Curried Zucchini Soup

By the Gracious Vegan

Zucchini and curry play well together. This easy soup is thickened with beans and rice. No oil and whole-food ingredients mean this soup is super-healthy and low-calorie, though it doesn’t taste like it. 

Makes: 6 servings

In a Dutch oven or other large pan, cook the following ingredients in water (start with 1/4 cup and keep adding as needed), until onion is soft and transparent and zucchini cubes are soft, 5-10 minutes. 

• 1 large onion, diced
• 12 ounces zucchini, cubed (about 3/4”)

Add the following ingredients, bring the soup to a boil, then turn down, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes. 

• 5 cups vegetable stock
• 1.5 - 2 cups cooked white beans (any kind) or black-eyed peas (if using a can of beans, drain and rinse them)
• 1/4 cup uncooked white rice (or 1 cup cooked brown rice)*
• 1 Tablespoon curry powder
• 1 teaspoon salt (or to taste)

Once the soup is cooked, use a hand (immersion) blender to puree soup in pan.

* Pre-cooked brown rice is available in the frozen section of some stores, like Trader Joe’s.

Timing: Hands-on time: 15 minutes; total time: 40 minutes

Nutritional information per serving: 152 calories, 1g fat, 0g sat. fat, 25g carbs, 820mg sodium, 4mg fiber, 11g protein 

Golden Green Split Pea Soup

By the Gracious Vegan

This is one of those comforting soups that helps you relax. It's not trying to impress -- it just taste good and wholesome, and that's enough. The combination of green and yellow split peas gives it a golden-green glow, and the vegetables provide welcome chunkiness and variety.

Makes 9 cups (6 servings)

In a large Dutch oven or soup pot, water-sauté the following ingredients until the onion is soft and transparent, 5-8 minutes. (Start with ¼ cup water and add more if you need it.)

• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 medium carrot, chopped
• 1 celery rib, chopped

Add the following ingredients to the pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the peas are very soft, about 1 hour.

• 1 medium potato, peeled and diced (1/2”)
• 1 cup dried green split peas
• 1 cup dried yellow split peas
• 7 cups vegetable broth
• 1 bay leaf
• ½ Tablespoon salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

The soup will thicken as it sits after cooking. Stir in additional water as needed. 

Timing: 20 minutes hands-on time; 80 minutes total

Nutrition: 100% whole-food, unprocessed

Gluten-free

Creamy Mushroom Soup

By the Gracious Vegan

If you don’t have porcini mushroom powder, use ½ ounce dried porcinis (soak them in boiling water, then chop them and add to the soup, along with the soaking liquid). With several different mushroom varieties used here, the flavor is beguiling, while the cashews take care of the creamy texture.

Makes 6 servings

Soak cashews in cold water at least 2 hours, or pour boiling water over them, cover, and let them soak 20 minutes. (You can skip this step if you have a high-speed blender.) 

• 1 ¼ cups raw cashews 

Water-sauté the following in a soup pot or Dutch oven until the onion and celery are soft, 5 minutes or more.

• ½ medium-large onion, chopped
• 1 celery stalk, chopped
• ¼ cup (packed) flat-leaf parsley, chopped

Add the following to the pot. Bring the soup to a boil, reduce the heat, and let it simmer 15-20 minutes, until the mushrooms are cooked through and tender.

• ½ pound cremini or white button mushrooms, sliced 
• 1 pound assorted mushrooms such as shiitakes, Portobellos, oysters, maitakes, chanterelles, or morels, and sliced
• 1.5 – 2 Tablespoons porcini mushroom powder
• 2.5 cups water
• ½ Tablespoon salt, plus more to taste
• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste

Use an immersion blender to puree the mushrooms to your desired level of chunkiness or smoothness. 

Separately, drain the water from the cashews (if you soaked them) and blend them in a blender with 1 ½ cups fresh water until absolutely smooth. 

Add the cashew cream to the soup, and stir it in. Blend the soup more, if desired. Season to taste with additional salt and vinegar or Braggs, starting with 1 teaspoon and tasting to see if you want more.

