Mean green vegetable soup
There are 12 different types of vegetables in this delicious recipe from Scrumptious, – and it tastes absolutely sensational. So creamy and delicious that even fussy eaters won’t realise the extent of the goodness lurking within. To make this soup dairy-free, leave out the Parmesan, swap the butter with coconut oil and replace the crème fraîche and cream with 2 cups of coconut milk and/or coconut cream.
Prep time – 10 minutes
Cooking time – 30 minutes
Serves 8
Ingredients
400g bag spinach, washed, stalks removed
50g butter (or 1/4 cup coconut oil)
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 shallots, roughly chopped
1 large leek, roughly chopped
3 sticks celery, roughly chopped
5 cloves garlic
1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves (about 8 sprigs)
8 cups vegetable or chicken stock (check gluten-free if required)
2 cups peas
1 head broccoli, chopped
½ large cauliflower (or 1 small), chopped
1 large carrot, chopped
2 kumara, peeled and chopped
2 courgettes, chopped
200g crème fraîche
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1 cup cream
1 cup chopped fresh herbs (chives, dill, parsley, basil)
3 tsp lemon juice, or more to taste
Method
First blanch the spinach to preserve the lovely green colour: Add 1cm of water to a large soup or stock pot over a high heat and cover with a lid. Bring to the boil and add 1/2 tsp salt and the spinach leaves. Cover and simmer for a minute or so until wilted. Tip the spinach into a colander in the sink and run cold water over it for few minutes to stop it cooking. When completely cool, squeeze the spinach out and set aside.
To the same stock pot, add the butter and olive oil over a medium heat. When frothy, add the chopped onion, shallots, leek, celery, garlic and thyme. Cook, stirring, for about 10 minutes until the veges are softened and starting to caramelise. Add the stock and remaining vegetables. Cover with the lid, bring to a simmer and continue to simmer for about 10 minutes, or until the vegetables are just cooked – they shouldn’t have any crunch to them, but they don’t need to be mushy.
Add the spinach back into the pot.
Now you need to blend the soup. This is best done with a hand held stick-blender in the cooking pot, and can be done carefully while the mixture is still hot. If you have a blender, cool the mixture to warm before blending the soup in batches. Blending hot liquids can cause explosions. You can also use a food processor, but again, cool first and do it in batches.
Add the crème fraîche, Parmesan, cream, fresh herbs and lemon juice to the soup and simmer for a few minutes to melt the cheese and heat through. Taste, and season with salt, black pepper and white pepper (if you have it) to your liking. Add more lemon juice if you like.
Chelsea’s tips
- It’s a pretty forgiving recipe, so you can use up the veges you have lying around. If it’s too thick, thin it out with more stock or cream.
- For a superfood boost, add some kale leaves in when simmering the other vegetables.
- When using the leek, discard the very outer leaves and the firm dark green tops.
Is this the same soup as in the Scrumptious book, but called Splendiferous Soup?
very very close! x
Can you freeze this with the cream, Parmesan cheese & creme fraiche in it?
My kids ( who hate veges) love this ,we make it regularly and they call it crocodile soup because of the colour. we have it for dinner with a nice loaf of crusty bread .
Hi Chelsea,
Would this go OK in a slow cooker? I have made it heaps but would love to be able to get my grandad making it and a slow cooker is easy for him to use.
Mean Green Vegetable Soup – Do you have nutrition information for this recipe?C
My absolute favourite soup! Kids love it too and makes a big quantity so there are leftovers. Full of delicious goodness!
Absolutely love this soup!! We had the leftover soup the next day as a pasta sauce with some chicken, so delicious.
Would it be possible to use milk instead of cream? I imagine it won’t have quite the same dept but just trying to avoid adding extra fats.
How essential is the oil? Half cup of oil (olive and coconut) seems like a lot!
It’s a HUGE batch of soup, the oil works out okay :)
Hi Chelsea, is this recipe in one of your books? I made it for my cousin and she loved it, so would like to get her the book with the recipe in for Christmas. Thanks
Yes, it’s in Scrumptious and it’s called Splendiferous Soup x
Awesome, thank you for replying. I will order it now :)
Is there an alternative to the creme fraiche? Sour cream perhaps?
Yes sure! Or just extra cream :)
Can you freeze this soup?
Yum! Made this today and it’s delicious!
I’very frozen 3 containers for later and we’ll be enjoying the rest for dinner tonight. :-)
Amazing x
Just made this awesome soup and its just the freaking awesome. My daughter and i love your recipes and use them all the time.
This is delicious! I really don’t like veggies and avoid them as much as I can. I read your recipe and the feedback and decided to give it a go and I’m so glad I did. I can’t believe that I just ate soup that was made up of 12 vegetables!
This looks amazing – how do you think it would behave in a slow cooker?
Can reduced cream be used in place of regular cream? Thanks?
Can’t wait to make this Chelsea. When hubby & I were in the States a few years ago we ate the best 9 vegetable soup. Whenever I make soup hubby asks “is it 9 vegetable soup?” This is a winner already! :-)
Sounds lovely – is this in one of your books?
Yes, it’s in Scrumptious :)
Loved your thai roast pumpkin soup, about to try the dairy free version of this one with homemade dairy free parmesan – 3/4 cup cashews, 3 Tbsp nutritional yeast, 1/2 tsp garlic granules and 3/4 tsp salt – buzz together in a food processor, great substitute!
Need this for our grandson who has to be dairy free, what is nutritional yeast
Hi, I am keen to make this a plant based soup what you recommend I swap the cream and cheese with?
This soup is so good. I’ve made it about 5 times so far this winter. Freeze it into portions for easy lunch at work. So adaptable too, to chuck in other veges. I prefer it less creamy so I put less in to suit my taste. I had some for lunch today actually, with crunchy vogels toast. Yummo
Great soup !! friend cooked this as starter for dinner party last night…..was loved by all thanks:)
How long would this be good for in the fridge? And could you freeze it & use later?
Hey Chels. Would silverbeet go ok in this?
do you have to use garlic cloves?
By far my favourite soup ever! Yum!
Can the kumara be swapped for potato?
Yep!
Will it freeze okay with the dairy in it
Yep.
This is now my favourite soup! So yum.
Hi Chelsea
How long will the soup keep?
A week in the fridge – or until the cream expires.
Hi Chelsea, great soup, fantastic flavour and will be awesome for work lunches. But mine is a bit stringy even though I stick-blended it for ages. Does that mean I need a new stick blender (it’s pretty old) or that I didn’t cook the veges enough do you think?
Perhaps a bit of both – I reckon a new stick blender is a good idea!
I can confirm the dairy free version of this soup is 100% delicious – husband loves it, daughter loves it and I love the leftovers for lunch the next day at work. Thanks Chelsea for another wonderful recipe :-)
Without a doubt the best soup I have EVER made! It tastes like you’re eating heaven! Totally unexpected, with all the greenery inside! So creamy and sweet! Kids loved it too…
Thanks Annah, how lovely to hear!
Hi Chelsea, is the dairy version freezeable? I want to make a big batch for lunches :-)
Hi Chelsea, is this freezeable? I’d like to make a big batch for lunches but am not sure if it’s ok to freeze with the cream, etc?
Yes :)
This looks delicious! Will be pulling some vege from the garden to make this! :-)
Hi Chelsea
This sounds amazing. Can you give a dairy free version?
Thanks
Anne
Yes it’s in the intro :)
Thanks so much Chelsea – I’ve been waiting for you to do a veggie soup!! :-) Looking forward to trying it.
P.S. Your mighty chocolate cake wowed at a family lunch today! ;-)