Beans and Greens Soup

prep time:: 5 min
total time:: 30 min

Serves 6-8 as an appetizer or 3-4 as a main course

This was basically my attempt to clear out a bunch of vegetables that were about to be past their prime. In the end, it turned into one of my favorite easy winger recipes. I love soups and stews like this. When you start cooking, you’re never quite sure what you might end up with, but you tweak, and you tweak, and with any luck, you’re left with a delicious soup that you’ve never had before.
So, here’s what went in (although you should feel free to add or subtract whatever you want):

ingredients

1T extra virgin olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
3 or 4 carrots, chunked
3 stalks of celery, chopped
5 cloves of garlic
2 garnet yams (or regular potatoes), cut into 1 inch pieces
1-2 cups of chickpeas (or canellini beans)
1 1/2 bunches of green kale, chopped
1 bunch of chard, chopped
2 or 3 cubes of vegan bullion and about 6 cups water, or just 6 cups chicken or vegetable broth
Generous salt and pepper

directions

1
In a soup pot, warm the olive oil for a minute or so over medium-low heat. Drop in the onions, carrots, and celery. After a couple of minutes, add the garlic (it browns faster than everything else and you don’t want it to burn). Let the vegetables saute and soften for a few minutes. Season with salt and pepper (be conservative, you can always add more later)! (Note: if you’re using broth or bullion that already has salt in it, GO EASY on the salt here. You can always add more later, but you can never take it out if you go to far.)
2
Add the yams (or potatoes) and beans (or chickpeas). Add the water and the bullion cube (or the broth), then put a lid on your pot, turn the heat down low and leave it all to chill for about 20 minutes or until the potatoes and beans are tender (I personally like my potatoes a little disintegrate-y).
3
Come back and add the greens, maybe a little bit more salt and pepper (to taste) and then cover once more and let the greens steam. This should only take a minute or two.
4
That’s it! It really is that simple. Make sure the seasoning is to your liking, and then go to town on this delicious, healthy soup.
5
*Some other ideas: If you’re in the mood for something a little less hippie, you could add in bacon or pancetta by sauteeing it at the very beginning, taking it out, pouring off most of the fat, and then sauteeing the vegetables. Just add the bacon back in with the potatoes.
6
Another idea (if you’re in the mood for a little bit of a heartier soup) is to scoop out some of the potatoes after they’ve been cooked and puree them with some of the broth. Then you can put this potato puree back in an you’ll have a thicker, kind of creamy soup, without the cream.