• 1-2 teaspoons golden balsamic or sherry vinegar (or Bragg’s Liquid Aminos)

Garnish with additional minced parsley if desired.

Timing: Hands-on time 30 minutes, total time 45 minutes

Nutrition: Whole-food unprocessed

Nutritional information per serving:             

175 calories, 11g fat, 2g sat. fat, 16g carbs, 18mg sodium, 9g fiber, 6gprotein

Gluten-free

Puree of Asparagus Soup

By the Gracious Vegan

A little rice goes a long way… It’s the secret to why this soup is so creamy. The texture is silky smooth, making the soup perfect for an elegant dinner party, or for whenever you want to feel elegant.

Makes: 6 cups

Wash the asparagus. No need to snap off the hard ends.

• 2 pounds asparagus

Garnishes. Cut the tops off 12 of the stalks to use as garnishes at the end. Either microwave these tops for 2-3 minutes with a little water, then cool quickly with cold water, or cook in water on the stove for about 3 minutes, then cool quickly with cold water. 

Broth. Cut the bottom third from each stalk and combine them with leek tops, broth, and bay leaf in a soup pot or Dutch oven. Simmer for 15 minutes. Strain, discard the solids, and save the broth.

• The bottom third of each asparagus stalk
• The green tops (no need to chop or slice them) of 2 large leeks, which have been sliced lengthwise and rinsed
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 1 bay leaf

The soup. Return empty pot to the stove. Water-sauté with ¼ cup water the white parts of the leeks until they are transparent, about 5 minutes.

• White parts of the 2 leeks, thinly sliced

Add the next ingredients, bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Simmer, covered, for 10 minutes.

• 1 cup of the broth
• 3 tablespoons uncooked white rice
• 3/4 teaspoon salt, more as needed

Add next ingredients and simmer, covered, over low heat, until asparagus is completely tender, 7 to 10 minutes.

• The remaining broth
• The remaining asparagus, cut into 1-2” pieces

Purée the soup with an immersion blender to desired texture. Season with these.

• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice, more as desired

Serve with the asparagus tops as garnish.

Timing: Hands-on time 30 minutes, Total time 55 minutes

Nutrition: All whole-food unprocessed except the white rice

Nutritional information per serving (based on 4 servings):         

104 calories, 0g fat, 0g sat. fat, 22g carbs, 14mg sodium, 6g fiber, 6g protein

Gluten-free

Curried Butternut Squash Soup

I recommend a serrated peeler for getting the tough skin off the butternut squash. Or buy pre-peeled and cubed squash at the store! The alluring taste of this soup will make your guests think you worked all day on it.

Makes 8 cups

Water-sauté the aromatics in ¼ cup water until the onion is transparent, about 5 minutes. (Add more water if you need to.)

• 1½ cups diced yellow onion
• 1 Tablespoon chopped fresh ginger

Add the next ingredients, increase the heat to high and bring to a boil.

• 1½ pounds butternut squash, cut into 1-inch cubes (about 5 cups)
• 4 cups broth
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 2 teaspoons turmeric
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin

Decrease the heat to low and stir in the coconut milk. Cover and simmer until the squash is tender, about 20 minutes.

• 1 (13.5-ounce) can coconut milk (regular makes the soup creamier, but light works well, too)

Remove the cinnamon stick. Stir these in. Remove from heat.

• 2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lime juice
• 1 teaspoon maple syrup or agave nectar
• 1 teaspoon salt

Use an immersion blender to create a very smooth soup, adding additional broth or water for a thinner consistency if you like. Or you can use a regular blender after the soup has cooled a bit. Cook over low heat just until heated through. 

