White Bean and Kale Soup

This white bean and kale soup is an easy side or main that’s full of flavor and nutrition. Whether you’re having a fast and simple dinner of soup and salad or preparing extra soup to freeze for future meals, this soup is perfect, as it doesn’t take long to make and the result is savory, filling and nutritious.

The recipe calls for canned beans, spices and vegetables that you can find in any grocery store, and it’s great for when you want to use up some older ingredients nearing their best-by dates. The spices and aromatics, along with an umami punch from Parmesan cheese, ensure that each spoonful of soup is delish.

Ingredients for White Bean and Kale Soup

• Aromatics: Onion, carrot, celery and garlic form the flavor base of this soup. If that seems familiar, it should: Onion, carrot and celery are better known as mirepoix. This is a French vegetable mixture commonly sauteed in oil or butter at the start of recipes to give a dish more depth of flavor. Garlic is a very common addition to recipes that use mirepoix.
• Spices: Dried rosemary and crushed red pepper flakes give the soup more flavor and a little kick.
• Cannellini beans: Save time and use canned beans. Just drain and rinse them so that any salt in the water in the can doesn’t affect the taste of the soup.
• Vegetable broth: Using vegetable broth and leaving out the Parmesan garnish at the end of the recipe will make this dish vegan. You can use chicken stock if you don’t have vegetable broth. In either case, aim for low-sodium versions to better control the amount of salt in the recipe.
• Kale: Of all the types of kale and varieties of leafy greens, we like Red Russian or Siberian kale best for soups and stews.
• Parsley: Parsley adds a bright note to the flavor of the soup.
• Parmesan cheese: Garnish the top of each bowl of soup with a little Parmesan to give the soup a fuller flavor. Parmesan is one of those ingredients that adds an umami flavor to whatever it’s in.

Directions

Step 1: Cook the aromatics, spices and beans

KRISTINA VANNI FOR TASTE OF HOME

In a Dutch oven or large stockpot, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot and celery, and cook them until the vegetables are tender, four to five minutes. Add the garlic, salt, rosemary, pepper and crushed red pepper flakes, and cook for one minute longer. Stir in the beans and broth, and bring everything to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover the pot and let the soup cook for 15 to 20 minutes. Everything should be tender when the soup is done.

Step 2: Blend the soup (optional)

KRISTINA VANNI FOR TASTE OF HOME

As an optional step, use an immersion blender to blend the soup for 15 to 30 seconds, just enough to puree part of the soup and thicken it.

Step 3: Add the kale, then garnish

KRISTINA VANNI FOR TASTE OF HOME

Stir in the kale and parsley, and cook the soup until the kale has wilted, three to four minutes. Ladle the soup into serving bowls, and top each with grated Parmesan cheese.

KRISTINA VANNI FOR TASTE OF HOME

White Bean and Kale Soup Variations

• Add some pasta: During Step 3, after blending but before adding the kale, toss in some small pasta like small elbow macaroni or ditalini. Bring the soup to a boil briefly, then simmer it for a few minutes to give the pasta time to soften. Then proceed with adding the kale. Alternately, you can cook the pasta in a separate pot and add it at the same time as the kale.
• Switch out part or all of the kale with spinach: This soup is supposed to be white bean and kale soup, but what if you have a bunch of spinach you need to use up? Throw some of it in the soup, replacing either part or all of the kale. Spinach will wilt and shrink, but it’s still a good idea to chop the spinach leaves, even if you use smaller bagged leaves.

How to Store White Bean and Kale Soup

Ladle leftover white bean and kale soup into airtight containers once the soup has cooled. Do not fill the containers with more than 2 inches of soup. Store the containers in the refrigerator for up to four days. You can reheat the soup in a pan on the stove, adding extra broth as necessary.

Can you freeze this soup with white beans and kale?

Yes, you can. When the soup has cooled, ladle it into freezer-safe, airtight containers or silicone freezer molds with airtight lids. Store it in the freezer for up to three months. If you use freezer molds meant for freezing equal portions of soups and sauces, you can either keep the blocks of soup in the container with an airtight lid on, or remove the frozen blocks, wrap them in freezer-safe wrap, then store them in freezer-safe bags or containers. Again, use up these blocks within three months.

White Bean and Kale Soup Tips

KRISTINA VANNI FOR TASTE OF HOME

How do you thicken the soup without blending so much of it?

If you don’t blend the soup in Step 2, the soup may seem rather thin. But when you stick an immersion blender in the soup to blend some of the ingredients, you can end up blending too much. An alternate method for thickening the soup is to remove about 1/2 to 1 cup of the soup at the same stage of cooking. Blend that portion in a separate blender or food processor, then pour the puree back into the pan with the rest of the soup. Stir to combine, and continue with Step 3 as instructed. Removing that portion and blending it separately gives you more control over how much of the soup ends up blended, and you eliminate the risk of unintentionally pureeing it too much.

Can you use other white beans instead of cannellini?

You can use canned navy beans or great northern beans. Navy beans have a softer texture that’s good in soups (they’ll puree easily), and great northern beans are all-around good beans to use in most recipes that call for white beans. Cannellini beans have a firmer texture when cooked that’s very good in soups where you want them to remain whole (although you’ll be able to puree them once cooked, if you want to use the blending instructions in Step 2).

What can you serve with this kale and white bean soup?

If you’re serving the soup as the main course, then crunchy, buttery garlic bread and a fresh green salad would be simple and filling side dishes. If you want to serve the soup as a side itself, a tuna salad sandwich or grilled cheese sandwich would be a good choice, as would simple wraps.