good naan/flat bread or focaccia would be great as well.
Enjoy!
Let me know if you try this Tomato Kale & White Bean Soup! I’d love to hear what you made with it and how it turned out! Please leave a comment and review with your thoughts and suggestions for me and future readers.
Tomato-y Kale & White Bean Soup
Thick and hearty Tomato-y Kale and White Bean Soup - simply seasoned with a kick of heat! Make this healthy, veggie packed soup easily in one pot - it will be ready before you know it! | Gluten Free + Vegan
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp | 15 ml olive oil
- 1 medium | about 1 cup white onion, diced
- 2 medium carrots, peeled and diced
- 2 large celery stalks, diced
- 2 tablespoons | 33 g tomato paste
- 3 large garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tsp red chili flakes
- 1 tsp hot paprika (or regular paprika if you don't have hot paprika in stock)
- 1/2 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 4 1/2 cups | 1.08L vegetable stock
- 1 tablespoon |15 ml lemon juice or white wine vinegar
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 cans | 15 oz each white beans, drained and rinsed (cannelini and/or butter beans)
- 2 cups kale, chopped into bite sized pieces
- Fresh herbs like basil, parsley or thyme for topping, optional
- Vegan or non vegan parm for topping, optional
Instructions
- In a large cooking pot warm the olive oil on a medium heat. Once warm, add the onion, celery and carrots and sauté for 5-7 minutes, stirring often until the onions are translucent.
- Stir in the tomato paste, garlic, chili flakes, paprika, chili powder and thyme. Cook another 1-2 minutes, stirring often.
- Add the stock, lemon juice or vinegar, bay leaf and beans. Bring the soup to a boil and then reduce the heat down low to maintain a gentle simmer. Let simmer for 15 minutes.
- Remove the pot from the heat. Use an immersion blender to blend up about half of the soup. You want some of the vegetables and soup blended up to create a thicker consistency, but make sure not to blend up everything. The idea is to have a thick soup with bits of beans and vegetables still intact. Tip: You can also scoop out a couple of cups of the soup and blend it up in a traditional blender if needed. Just make sure to open the lid of the blender carefully and away from your face as it will likely be steamy.
- After blending, add the kale to the pot, stir and let it wilt in the hot soup for 2-3 minutes.
- Taste and season with salt - depending on how salty your stock is you may need a little more or less than what's listed. Sprinkle over a little bit of fresh basil or parsley if using enjoy!
Notes
Types of White Beans You Can Use
- Cannellini - large & kidney shaped with a naturally earthy flavour. They maintain their shape well in soups
- Baby (Lima) Beans AKA Butterbeans - small, smooth and creamy. They're also fairly starchy making them great in soups
- Great Northern Beans - mildy nutty, firm flesh and holds shape well in soup
- Navy (Pea) Beans - small and very creamy making them a great option for pureeing in soups
How long does it keep?
About 5 days
Can you freeze it?
- Yes! Since there is no dairy in this recipe you won't need to worry about it curdling/separating when reheated.
- Let the soup come to room temperature and store it in 2 gallon, freezer safe zip lock bag.
- Keeps well in the freezer for 6 months.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6Serving Size:
about 1 cupAmount Per Serving: Calories: 156Total Fat: 4gSaturated Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCarbohydrates: 21gFiber: 9gSugar: 5gProtein: 8g
Leave a Review!