Ideas for garnishes

• Fresh chopped parsley, finely chopped red pepper, toasted bread slices or cubes, toasted sunflower or pumpkin seeds, additional full-fat coconut milk for drizzle

Timing: Hands-on time 30 minutes, total time 45 minutes

Nutritional information per serving (based on 5 servings, using full-fat coconut milk):     

194 calories, 11g fat, 10g sat. fat, 21g carbs, 31mg sodium, 3g fiber, 3g protein

Gluten-free

Creamy Broccoli Soup

The Gracious Vegan

Broccoli cheese soup is popular in restaurants for at least two reasons. Number one, it’s tasty. But it also lets you feel virtuous about eating your vegetables. This plant-based version uses nutritional yeast to get that cheesy flavor. Filling, delicious, and healthy, this soup hits the bulls-eye.

Quick-soak cashews. Pour boiling water over them, cover, and let them soak while you make the rest of the soup. They should soak for about 20 minutes.

• ¾ cup raw cashews, pieces or halves

Water-sauté the onion and garlic in a soup pot or Dutch oven until the onion is transparent, around 5 minutes.

• 1 small onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced

Add the next ingredients. Cover and bring to a boil. Once boiling, lower heat to a simmer. Cook about 10 minutes until the carrots are tender.

• 4 cups chopped broccoli – stems and florets
• 3 cups vegetable broth
• 1 large carrot, peeled and chopped (about ½ cup)
• ½ teaspoon ground turmeric
• ½ teaspoon salt

Now, make the cashew cream by draining the cashews and placing them in a blender with these ingredients.

• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 3 Tablespoons yellow or white miso
• 2 Tablespoons nutritional yeast flakes

Blend on high for 30 seconds to 5 minutes until very smooth, so smooth that you can no longer detect any bits of cashews—they’ve dissolved.

If your blender is large enough, add the vegetables and broth into the blender with the cashew mixture and puree the soup until only small chunks of broccoli and carrots are visible. Cook the soup on low heat, partially covered, for about 5 minutes, until thickened, stirring occasionally so that it doesn’t burn on the bottom.

Timing: About 35 minutes

Nutrition: whole-food unprocessed

Gluten-free

Easy Creamy Tomato Soup

By the Gracious Vegan

Goodbye, Campbell’s! This recipe is no copycat. It soars beyond the canned brands. The cashews give it creaminess without overwhelming the tomatoes. Once you’ve made this, you’ll never want to go back.

Quick-soak the cashews. Pour boiling water over them, cover, and let them soak while you make the rest of the soup.

• ½ cup raw cashews (whole or pieces)

Separately, water-sauté these ingredients (start with 1/4 cup water) in a Dutch oven until soft, 5 minutes or more.

• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• ½ onion, chopped
• 1.5 teaspoon dried basil, oregano or Italian seasoning
• 3/4 teaspoon salt and large pinch of pepper

Add the next ingredients to the pot, cover, and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and boil gently, covered, for 10 minutes or until tomatoes are very soft. Remove from heat.

• 1 can (28 oz.) crushed or whole tomatoes
• 2 ounces (1/4 cup) tomato paste
• 1 cup vegetable broth
• 1 teaspoon agave nectar or sugar (optional)

Now drain the cashews and rinse under cold water. Place them in a blender with water.

• 2 cups cold water

Blend on high for 30 seconds to 5 minutes until very smooth, so smooth that you can no longer detect any bits of cashews—they’ve dissolved.

If your blender is big enough for you to add the tomato mixture into the cashew mixture, do that and blend on low-medium until you achieve your desired smoothness. If your blender isn’t big enough, use an immersion blender to smooth out the tomato mixture, then stir in the blended cashews.

Check seasoning and serve.

Timing: Total time around 25 minutes (about 20 minutes hands-on time)

Nutrition: Whole-food unprocessed

Gluten-free

Fast and Easy Tomato and Roasted Red Pepper Soup

Someone told me recently about how good the Trader Joe's Organic Tomato and Roasted Red Pepper Soup was. This person was a vegan, so I bought the soup without reading the ingredients. After trying it and liking it, I read the carton and saw there was milk in it.  :(  But I got out my blender and my cashews and experimented a few times. This result is super easy and tastes amazing! You can also add things to it -- cooked kale or other vegetables, also grated tempeh or other protein. It's a wonderful base for a creative lunch. 

