nutritional information

Per 1 1/2-cup serving:

  • Calories: 169
  • Protein: 5 g
  • Total Fat: 8 g
  • Saturated Fat: 1 g
  • Carbohydrates: 21 g
  • Cholesterol: 0 mg
  • Sodium: 367 mg
  • Fiber: 6 g
  • Sugar: 6 g
Vegan Gluten-Free

Spicy Sun-Dried Tomato Soup with White Beans & Swiss Chard

Spicy Sun-Dried Tomato Soup with White Beans & Swiss Chard

Serves 8

30 minutes or fewer

Years ago, Abigail Henson's sister, Mary Boccardo, turned her on to the idea of cooking school after seeing an ad for the Natural Gourmet Institute in the back of VT. Their paths led them away from their dreams of writing cookbooks and opening a teahouse together, but both sisters eventually enrolled in the Natural Gourmet Institute. Abigail came up with this soup on a cold winter night. “As usually happens with soup, it made itself with the ingredients I had on hand,” she explains. “I used sun-dried tomatoes as the star ingredient, and everything else just seemed to evolve.”
  • 2 Tbs. olive oil
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced (1 Tbs.)
  • ½ tsp. red pepper flakes
  • 1 medium onion, chopped (1 ½ cups)
  • 2 medium carrots, sliced (1 cup)
  • 2 ribs celery, chopped (½ cup)
  • 1 small zucchini, sliced (1 cup)
  • ½ tsp. chopped fresh rosemary
  • 2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
  • 2 15-oz. cans diced tomatoes
  • 1 15-oz. can small white beans or cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
  • ½ cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and chopped, plus 2 Tbs. oil from jar
  • ½ bunch (6 oz.) Swiss chard, chopped
  • ½ tsp. chopped fresh thyme
  • 1 cup torn fresh basil

1. Heat oil in large saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic and red pepper flakes, and cook 1 minute, or until garlic is fragrant. Stir in onion, carrots, celery, zucchini, and rosemary, and cook 10 to 15 minutes, or until onions are soft.

2. Add broth, 1 can tomatoes, and beans. Scoop 1 cup mixture into food processor or blender, and add remaining can of tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, and sun-dried tomato oil. Purée until smooth, stir mixture into soup, and season with salt and pepper, if desired. Simmer 10 minutes.

3. Add Swiss chard and thyme; simmer 5 minutes more, or until chard is wilted. Remove pan from heat, and stir in basil.

January 2010 p.65

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comments

This is a wonderful idea for a vegetarian soup! I'm always looking for flavorful ways to use beans.

The Omnivore - 2013-03-04 18:51:50

This soup had a lot of flavors! A little too strong on the basil for me though! Will make again with less!

Amber Richardson - 2013-01-18 16:47:49

This is a new favorite in our home. So healthy and chalked full of yummy veggies. I have also added kale and spinach to this recipe and its a great way to add more greens into you diet.

Kris - 2012-10-16 01:50:23

wonderful! I made this today, instead of canned tomatos I used fresh blanced ones.

Alex - 2012-07-29 20:48:39

I made this last night, and it was incredible! Very easy, but loaded with flavor. Although the intro to the recipe states it was created as a winter soup, this seems very fitting for the summer. I suspect fresh summer corn or any seasonal veggie would be amazing in this!

Indira - 2012-05-20 17:43:39

I make this soup a lot. It is so delicious. My variation usually includes potatoes since I love potatoes in soup. The broth really has a wonderful flavor and the bit of heat is great.

Patti - 2012-04-13 17:25:19

I highly recommend it! I made it even spicier by using my homemade hot pepper oil.

Lindsay - 2012-03-28 11:29:05

i've been making soup forever but this is in my top 3. :)

conchita - 2011-11-17 20:44:08

This was simply amazing. I used sundried tomatoes with herbs and served it with garlic olive oil toast

Barb - 2011-01-10 19:29:36

This soup offers plenty of warmth (both temperature and spice). When served with a salad and sourdough bread, it's the perfect hearty, harvest meal! http://bread-n-chocolate.blogspot.com/2010/10/hearty-harvest-soup.html

Kate - 2010-10-21 12:42:20

This was amazing. Plain and simple a-m-a-z-i-n-g! I didn't have fresh rosemary so I used dried italian seasoning. I also didn't have red pepper flakes so I used extra ground pepper. I always add extra veggies. The whole vegan house LOVED this one. Thank you for sharing!

Jennifer - 2010-10-17 14:24:58

Excellent flavor!!! I did, however, have to simmer it much longer to get the carrots to soften up a bit. I'll slice the carrots and celery much thinner next time. But still anticipate that I will have to cook a little longer.

bethany - 2010-09-28 10:53:08

This is a very good soup, with a nice, complex tomato flavor. I like how the sun-dried tomatoes get pureed, infusing the rest of the soup with their great flavor. Also love the fact it can lend itself to substitutions.

Estelle - 2010-09-16 12:19:00

This is my absolute favorite soup recipe! The best thing about it is how versatile it is. After the first few times I made it, I began just throwing in whatever I had in the pantry, including kidney beans substituted for the white beans and dried herbs substituted for fresh. It tastes great every time!

Eliza - 2010-07-27 15:32:38

This is a total hit and has become both my heart home soup staple and an easily transported winter pot-luck contribution. I love it's nutritional density and the relative ease in preparation and the rich winter flavors are appreciated by all. The recipe is making the rounds.

Sasha - 2010-02-23 00:18:14