Creamy White Bean Zucchini Spinach Soup Oil-Free WFPB

A satisfying whole food plant-based soup with rich umami flavor. Zucchini and spinach make for a soothing, deeply nourishing, harmonious vegetable pairing that’s brightened by the citrusy goodness of fresh lemon juice. Any kind of white beans work in this healthy and versatile recipe.

WHY I LOVE IT

Zucchini is one of my favorite ingredients in creamy green soups. The delicate flavor of this prolific summer squash pairs well with every green vegetable I can think of. When fully cooked and puréed, zucchini improves the texture of soups and sauces. This is a flexible recipe in the sense that any green leafy vegetable can be used in place of spinach, and the white beans can be any variety, canned or home cooked. It’s one of those easy nourishing recipes that I can throw together with ingredients I frequently have on hand. Fresh thyme happens to grow in my garden practically year round and I love how its woody flavor pairs with lemon.

IMMERSION BLENDER RECOMMENDED

In order to create a creamy texture, you will need some sort of blender or food processor. An immersion blender is especially good for soups because it saves you the trouble of taking cooked ingredients out of the pot and into another container for processing. You could make this soup using a stand alone blender or food processor instead, but it’s a bit of extra work because you would have to let the soup cool a bit first then run it through in batches. Another way is to strain out all the vegetables, purée them separately from the rest of the broth, then mix them back into the broth and reheat.

CELERY LEAVES, THYME, LEMON

Celery leaves are underappreciated and seldom used in American home cooking. In fact, most of them are chopped off from the celery before getting to store shelves. This is too bad because celery leaves are packed with flavor and nutrients. When I shop for celery I always try to find the heads with the most leaves. You can also find celery sold in individual stalks with a few leaves on them. I use celery leaves for soups, sauces and add them to smoothies. Thyme and celery are particularly tasty together in savory dishes, creating an earthy woodsy flavor bouquet that’s even better when you add lemon. If you don’t have celery leaves, use fresh parsley instead or just use a little more celery stalk.

CHOOSING YOUR BEANS

This recipe works best with white beans because any other color detracts from the aesthetics of the final product. By this I mean that any other bean color will make the soup look muddy. The beans you see in my ingredients photo are Marcella beans ordered from Rancho Gordo which I precooked from dry. If using canned beans, cannellini (aka white kidney beans) would be a great choice. Great northern, navy or butter beans would also work. I’ll be honest, canned beans will never taste quite as good as beans you’ve boiled yourself, but knowing this doesn’t keep me from using canned beans all the time anyway. I try to get pulses into my body every single day, and I need the convenience. Ironically, sometimes I’m so busy writing recipe posts that I don’t have time to cook!

EARTHY UMAMI WITH MUSHROOM POWDER

Mushrooms can contribute a depth of umami flavor that we usually associate with animal foods. I love cooking with fresh and dried mushrooms. I’m even a fairly skilled mushroom hunter. But it’s often the case that I want to bring some umami mushroom goodness into my cooking without introducing the texture of mushrooms. And that’s where culinary mushroom powders come in.

Almost any culinary mushroom powder would be acceptable in this recipe. I prefer to use shiitake mushroom powder because it’s the most subtle and thus the most versatile. But porcini powder and lion’s mane powder are also amazing, though they have a stronger, less creamy, flavor. It’s worth investing in mushroom powders as pantry staples. Using them sparingly, adding little bits here and there in your cooking, can take savory plant-based dishes to another level. Mushroom powders can blend in with other flavors inconspicuously when used in moderation. Shiitake mushroom powder happens to be the least conspicuous and the best at highlighting the umami notes present in adjacent ingredients.

But these powders have benefits that go beyond flavor. Shiitake mushroom powder is a perfect example. I would be in mad love with shiitake mushroom powder even if it wasn’t as ridiculously good for you as the research says it is. Think vitamins, minerals, immune function, weight loss and more. You can google the scientific good-for-you part, if you’re interested.

EASY PEASY OIL-FREE SAUTÉING

Although this is a soup where eventually most of the ingredients are simmered together for an extended amount of time, I still like to sauté the onions, celery, garlic and zucchini first in order to build flavor through caramelization. And yes, caramelization still happens when you’re not using oil for sautéing.

I like to use vegetable stock for sautéing but water works perfectly well too. Usually, I make my vegetable stock by dissolving low salt stock cubes in water, but you can use any kind of vegetable stock—homemade, liquid concentrate, canned or boxed.

Begin by heating about 2 to 3 tablespoons of vegetable stock, or water, in a large pot over high heat. Keep more water or stock close at hand to use as needed. When the liquid in the pot comes to a rolling boil, reduce heat to medium-high and add chopped onions. Sauté for 5 to 6 minutes or until the onions become translucent, adding little bits of liquid as needed. Then add the garlic and celery and sauté for another 3 minutes, adding liquid if necessary. Finally, add the sliced zucchini and keep sautéing all the vegetables together until the zucchini gets soft and tender.

SIMMERING PHASE

Now you’re ready to add the vegetable stock, cooked beans, mushroom powder, thyme and celery leaves. Simmer for another 15 to 20 minutes until the zucchini is very soft. Mix in the spinach leaves and cook stirring for another minute or two until the spinach wilts and turns dark green.

PROCESSING AND FINAL PREP

The nice thing about an immersion blender is that you can process your soup while it’s still warm and inside the pot. I like my creamy soups to be very smooth and creamy so I’m patient with my immersion blender moving it around until it gets to everything, but you can leave your soup a little chunky if that’s what you prefer. Once you get the soup as smooth and creamy as you want it to be, all you need to do is add the fresh lemon juice and season with salt and pepper to taste.

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