I don’t know why, but I am alway reluctant to make soups. Actually, reluctant may not be the right word. It is more correct to say that soups are just something I often think about making. Ethan is more of the soup maker, but I have a few I like to make. Anytime I am not feeling well, Ethan makes me a batch of his No-Chicken soup, the recipe for which is in our upcoming book, NYC Vegan. We’ve been having some really cold and rainy weather lately and on one such day Ethan wasn’t feeling great, so I thought I would make him some vegetable soup.
This Easy Vegetable Soup recipe was inspired by our good friend Nick who is a great cook. He once served us a simple vegetable soup and I decided to make my own version of it. This Easy Vegetable Soup is one of the quickest and easiest recipes I have ever made. Thanks to Better Than Bouillon vegetable soup base, this recipe comes together in minutes. Of course like all soups, the longer it sits, the better it gets. If you want to add in more vegetables, go ahead. This is a great basic soup that you can adjust to your own tastes.
Ingredients
1 15 ounce can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 large carrots, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
1 large onion, diced
Ground black pepper
12 cups water
3 tablespoons Better Than Bouillon vegetable soup base
4 leaves Lacinato (Dinosaur) kale, stems removed, chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
Directions
1. Add the beans, 1/4 teaspoon of salt, and garlic powder to a small bowl. Gently mix to evenly coat the beans in the salt and garlic powder. Set aside.
2. Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium-high heat. Add the onions, carrots, and celery and mix well. Sprinkle with the remaining salt and pepper to taste. Cook for 8 minutes, stirring frequently, or until the vegetables are soft. Add the beans and mix well.
3. Add the water and soup base to the pot and stir well to dissolve the soup base. Bring to a boil, cover the pot and reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 15 minutes. Add the kale and stir well. Allow the kale to cook for a few minutes to get soft.
4. You can serve it right away or let it sit covered on the stove until you are ready to serve. Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Serves 6 – 8