Makes about 5 cups

Soak cashews in cold water at least 2 hours, or pour boiling water over them, cover, and let them soak 20 minutes. Drain the cashews and rinse under cold water.

• ½ cup raw cashews (whole or pieces)

Place them in a blender with water. Blend for 30 second to 5 minutes, depending on your blender, until the cashews are completely dissolved.

• 2 cups cold water

Put the remaining ingredients in the blender and blend until smooth

• 6 ounces tomato paste
• 1 cup vegetable broth
• 1 cup roasted red peppers (from a jar, rinsed)
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 2 teaspoons onion powder
• ½ teaspoon oregano
• ¼ teaspoon garlic powder

Put soup in a Dutch oven, bring to a boil, lower and simmer for about 5 minutes until thickened.

Timing: 25 minutes total (10 minutes active)

Nutrition: Whole-food unprocessed

Gluten-free

Vegetable Mulligatawny Soup

By Madhur Jaffrey on the Food Network site

Link to Vegetable Mulligatawny Soup recipe.

GV comments: I discovered this recipe many years ago when I borrowed one of Madhur Jaffrey's cookbooks from a friend. I have loved this soup ever since. It takes a bit of vegetable peeling and prepping, but the results are worth it. (Here is an easy version of mulligatawny by Jaffrey, but it's based mostly on legumes, while this one is almost all vegetables.)

Photo by GeoTrinity on Wikimedia Commons

I don't use a teaspoon of black peppercorns: way too spicy for me. I use a scant 1/2 teaspoon. Just beware... 

The preface to the recipe says that a quarter-cup of red lentils can be added to the recipe--sounds good.

The recipe says to blend the soup and then put it through a coarse sieve if desired. I just use an immersion blender right in the soup pot; I don't put it through a sieve.  

Doubling this and having it all week is a good way to make it worth the time and effort.

Timing: Around an hour and a half, including 50 minutes of cooking

Nutrition: Except for the coconut milk, it's entirely whole-food unprocessed.

Gluten-free 

Creamy White Bean Soup

By Kim Campbell from the PlantPure Kitchen

Link to Creamy White Bean Soup recipe. 

GV comments: When I first saw this recipe, I thought only that it looked healthy. But then I made it. The spicing, especially the smoked paprika, creates a flavor with a difference. I admit that my first thought was, "Hey, this tastes like Campbell's Bean with Bacon soup from when I was a kid!" (We called it "Bean'acon soup.") But this is way better. It's all whole-food, unprocessed ingredients and it can be frozen. A real keeper. 

Timing: About an hour

Nutrition: Whole-food unprocessed

Gluten-free

Gracious Vegan Sopa de Fideo

By the Gracious Vegan

Photo by Dale Cruse on flickr

This soup is based on a non-vegan recipe found by my friend Teresa, found on Hispanic Kitchen's site. The soup is basically a comforting noodle soup, but the chile, cumin, and smoked paprika make this stand out against blander versions of noodle soup. I haven't had a cold since I went vegan, but if I ever do again, I'm going to make this soup. My hard-to-please husband also liked this soup a lot. 

Take your peas and carrots out of the freezer and let them defrost slightly while you prep your ingredients.

• 3/4 cup frozen peas and carrots

In a Dutch oven or other large soup pan, heat olive oil to medium hot. Add the fideo and cook until the pasta starts to toast in some spots. Turn as needed.

• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 3 ounces fideo pasta

After a few minutes, add the onions, garlic and serrano, stir well and cook for 2 minutes.

• 1/2 cup onion white or red, diced
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 1 serrano or jalapeno chile

Add the remaining ingredients. Only add 2½ cups of broth to start, and reserve the other ½ cup.

• 8 ounces tomato sauce
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 2 teaspoons vegan bouillon powder (or two cubes)
• ½ teaspoon salt
• Ground pepper
• 3 cups water 

Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and cook until most of the broth is reduced.

If you need to, you can add the remaining ½ cup of broth at this time. Add the peas and carrots, cover, and continue cooking for another 3 to 5 minutes. Serve. If you want this more like a risotto, remove from heat and let stand for 10 to 15 minutes; the broth will be absorbed as the pasta sits. 

