In the winters there is nothing better than a nice piping hot bowl of the best vegan soup to warm the cockles of your heart. Add a chunk of hearty whole grain bread and you have a great lunch or dinner.
So I thought today I would share with you some of my favourite soups that I have enjoyed that you can just dump out of a can or box and enjoy.
I’ll also share with you my favourite vegan soup that I like to make at home. It is easy, delicious and very nutritious. The great thing about making vegan soups at home is that they are so east to make. You basically just take a bunch of veggies and some water, maybe some vegetable bouillon and cook them up until yummy.
But first let’s take a look at some of my favourite vegan soups you can buy at the supermarket. Some of them you might need to look for in a health foods market like Whole Foods, but most you should be able to find at a regular supermarket that you shop at.
My very favourite vegan soup that I eat almost once a week is Primo’s lentil soup. It is easy to find up here in Canada. Also along these lines is Campbell’s new Creations line which they’ve come out with a lentil soup too called “rustic spiced lentil & vegetable”.
There are many other soups out there I enjoy like a nice condensed tomato soup. There are many packaged soups that are great too that you can take with you to work.
Some of my favourite single serving soups are from the likes of the Nile Recipe soups. Of all the Nile Spice soups, I like the Black Bean soup and the Red Beans and Rice best.
If you’re looking for a creamy vegan soup then Dr. McDougall’s Right Foods makes a very good Roasted Pepper Tomato soup.
At the end of the day there are a great variety of vegan soups available on the market if you are willing to take a look and read the labels. Just above I’ve shared around half a dozen different versions of vegan soups that you might like to try. And I’ve barely scratched the surface. Remember to check the labels though as recipes from manufacturers do change occasionally and what was once vegan might no longer be vegan.
And now let’s turn to my easy and yummy homemade vegan soup recipe.
I’m mental for lentils soup
I am really, I love lentils. They’re part of the legume family so they have tons of protein, fiber, iron, zinc and a bit of calcium to boot.
Another benefit of lentils is that they cook up fast and easy and don’t require soaking overnight. They’re cheap too, and those sensitive to legumes affect on the bowels i.e. gas, experience less flatulence with lentils than other beans.
Lentils, they’re good for the heart, and the more you eat the less you fart 😛
1 tsp cooking oil like canola
1 medium onion of your choice
1 medium carrot sliced
2 stalks of celery sliced
3 cups vegetable broth (I use water with one bouillon cube – I’m lazy!)
2 cups diced tomatoes
1 cup dry lentils
0.25 tsp ground pepper
0.25 tsp dried thyme
0.25 tsp dried oregano
2 bay leaves
1 tbsp lemon juice
In a pot that will big enough to hold all of the ingredients and liquids, add the cooking oil, onion, carrots and celery and cook over medium heat for a few to 5 minutes. Just until the onions become translucent.
Then add everything else into the pot except for the lemon juice and cook over medium or low to medium heat for about 45 minutes. Cook with the lid on.
Soup will be ready when the lentils are mushy. You should be able to squash a cooked lentil against the roof of your mouth using only your tongue.
Just before serving stir in the lemon juice. Serve with a hunk of bread. You can also serve over cooked brown rice. Or just enjoy a large bowl by itself. It’s very hearty, warm and satisfying just as it is.