Vegetarian 15-Bean Soup

A hearty, vegetarian soup perfect for warming the belly on a rainy day. My first foray into making a completely vegetarian soup, and I can say I didn't miss the meat component at all! Goes great with a crusty bread. Good for a large gathering of people or for plenty of leftovers! My original recipe yields a large pot of soup, so I always share with my parents and still have plenty left over for lunch or dinner the next day. Please note it is important to add salt with or before the beans so that the beans can absorb some of the salt, otherwise they can taste a little bland. The soup gets better with a little time and tastes awesome the next day.

• Preparation Time: 15 mins
• Cooking Time: 1 hr 50 mins
• Total Time: 2 hr 5 mins
• Calories: 159 Calories

Ingredients

• 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• salt and ground black pepper to taste
• 1 large onion, diced
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, or more as needed
• 3 large cloves garlic, minced
• 1 (20 ounce) package 15-bean soup mix (seasoning packet not used)
• 12 carrots, peeled and chopped, or more to taste
• 15 crimini mushrooms, sliced, or more to taste
• 7 stalks celery, chopped, or more to taste
• 6 leaves dinosaur kale, chopped
• 4 leaves red Swiss chard, chopped
• 12 cups vegetable broth

Recipe Instructions

Step 1

Place beans in a large container and cover with several inches of cool water; let stand 8 hours to overnight. Drain and rinse.

Step 2

Heat olive oil in a stockpot over medium heat; cook and stir onion until golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Add carrots, mushrooms, celery, kale, chard, and garlic; cook and stir until carrots and mushrooms are slightly tender, 5 to 10 minutes.

Step 3

Pour broth over vegetable mixture and bring to a boil; reduce heat and add bay leaves, rosemary, basil, salt, and pepper. Add beans and simmer soup until beans are softened, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.