Timing: About 30 minutes

Nutrition: The two processed ingredients are the 2 teaspoons oil and the fideo. 

Very Green Lentil Soup

By Anna Thomas on Eating Well.

Link to Very Green Lentil Soup recipe. 

GV comments: This is an intense soup, and people who like regular lentil soup may not appreciate the green transformation here. In my case, I love the combination of many greens and the lentils. I actually blend this soup with an immersion blender, which admittedly creates kind of a sludge look, but I don't mind. The taste is divine. Like Thomas' Basic Green Soup, the onions are caramelized before adding to the soup -- this lends a depth to the flavor that is hard to achieve otherwise. I decrease the amount of oil used with the onions to 1 Tablespoon. And, natch, I leave off the cheese garnish. 

Timing: about an hour and 10-15 minutes

Nutrition: Mostly whole-food

Gluten-free

Basic Green Soup

By Anna Thomas on The Splendid Table

Link to Basic Green Soup recipe. 

GV comments: This is a fabulous soup. It's flavorings are subtle and intriguing. The bright green color makes you want to try it -- it has to be healthy (and it is) -- and the tastes delivers on that promise. One source of the deep flavor is caramelized onions. After making it several times with the called-for amount of oil, I decreased to only one tablespoon and it worked perfectly. Low calories, evocative flavor? I'm in. 

Timing: almost an hour

Nutrition: Mostly whole-food

Gluten-free

Gracious Vegan Corn Chowder

By the Gracious Vegan 

This soup gets rave reviews by everyone who's tasted it. Based on a recipe by the great Tal Ronnen, this adaptation leaves out the chipotle chiles, bumps up the role of potatoes, and uses a quick-soak method for cashew cream. The result is divine. Nothing is lost to a heavy-cream version. This will be your new go-to creamy soup. 

Makes 12 cups

Soak cashews in cold water at least 2 hours, or pour boiling water over them, cover, and let them soak 20 minutes.

• 1 + 1/3 cups raw cashews (whole or pieces)

Water-sauté the vegetables in a large soup pot or Dutch oven with about 3 Tablespoons water until the onions are translucent. (Add more water if you need to.)

• 1 large onion, diced
• 2 large carrots, peeled and cut into ¼-inch dice
• 1 celery stalk, cut into ¼-inch dice
• 1 red bell pepper, de-ribbed and cut into ¼-inch dice

Add next ingredients to the vegetables in the soup pot, bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer, covered, until the potatoes are tender, 15 to 20 minutes.

• 5 cups vegetable broth
• 4 medium Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut into ¼-inch dice (about 4 cups of dice)
• 2 fresh thyme sprigs (or 1 teaspoon dried thyme)

While the soup is cooking, complete the cashew cream by draining the cashews and rinsing them under cold water. Then place them in a blender with enough fresh cold water to barely cover them. Blend on high for several minutes until very smooth, so smooth that you can no longer detect any bits of cashews—they’ve dissolved.

After the potatoes are soft, mash some of the potatoes in the soup pot with a potato masher and stir to thicken the soup. Add the final ingredients and simmer for 4-5 minutes, stirring often, because it tends to burn on the bottom of the pot.

• Kernels from 5 ears of corn (or 4 cups frozen corn)
• Cashew cream from 1 + 1/3 cup cashews
• 1 ½ teaspoons salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 Tablespoon Braggs Liquid Aminos, if you have it; otherwise use 2 teaspoons soy sauce

Remove the thyme twigs. Garnish each bowl, if desired, with chives and diced tomato.

• 2 tablespoons minced chives (optional)
• ½ cup diced tomato (optional)

Timing: Hands-on time 40 minutes; Total time 50 minutes

Nutrition: Whole-food unprocessed

Nutritional information per serving (based on 8 servings): 262 calories, 11g fat, 2g sat. fat, 39g carbs, 128mg sodium, 6mg fiber, 7g protein

Gluten-free

Sweet Potato Lentil Curry Soup

By Sarah Kieffer on Food52

Link to Sweet Potato Lentil Curry Soup recipe.

