Bean and Vegetable Soup

I love soups…..vegetable, sausage,tortellini, chicken, turkey, any kind of soup and I am salivating!!! Maybe that is why I love the fall so much! I can have soup everyday and I always have a pot in the refrigerator ready to reheat. This soup is super nutritious. Full of vegetables. Beans for fiber. Kale. Spinach. Tomatoes! Let’s go make some soup! Make it today, and you’ll have a ready made lunch for the rest of the week.

Bean and Vegetable Soup

1 TBSP Olive Oil
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
1 pepper, any color, diced
2 carrots, diced
1 large onion, diced
2 celery stalks, diced
1 zucchini, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 TBSP fresh basil or 1 tsp dried
1 tsp dried thyme
pinch of cayenne pepper
1 bunch of kale or spinach, I used both
2 cups tomatoes, diced or 1 28oz can diced tomatoes with juice
1 large carton vegetable broth
2 cups canned beans, rinsed and drained well. I used 5 bean medley but you can use any white bean
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
basil and grated parmesan cheese for serving

Preparation

Heat oil in large pot over medium heat. Add mushrooms, pepper, onions, carrots, celery, and zucchini. Cook, stirring often for 5 – 6 minutes. If veggies start to stick to the bottom, just add a splash of vegetable broth.

Add garlic, basil, thyme, cayenne pepper and cook for 1 minute.

Add tomatoes, broth, and beans and stir to combine. If mixture is too thick, add 1 cup hot water. Simmer for about 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.