Pesto Soup with Red Beans, Kale and Tomatoes {GF, Vegan}

Easy to make pesto soup that takes less than 30 minutes. Gluten free and vegan yet full of flavors! Perfect for a busy weeknight.

It’s been a while since I’ve made soup. As you can see the last time I posted a soup recipe was over three months ago and to tell you the truth I made that soup back in January. So it’s been a while.

I don’t know what it is though but lately I’ve really been craving soup. A steaming hot bowl that’s smooth and rich and just yummy.

I realize it’s summer and more appropriate to have food that cools you down but I just can’t help it. I mean I need soup in my life all the time. I might need to blast the AC so that I can create the appropriate artificial cooler environment for the soup eating to be comfortable; but hey I have to do it; I just thrive on soup.

So while strolling through the local farmer’s here in Cologne Germany I spotted some fresh herbs, tomatoes and kale.

Perfect for a soup. So I quickly ran back to my kitchen and got to work on this pesto soup. Naturally, being obsessed with pesto I add it to almost everything including soup. This might seem like an odd application for pesto but trust me even one spoonful of pesto can seriously enhance the flavors in a big pot of soup.

For this pesto soup I used a vegetabe broth base to which I added diced fresh tomatoes, garlic, kale ad red beans. When making soup I love to first pan fry the ingredients in oil to extract maximum flavor from them so this pesto soup was no different. Lightly pan fry the tomatoes and garlic, as well as kale before adding the broth and beans. Let everything simmer and then add a few dollops of pesto and this pesto soup is complete and ready to eat!

This soup is quick and easy to make and full of flavors. I recommend making your own broth but of course that’s up to you.

5 from 1 vote

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Bean Veggie and Pesto Soup

Prep Time

5 mins

Cook Time

20 mins

Total Time

25 mins

 

Easy to make pesto soup that takes less than 30 minutes. Gluten free and vegan yet full of flavors! Perfect for a busy weeknight.

Course: Lunch, Soup

Cuisine: Healthy, Vegan

Servings: 4

Calories: 99 kcal

Author: Vicky

Ingredients

• 6 cups chicken or vegetable broth
• 1 tablespoon oil
• 4 to matoes diced
• 3 cloves garlic minced
• 5-8 large leaves kale thinly sliced
• 1 can red beans
• 2-3 tablespoons tomato pesto
• handful basil slivered
• a few green onions/chives thinly sliced
• optional: 2 tablespoons creme fraiche omit for vegan or dairy free version

Instructions

1. In a pot heat oil over medium heat. Add tomatoes and cook for several minutes. Add garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes.
2. Add kale, salt and pepper to taste. Cook for a few minutes.
3. Add vegetable broth and bring to a boil. Add red beans and pesto. Simmer for a few minutes.
4. Serve garnished with slivered basil and green onions or chives. Optional: top with a dollop of creme fraiche (omit for vegan or dairy free version)