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Bean soup for the veggie lover's soul
Posted on Apr 20th 2007 4:00PM by Bethany SandersFiled Under: Healthy Recipes, Healthy Kids, Diet & Weight Loss, Alternative & Green Health, Nutrition & Supplements
I've been toying with the idea of becoming a vegetarian. I don't eat a lot of meat, but I'm not willing to put my kids on a vegetarian diet, so I'm trying to find a balance between cooking for them and cooking for me and not cooking two different meals every time we eat. One of my answers has been bean soup.
I got on a bean soup kick this winter. I make a large pot of it each weekend and then heat it up for lunch throughout the week. I know I'm getting plenty of protein each time I eat it, and it's a great way to sneak in some vegetables. The beauty of bean soup is, once you get the hang of it, you really don't need a recipe. I clean out the leftover veggies in my fridge, and saute them in a little olive oil. (If you like your meal to be fat-free, you can saute them in some vegetable broth instead.) Then add beans, fresh or dried thyme, and water or vegetable broth. It's a no-brainer, and it turns out a little different every time.
Last night I adapted this recipe and made my best version yet:
1 T. olive oil
4 cups water
1 32 oz. jar of Great Northern Beans
2 medium carrots, cleaned and chopped
1 leek, chopped
2 garlic gloves, minced (I used crushed, from a jar)
2 1/2 T. low-sodium soy sauce
1 T. fresh rosemary leaves
1 t. fresh chopped thyme
black pepper to taste
pinch of cayenne
1 bunch of fresh kale, rinsed well with stems removed
Saute carrots, leek, and garlic over medium heat until veggies are soft. Add beans, water, bay leaf, and simmer for 15 minutes. Then add soy sauce, rosemary, thyme, pepper, and cayenne and cook for 15 minutes more. Add in kale and cook for 10 more minutes, until wilted.
If you like colorful meals, this recipe is for you; the bright orange carrots, the deep green kale, and spring green of the leeks really make it an appealing looking soup. I am definitely an amateur cook, so if I can pull this off, so can you. Sodium is not a major concern of mine, but you can lower the sodium in bean soup by using dry beans instead of canned and water instead of broth.
Anyone else have time-saving recipes for the budding vegetarian?
I got on a bean soup kick this winter. I make a large pot of it each weekend and then heat it up for lunch throughout the week. I know I'm getting plenty of protein each time I eat it, and it's a great way to sneak in some vegetables. The beauty of bean soup is, once you get the hang of it, you really don't need a recipe. I clean out the leftover veggies in my fridge, and saute them in a little olive oil. (If you like your meal to be fat-free, you can saute them in some vegetable broth instead.) Then add beans, fresh or dried thyme, and water or vegetable broth. It's a no-brainer, and it turns out a little different every time.
Last night I adapted this recipe and made my best version yet:
1 T. olive oil
4 cups water
1 32 oz. jar of Great Northern Beans
2 medium carrots, cleaned and chopped
1 leek, chopped
2 garlic gloves, minced (I used crushed, from a jar)
2 1/2 T. low-sodium soy sauce
1 T. fresh rosemary leaves
1 t. fresh chopped thyme
black pepper to taste
pinch of cayenne
1 bunch of fresh kale, rinsed well with stems removed
Saute carrots, leek, and garlic over medium heat until veggies are soft. Add beans, water, bay leaf, and simmer for 15 minutes. Then add soy sauce, rosemary, thyme, pepper, and cayenne and cook for 15 minutes more. Add in kale and cook for 10 more minutes, until wilted.
If you like colorful meals, this recipe is for you; the bright orange carrots, the deep green kale, and spring green of the leeks really make it an appealing looking soup. I am definitely an amateur cook, so if I can pull this off, so can you. Sodium is not a major concern of mine, but you can lower the sodium in bean soup by using dry beans instead of canned and water instead of broth.
Anyone else have time-saving recipes for the budding vegetarian?
