With fall weather comes the change in leaves, the cooler temps and my need for warm comfort food, especially soup. I love soup for its versatility. It’s such a great, tasty way to incorporate vegetables and protein into your diet. There is a whole spectrum of varieties and flavors. Tonight I decided to go with making a Creamy Italian Vegan Soup. It’s rich, decadent and it fills you right up. This soup only gets better over time, which makes it perfect for leftovers! This delicious soup is made with a creamy puree from cashews, vegetable stock and vegan cream cheese. Packed full of kale, sun dried tomatoes and vegan italian sausage. It’s hard to stop at one bowl! Here are some helpful notes to making this soup. Hope you enjoy!
Tips For Making Creamy Italian Vegan Soup
Puree
Cashews are rich and flavorful. When blended they make the perfect base for a thick vegan soup. Using boiled water helps break down the cashew so they blend easier. When you blend the cashews incorporate the broth in 1 cup increments to guarantee smoothness,
Sausage
To make this vegan I am using Beyond Italian Sausage. It can break down easily and get grainy. So don’t be alarmed if it does. To avoid this completely you can cook your sausage separately and add it at the end. You can also use real sausage or something comparable if you want.
Cream Cheese and Sundried Tomatoes
The extra richness comes from adding the additional cream cheese. Use your dairy free cream cheese of choice. I like Kite hill. Make sure all of the cheese has melted into the soup. It should take about 10-15 minutes.
When using the jarred sun dried tomatoes in oil, remove as much of the oil as possible. I strain them and rinse them before putting them in the soup.
Kale
I use kale for greens in my soups. I feel it holds up better. You can also use spinach for this dish, I would add it at the very end of the cooking process.
Garnish
After dishing the soup when it’s finished, use a squeeze of lemon. It adds a brightness and depth to the soup. I also like taking additional cashews and adding them on top for texture.
Storing
This soup holds well for around 4 days. If you are using the Beyond Sausage. It will start breaking down in the soup. I still love the flavor but you could try substituting another sausage if it bothers you. Field Roast would also be a great vegan alternative. But it does have gluten in it for those GF kids out there.
Creamy Italian Vegan Soup
Ingredients
- 4 Links Beyond Meat Italian Sausage
- 2 Tbsp Oil I use avocado oil
- 4 Garlic Cloves Minced
- 1 Cup Yellow Onion Diced
- 2 Cups Dinosaur Kale Chopped
- 1 Cup Sundried Tomatoes Sliced
- 1/4 Cup Nutritional Yeast
- 1 Cup Cashews Soaked and Blended
- Boiling Water
- ½ Cup Dairy Free Cream Cheese
- 3 Cups Vegetable Broth
- 1 Tbsp Italian Seasoning
- 1 Tsp Salt and Pepper
Optional Garnish
- Lemon wedges
- Chopped cashews
Instructions
- In a small bowl add 1 cup cashews. Cover with boiling water. Let soak for 15 minutes. Strain water off and set aside.
- In a large pot add the oil, sausage, minced garlic and onions and brown until cooked through. Around 5 minutes. Stir in chopped kale and seasoning.
- In a blender add cashews, nutritional yeast and stock. Blend until smooth.
- Pour into pot.
- Stir in cream cheese, and sundried tomatoes.
- Allow these ingredients to cook together until it becomes creamy and incorporated. Around 15 minutes on simmer.
- Serve and garnish with a squeeze of lemon and crushed cashews.