This tasty kale and white bean soup recipe features tender beans, kale, and hearty vegetables in a flavorful broth. It’s a cozy dinner that’s both vegan and gluten-free. We love serving it with crusty bread or a salad to make it a meal.
We’re in a season of life where Alex and I are craving nourishing, cozy recipes that are veggie-loaded and hearty enough to keep us full. So here’s one we created to do just that: this kale white bean soup! It’s a riff on our standard Italian-style pot of veggies, full of tangy flavor from fire roasted tomatoes that make a thick, hearty broth.
For this soup, you can eat it straight up or make it fancy with a few fun garnishes! Toasted pine nuts take the flavor up a few notches, and you can even drizzle with a little truffle oil and sprinkle with sea salt (all ways of adding flavor while keeping it a vegan soup). We’ve been enjoying leftovers for days and even our toddler can’t stop shoveling in bites.
Ingredient notes for kale white bean soup
Get a big pot of this soup simmering and the wafting garlicky smell is absolutely irresistible! The ingredients are pretty humble, though again you can add some fancy garnishes to take up the flavor a bit. Here are the basic ingredients:
- Fennel, carrots, garlic: Using fennel in a soup adds another layer of flavor, though you can substitute white onion if preferred.
- White beans: Cannellini beans, Great Northern, or navy beans work well here.
- Fire roasted tomatoes (diced and crushed): This type of canned tomatoes is roasted over an open flame, which adds sweet and smoky notes. If you can’t find them, use best quality canned tomatoes, like San Marzano or another brand.
- Italian seasoning and smoked paprika: Seeking out smoked paprika is worth it (also labeled as pimentón or Spanish smoked paprika).
- Tuscan kale: We typically prefer using Tuscan kale over curly kale; it has a milder, sweeter flavor. But you can substitute curly kale here: it easily takes on the flavor of the soup.
A few garnishes
This kale white bean soup is extremely hearty, making it a satisfying vegan soup that everyone loves. You can eat it without any garnish, but we like adding a little pizzazz. Here are a few ways to step it up:
Ways to make it a meal
Soup is such a great meal idea because the sides are so simple! Here are a few specific recipes we’d pair with this soup to make this an easy dinner idea:
Storing leftovers
Leftovers of this soup store very well; they last refrigerated up to 4 days. Reheat gently on the stovetop. You can also freeze the soup for up to 3 months.
Dietary notes
This kale white bean soup recipe is vegetarian, vegan, plant-based, dairy-free, and gluten-free.
Frequently asked questions
Yes! You can experiment with other beans like chickpeas or pinto beans.
Yes! Here’s an article I wrote on How to Freeze Soup on Food & Wine.
Yes, other vegetables that might work well are potatoes (peeled and finely diced), zucchini, or mushrooms, or you could add cooked sausage crumbles for a meaty flair.
Description
This tasty kale and white bean soup recipe features tender beans, kale, and hearty vegetables in a flavorful broth. It’s a cozy dinner that’s both vegan and gluten-free. We love serving it with crusty bread or a salad to make it a meal.
- 1 bulb fennel, diced (fronds reserved for a garnish)
- 2 large carrots, diced
- 5 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 15-ounce cans white beans (cannellini, navy beans, or Great Northern beans), drained and rinsed
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 28-ounce can fire roasted diced tomatoes, with their liquid
- 1 28-ounce can fire roasted crushed tomatoes
- 4 cups water
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
- Black pepper, to taste
- 1 bunch Tuscan kale
- Toasted pine nuts, for the garnish (optional)
- Other optional garnishes: Truffle oil or olive oil drizzle, flaky sea salt
- Prepare the vegetables, as noted above.
- Heat the olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the fennel, carrots, and garlic and cook for 7 to 8 minutes, until the carrots are tender.
- Add the white beans, diced tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, water, Italian seasoning, smoked paprika, and kosher salt. Simmer 12 minutes.
- Add the kale and cook 2 to 3 more minutes until wilted. Taste and add additional salt as desired. Serve immediately, garnished with fennel fronds and optional garnishes. The soup stores up to 4 days refrigerated. Leftovers store frozen for up to 3 months.
Notes
If desired, substitute ½ white onion for the fennel.
- Category: Soup
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Diet: Vegan
More bean soups
A few more bean soup recipes we love: our Bean Soup is a tasty classic. Try White Bean Soup or Black Bean Soup, or hearty Cabbage Soup. Or, try our fan-favorite Black Bean Chili!