White Bean, Tomato and Kale Soup

“I love a warm tomato broth based soup with beans and greens.  I was inspired by West Coast Nest’s Kale and White Bean Soup which looked delicious! I added a fun twist and spiced it up with my secret ingredient that I find always does the trick for bean and lentil soups–vegan worchestershire sauce.  It adds just the right tanginess to make it out of your typical ordinary!  I also added some quinoa and topped  it off with some homemade breadcrumbs.”

Breadcrumbs

Don’t worry too much about measuring.  Use whatever bread you have lying around or a small rustic baguette.  Pulse in a food processor or blender until you have fine or course breadcrumbs, whatever you prefer.  You can also break them up by hand if you don’t want to get the food processor out.  Lay out crumbs in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet.  Pour a few dashes of olive oil over crumbs, lightly sprinkle some rubbed thyme and salt then turn over with a spatula until all the crumbs are lightly coated.  Bake in the oven for about 5-10 minutes at 375 degrees until golden brown. Check often so as not to burn!

Soup

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 cups carrots, peeled and chopped
• 1 celery ribs, finely chopped
• 1 - 6 oz can tomato paste
• 6 cups no-chicken broth or vegetable broth
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• 1/4 tsp. rubbed thyme
• 1-2 tbsp vegan worchershire sauce
• 2 cups kale, finely sliced, stems removed
• 2 cup cooked and drained white beans
• 1/2 cup cooked quinoa
• salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Heat olive oil in large dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion and a pinch of salt and saute for about 4-5 minutes.
2. Add garlic, carrots and celery and saute about 8-10 minutes or until crisp tender.
3. Add tomato paste and mix well.  Stir in broth, cumin, thyme and 1 tbsp of worchershire sauce.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat to simmer and simmer about 15-20 minutes or until veggies are tender.
4. Stir in kale, beans and quinoa.  Taste for salt and pepper and season accordingly. Also, add in the extra tablespoon of worchestershire sauce if desired.