Kale and White Bean Soup

This kale and white bean soup is a simple, hearty meal at its finest. Naturally vegan, this soup recipe focuses on fresh produce and nourishing veggies, finished with a gremolata that’s big on flavor. Serve with crusty bread for pure comfort in a bowl.

What We Love About This Recipe

1. It’s made with simple, hearty, nutrient-dense ingredients. Kale and white bean soup is high on my list of favorite meatless meals for soup season.
2. There’s nothing complicated or overly involved about the process.
3. Blending a portion of the soup toward the end gives the soup a velvety, thick consistency without needing any milks, creams, flours, or added starch.
4. The gremolata is the perfect finishing touch for the soup, complimenting the kale and the white beans while adding another punch of flavor and texture. After this, you’ll want to put gremolata on everything!

Chef’s Tips

• Be careful with the kale! When you add it to the pot, you want to cook it just until it’s wilted. It shouldn’t have the texture of totally fresh kale, but it shouldn’t be slimy or chewy, either. You want it to maintain some of its slight crunch!
• Before you blend the hot soup, make sure to read the tips in the Notes section below. Blending hot liquids can be… disastrous, if you’re not careful.

Other Soup Recipes You Can NOT Miss!

• Instant Pot Potato Leek Soup
• Chicken Parmesan Soup
• Turnip Green Soup
• Hazelnut Soup with Parsnips
• Sweet Potato Soup
• Escarole Soup
• Cream of Jalapeño Soup
• Boilermaker Chili
• Chicken Velvet Soup
• Potato Asparagus Soup
• Jalapeño Popper Soup
• Ratatouille Soup
• Tom Kha Goong (Thai Coconut Shrimp Soup)
• Instant Pot Chicken and Rice Soup

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5 from 5 votes

Kale and White Bean Soup

Prep: 15 minutes minutes

Cook: 30 minutes minutes

Total: 45 minutes minutes

Full of fresh produce, nourishing vegetables, and lots of flavor, this kale and white bean soup is a simple, hearty meal at its finest.

Cheryl Malik

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6 servings

Ingredients

For the Kale and White Bean Soup

• ▢ 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ▢ 1 cup chopped onions approximately 1 medium onion
• ▢ 1 tablespoon minced garlic approximately 3 cloves
• ▢ 1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary leaves from 1 6-inch-long sprig
• ▢ 1 15-ounce can white beans or great northern beans
• ▢ 4 cups vegetable broth
• ▢ 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice zest lemon before juicing
• ▢ salt to taste
• ▢ freshly cracked black pepper to taste
• ▢ 5 cups chopped lacinato kale

For the Gremolata

• ▢ ½ cup finely chopped fresh parsley
• ▢ 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• ▢ 1 large pinch red pepper flakes
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon salt more or less to taste
• ▢ ¼ cup olive oil
• ▢ 3 large cloves fresh garlic grated
• ▢ 1 large pinch salt

Get Recipe Ingredients

Equipment

• large, heavy-bottomed pot or dutch oven
• large wooden spoon
• standard blender or immersion blender
• medium bowl if using immersion blender
• Small mixing bowl
• whisk

Instructions 

For the Kale and White Bean Soup

• Place large, heavy-bottomed pot on stovetop over medium heat. When pot is warm, add 2 tablespoons olive oil and continue heating pot until oil is hot and shimmery.
• When oil is ready, add 1 cup chopped onions and stir to incorporate. Sauté onions until translucent, approximately 5 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking.
• When onions have softened, add 1 tablespoon minced garlic and 1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary leaves to pot. Stir to incorporate, then sauté garlic until fragrant, approximately 30 seconds.
• Add 1 15-ounce can white beans and 4 cups vegetable broth. Stir to incorporate, then increase heat under pot to medium-high. Bring liquid to rolling boil, then immediately reduce heat under pot to medium.
• When liquid begins to boil, carefully ladle half of soup into stand mixer. Let soup cool 3 to 5 minutes, then add 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice and blend soup on high speed until mixture is completely liquid. See Notes below for tips on safely blending hot liquids.
• Return blended soup to pot and stir to incorporate. Season soup with salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste.

For the Gremolata

• Add ½ cup finely chopped fresh parsley, 1 teaspoon lemon zest, 1 large pinch red pepper flakes, ¼ teaspoon salt, ¼ cup olive oil, and 3 large cloves fresh garlic to small mixing bowl. Stir ingredients together until fully incorporated.

To Serve the Soup

• Increase heat under pot to high. Add 5 cups chopped lacinato kale to soup and stir to incorporate, then bring soup to boil. Boil soup until kale is slightly wilted adn bright green in color.
• Taste soup and add salt and/or pepper if needed. When satisfied with flavor of soup, ladle soup into serving bowls. Top each serving with prepared gremolata to taste. Serve warm.

Notes

• Leftovers: Refrigerate leftover soup separately from leftover gremolata. Keep each in an airtight container in the fridge and consume within 1 week.

 

Tips for Blending Hot Liquids

1. Fill the blender no more than halfway. Work in batches as needed.
2. Let the soup cool a bit before blending.
3. Always blend hot liquids with the center cap of the blender lid removed. Cover the opening with a dish towel and hold the lid down firmly so it stays on and doesn’t slosh any hot soup out.

Nutrition Information

Serving: 1 serving | Calories: 253kcal | Protein: 9g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Total Carbs: 25g | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 2g | Net Carbs: 18g | Vitamin C: 27mg | Sodium: 122mg | Potassium: 540mg | Calcium: 127mg | Iron: 3mg

Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.

 

Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.

 

To determine the weight of one serving, prepare the recipe as instructed. Weigh the finished recipe, then divide the weight of the finished recipe (not including the weight of the container the food is in) by the desired number of servings. Result will be the weight of one serving.

© Author: Cheryl Malik