GV comments: I love this soup. It one of those "best all around" types of soups: healthy, delicious, and pretty to look at. The lentils give it protein, fiber, and substance. The sweet potatoes are the stand-out ingredient. The spicing (coconut milk, cilantro, lime, ginger, curry powder, red pepper flakes) is mildly Thai and soothing. This is a perfect cold-weather soup but it works year-round. 

Timing: It takes about an hour and a half from start to finish.

Nutrition: Mostly whole-food. If you leave out the oil and either water-saute the starter-vegetables or microwave them in a little water (which I do), it's all whole-food, unprocessed (if you count canned coconut milk as unprocessed).

Gluten-free

Vegetarian Thai Peanut Soup

By Soup Addict

Link to Vegetarian Thai Peanut Soup.

GV comments:  This is a super-delicious soup--it was a surprise to me how good it was when I first tried it. The flavors truly blend into an entirely unique, fantastic taste. If you like Thai food, I think you will love this soup, and the noodles make it filling. The recipe calls for three packets of ramen noodles. I used just two my first time, and I now use only one, partly because there are only two of us, so there are always leftovers. If you don't serve the soup immediately, the noodles keep expanding--not a bad thing, but too much is too much. 

Timing: 45-60 minutes (including chopping and dicing)

Nutrition: Mostly whole-food

Gluten-free if you find gluten-free ramen noodles

Tempeh and Wild Mushroom Stew

By Jill Nussinow, in the Oregonian

Link to Tempeh and Wild Mushroom Stew

GV comments: I featured this recipe in my low-calorie lunch suggestions because it is a filling dish. Mushrooms are very low in calories, so dishes starring mushrooms can be great when you need to watch the calories. The porcinis, rosemary and miso give it a wonderful earthy, umami flavor that you'll love. I love tempeh, but if you don't, you can substitute tofu or seitan or leave it out, but then it wouldn't be as filling. I find cornstarch and arrowroot interchangeable, so I use cornstarch. 

Timing: Around 45-60 minutes

Nutrition: Whole-food, unprocessed

Gluten-free

Uncle Bill's Vegetarian Minestrone Soup

By William (Uncle Bill) Anatooskin on Food.com

Link to Uncle Bill's Vegetarian Minestrone Soup

GV comments: This recipe is featured in my menu list of Low-Calorie Vegan Recipes: Lunch Soups and Mains. It fills you up without adding a lot of calories, it boosts your vegetable intake for the day, and it's a perfect companion to a salad or sandwich. If you have some vegan pesto around, I suggest adding a spoonful of it to the hot bowl of soup and stirring a bit (but not completely). The soft swirls of pesto are a delight to come upon as you eat the soup. 

Timing: Around an hour

Nutrition: can be made whole-food, unprocessed

Can be made gluten-free

Turkish Red Lentil Soup

By the New York Times

Link to Turkish Red Lentil Soup

Image source

GV comments: Lentils are so incredibly nutritious that I look for any delicious way to eat more of them. This is a simple, quick, and very tasty soup that gets the job done. The paprika and tomato paste are key to the flavor, but I also like the instruction to use croutons! Okay, if you say so... I use vegetable stock (usually from bouillon powder) and I don't top it with yogurt. I also don't like mint in most savory dishes, so I omit that, too. 

Timing: 30-60 minutes

Nutrition: Whole-food unprocessed

Gluten-free

Moroccan Chickpea Soup

By Gourmet

Link to Moroccan Chickpea Soup

GV comments:  This is one of my all-time favorite soups. It's more like a stew, and it's utterly satisfying. It starts with dried chickpeas but is worth the prep time (mostly soaking and boiling the chickpeas). I use less oil than they state in the recipe--you could even go completely oil-free. My sister is suspicious of any savory dish with cinnamon in it. She agreed with me that you don't even taste the cinnamon in this soup. She and Carnivore Brother-In-Law loved it!

Timing: Over 2 hours

Nutrition: Whole-food unprocessed

Gluten-free (if you use gluten-free noodles)