I used to scour the grocery store aisles, picking up each can and soup carton, examining ingredients, only to painstakingly put the item back on the shelf sorely disappointed. Why was I so disappointed? The ingredients in each of the soups were filled with legumes, nightshades, grains, and even added sugar! At the time I was feeling under the weather and just wanted a bowl of soup to feel healthier, not add inflammation I’ve worked so hard to eliminate from my body.
I never did find a soup on the market I would eat. So, I started making my own soups. Rest assured, soups are not as intimidating or difficult to make as one may assume. In fact, they are so simple and did I mention incredibly healthy, filling, and affordable? Let’s not forget that a bowl of homemade soup, with nourishing, fresh ingredients is incredibly healing…
What are the health benefits of having soup?
When soups are made with an assortment of healthy ingredients, it can nourish the body with vitamins and minerals derived from the ingredients used. Soups can be hydrating, filling, and also gives your body an immune boost. When you’re not feeling tip-top, it could be just the self-care fix you need to turn the corner.
In a homemade vegetable stock or bone broth, ingredients simmer for a long time extracting potent healing nutrients. In fact, many of our kitchen scraps are loaded with amazing health benefits that go to waste in our trash everyday. Onion skins, carrot tops, and other odds and ends can be cooked down to create an amazing base to any soup or sipped on its own with a few seasonings and herbs. In fact, I have a recipe listed below to use your kitchen scraps. Not only is it incredibly healthy to make your own soup, broth, or stock, you also save money by squeezing out every little bit of value from your food. Not to mention it is also an environmentally-friendly habit to develop. We can repurpose so much of our food, so there is a lot of opportunity when it comes to making homemade soup.
Below I have listed a collection of recipes with different ingredients, flavors, and uses, from broth-like to creamy and thick. Consider creating your own soup recipes with the stock and broth recipes as a base. A bowl of homemade soup is so nourishing, but also consider sipping on a cup of broth or stock as a healing alternative to coffee or tea.
Here is a list of my favorite soup recipes and may it bring nourishment, healing, and self-care all in one bowl from my kitchen to yours.
No need for dairy with this creamy, flavorful, vegan Cream of Broccoli Soup! You will be surprised how easy (and filling) it is to eat vegan. In fact, I dare you to try one bowl and see if you can even have another. It is so satisfying and loaded with nutrients – Vitamin C, B6, Vitamin K, potassium, and fiber to name a few.
Similar to Cream of Broccoli Soup, Cream of Cauliflower is just as filling with all of the flavor. This soup is also packed with Vitamin C (are you seeing a healing, immune-boosting trend yet?), iron, B6, magnesium, fiber, and calcium. If you are a meat eater, it is quite decadent to add crispy pancetta as a garnish. A vegan alternative I recommend is fresh thyme which also has Vitamin C and potassium, as well as manganese. A good quality truffle oil is also a great option to add even more flavor!
This recipe is so easy to make and gives you that takeout flavor “fix”. Just a few ingredients are required and within minutes you have brothy deliciousness with mushrooms, spinach, and egg. My base for this soup is either the Kitchen Scrap Stock or my Vegetarian Stock, whatever I have on hand, which in itself has numerous health benefits. With brown mushrooms in particular, studies show there is a decreased risk of cancer, promotes lower cholesterol, protects brain health, and more. I love eating intentionally and by eating many vegetables you are enhancing your health with each bite.
Mushrooms have incredible health benefits and are the superfood of superfoods. For this recipe, I used Crimini mushrooms which studies show boost immunity, help regulate blood pressure, and may prevent certain cancers. You can use any mushroom for this recipe and I highly encourage it! Different mushrooms have different benefits, which are incredible and such a healthy, accessible resource. If you want to learn more about the health benefits of mushrooms, I wrote this post 7 Mushrooms to Radically Improve Your Health. Did I mention this recipe is incredibly earthy and delicious too?
My Kitchen Scrap Stock can be vegan or not, depending on what was cooked that particular week. Your Kitchen Scrap Stock will change in flavor depending on how much variety you have week to week in your diet. This is a combination of odds and ends that would normally be thrown in the trash (onion skins, vegetable ends, animal bones and carcasses, etc.). If you have bones in the mix, this is no different than a homemade bone broth recipe. Again, feel free to add your own twist, which will likely happen organically as your kitchen scraps are unique to your kitchen!
Vegetable Stock
Homemade stock is so easy to make, I even used my crockpot. Let your vegetables cook on low for many hours, add a few seasonings, and fresh herbs and voilà – a beautiful base to any soup creation or have it all on its own to sip on. Feel free to use a pot to make this recipe, I just preferred the crockpot so I could safely run errands and come back to it without leaving a burner on. Also, my recipe is a classic base of ingredients, but feel free to add your own twist!
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