Quick, nourishing, and made mostly with pantry staples, this verdant soup can be prepared with any combination of leafy greens you like! A bouillon cube and miso paste add depth of flavor while lemon brightens everything up in this vegan and gluten free soup.
I have a few fallback recipes I keep in my back pocket when the creative juices have temporarily dried up and I just need something quick and nourishing. Since I expend a lot of creative energy with the work I do, it’s not uncommon to find myself staring into the refrigerator abyss trying to figure out how to cobble ingredients together for a meal.
This soup is one of my cold season standbys! It originated as a way for me to use up a ton of greens from my CSA before they expired. And, it quickly became a recipe to continuously turn to when I wanted something simple and nourishing. The bright green hue has a way of evoking happiness and hope during the winter months. It’s as if the soup is saying, “Don’t despair! Spring is coming!”. Does your soup talk to you, too? Nope? Just me? Well alrighty then…
The ingredient list is rather short and mostly comprised of staples I always have in the pantry or the fridge. Being that it is adaptable, I’ll list options and notes within the recipe so you can make it based on what you have!
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Adaptable Leafy Greens Soup
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 2–3 servings 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
Quick, nourishing, and made mostly with pantry staples, this verdant soup can be prepared with any combination of leafy greens you like! A bouillon cube and miso paste add depth of flavor while lemon brightens everything up in this vegan and gluten free soup.
Ingredients
- roughly 6–8 cups of leafy greens such as kale, collards, dandelion, and chard (you want enough greens to completely fill a standard sized baking sheet)
- 1 tbsp olive oil or avocado oil
- a pinch of sea salt
- 1 vegetable bouillon cube
- 2–3 cups boiling water
- 1 small can of coconut cream (5.4 oz), or, a heaped 1/2 cup of coconut cream removed from a can of full fat coconut milk
- 1 heaped tbsp mellow miso paste
- juice of 1 small lemon
- optional flavor add-ins: ginger, garlic, or chili flakes (I used a couple of cubes of this chili ginger garlic paste I made last summer)
- steamed rice for serving, optional
Instructions
Pre-heat your oven to 375 degrees. Arrange your greens in an even layer on a lined baking sheet (it’s totally cool if they are overlapping). Drizzle the greens with the oil, sprinkle with a pinch of sea salt, then toss gently to coat. Put them in your pre-heated oven to roast. I typically let them go for about 15 minutes when they start to just get crisp at the edges. Use your judgement here and take them out when they are cooked to your liking.
Add the bouillon cube and 2 to 3 cups of boiling water to a blender. 3 cups of water will get you a thinner consistency like in the photos while 2 cups will get you a thick, almost puree-like consistency. Choose your own adventure here. To the water and bouillon add the coconut cream, miso, the juice of a small lemon, and your flavor add-ins. Lastly, add your cooked greens. Blend the contents on high until you have a very smooth consistency. Taste the soup and add salt if needed. If the soup has cooled down significantly while blending, feel free to warm it over the stove.
I highly recommend serving this soup alongside steamed jasmine or basmati rice! Makes approximately 3-4 servings depending on how much liquid you use.
Notes
- For the version photographed here I used a combination of kale, mustard greens, chard, dandelion greens, and collards.
- The soup in the photos is served alongside steamed basmati rice and topped with brassica flowers. The greens and brassica flowers were both from my CSA share.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: soup
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