Creamy vegetable soup to help you use up whatever half onion, carrots or any other random veggies you may have lying around. After all, how long can that half red onion look at you, right? Let's do it!
This is one of those soups recipes that you can have ready in no time at all. You can make it the way I've shared in the recipe card below which is adding everything to a food processor or on the stovetop which I've shared in this post too.
Get all your half used vegetables that you want to save from going bad especially things like half onions, carrots, celery sticks etc. Now first up, let me say that you can make this soup 100% vegan or vegetarian by substituting ingredients like;
- cream for coconut cream and
- chicken stock for vegetable stock
This soup is warm, cozy, versatile and super simple to make which can easily be rewarmed although perfect fresh and hot served with crusty bread! Believe me when I tell you that there are many ways to serve soup besides crunchy bread, keep reading for more suggestions below.
Ingredients
Most soup recipes like this Carrot and Potato Soup start by cooking the vegetables on the stove and transferring to the blender or using an immersion blender after. This creamy vegetable soup works the opposite way.
Why? The simple answer is that my spice business has become extremely busy and every single day I am more and more grateful however, we still have to eat right? I still have to cook but I don't always have the time or energy to make food from scratch as much as I use to and love to.
- Pulsing them first and then onto a simmer means that I'm cutting down the time to chop and cook the vegetables!
This soup also doesn't use any vegetables like potatoes that need a longer cooking time otherwise you would have to cook on the stove-top first so I've chosen easy veggies. Vegetables that little to no cooking time! Feel free to add potatoes to the stovetop version.
Onion: Use the onion that you have because any of them works. I've used red for this recipe but green onion or leek works beautifully! You can also combine a little of both, work with what you have, remember this recipe is to use up what you have lying around.
Carrots: What can I say, they make a beautiful soup base just like celery so if you have celery use it and don't discard the leaves, chop and add, they going to be blended anyway.
Spinach: I've gone with baby spinach here because again, no cooking time unless you don't want to the spinach in the pot after, we love it!
Garlic: No need to mince it simply roughly chop if using the food processor and for the stovetop, still just slice (blend later)
Can any tomatoes work?
Canned tomatoes work best not just for the convenience but if you do find beautiful juicy ones would you rather use then in a fresh recipe? At least in that way you sure are getting the juiciest nutritional value from them.
Tomatoes: A good quality canned tomatoes. When you have few ingredients in any recipe the ones where you can choose a better quality then do so since there's not many ingredients to pull flavor from.
Passata: Delicious in soups and stews.
Seasoning: Salt and pepper to taste.
The spices that you use depend on what your family likes. I added our Thai soup seasoning because it's specific to soups/stews and the ingredients enhance the dish. If you have our spice go ahead and add it into this recipe and if you prefer a chili taste instead then Calabrese always gives it a kick!
Chicken stock or vegetable stock for a vegan option
Cream or unsweetened coconut milk or cream for a vegan option
How To Make Creamy Vegetable Soup
- Wash, peel and chop the carrots and onion.
- Peel and roughly chop the garlic
- Prepare your seasonings by getting the salt & pepper, Thai soup seasoning or any of your favorite spice additions that you want to add. If you like you can skip the spices 🙁 and go with fresh thyme which always works beautifully in soup.
Food Processor Version
If the food processor is the option that you're using then add the vegetables - carrots, onion and garlic into the food processor.
Follow up with the canned tomatoes, seasoning, spices and pulse till combined.
Heat a non stick pan, add a tablespoon of butter to melt, pour in the food processor contents and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes.
Stove-Top Version
Heat a non stick pan or saucepan and cook the onion until soft and light brown.
Add the garlic, stir it around and cook for a couple of seconds
Add the carrots, seasoning and spices with a little passata and tomatoes, cook on medium heat for 5 minutes.
In goes the remaining tomatoes and passata a dash of water and then follow the rest of the recipe in the recipe card below.
What To Serve With Soup
Soup can be served many ways besides bread although let's be honest if you love bread there's no other way to eat this creamy vegetable soup but see below for more options.
A Few More Suggestions
What about a cheese platter or cheese board in which case this warm brie recipe is good start.
You could also serve your soup alongside couscous this Avocado and Rice Bowl or with a simple Cucumber and Onion Salad for the cooler months!
A bowl of soup and some spicy rice is another alternative. Anyway I'm sure by now you get the gist of what I'm saying.
Below is my French Toast with a salad. Another great way to interchange foods and recipes!
If you've enjoyed this soup recipe and post please do leave me a comment and by all means rate the recipe below.
More Soup Recipes
- Carrot and Potato Soup
- Healthy Soup Recipe
- Spiced Harira Moroccan Soup (Vegetable)
- Easy Lentil Soup Recipe
- Carrot Chickpea Soup
- Broccoli Soup Recipe
Recipe
Creamy Vegetable Soup
Ingredients
- 1 onion, roughly chopped
- 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled
- 1 canned tomatoes
- 1.4 cup passata
- salt and pepper to taste
- Thai soup seasoning
- 1 ½ cups stock or water
- 1 tbsp. butter
- 2 cups baby spinach
- ½ cup coconut cream or regular cream
Instructions
Food Processor Version
- Add the onions, garlic, carrots, tomato, passata, seasoning, Thai soup seasoning and a dash of stock or water into a food processor and pulse until combined.
- Heat a non stick saucepan add the butter to melt.
- Pour the pulsed ingredients into the pan with the melted butter, taste for seasoning, add the remaining stock or water and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes.
- At this point you can add the coconut cream, season and serve with some crusty bread OR use a blender to blend the soup first. Once blended leave it to continue simmering to 5 minutes and in those 5 minutes add the cream (reserve a little for a splash before serving). Once you're happy with the thickness of the soup, add the spinach, stir, turn the heat off and cover the saucepan for the baby spinach to wilt under the steam. Serve with fresh black pepper, a sprinkle of seasoning or spice or sautéed mushrooms.
Stove Top Version
- Heat a pan or saucepan and add the butter to melt. Once melted add the onion with a pinch of salt and cook till soft and light brown in color. 5 to 10 minutes.
- Add the carrots and part of the tomato to cook with the spice for 5 minutes.
- Add the remaining tomato, the passata and seasoning. Mix and cook for a further 5 minutes.
- Add the stock or water, taste for seasoning. Get the lid on and cook on simmer till the carrots are tender.
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