White Bean and Kale Soup

Flavor-packed white bean and kale soup is the epitome of comfort food. It’s full of greens, legumes, and lots of vegetables like onion, celery, and butternut squash. Plus, this recipe is hearty and filling with a protein boost that comes from lean ground beef. Best of all, it’s ready in just 35 minutes, making it perfect for a busy weeknight.

And, have you noticed that soup always gets better as the ingredients marinate together in the refrigerator? That’s another thing I love about this kale recipe: it’s even better the next day, and leftovers make the perfect, easy lunch.

 

Cozy soups are the best way to survive cold weather because they really heat up the kitchen. Though I’ll absolutely eat them any time of year, I appreciate a hot meal most when I need help warming up.

If you need more comforting soup recipes, be sure to check out my Chicken Vegetable Soup, Chicken Noodle Soup, Carrot Leek Soup, Dutch Oven Beef Stew, and Zucchini Noodle Soup, or this incredible Healthy Meatball Soup!

Ingredients To Make White Bean And Kale Soup

• Olive oil — Extra virgin. Sub coconut or avocado oil if desired.
• Ground beef — Lean and grass-fed. I generally use 93/7% beef. If you use fattier meat, I recommend draining the excess fat after browning, before adding other ingredients.
• Onion (white or yellow onion) — Either yellow or white.
• Celery — 3-4 stalks, diced.
• Garlic — This recipe calls for minced, fresh garlic cloves, but you can substitute about ¼ teaspoon of garlic powder in a pinch, if necessary.
• Butternut squash — Buy a whole squash from the grocery store or look for a pre-cut option in the produce section to save a little time. Sweet potato would be a nice alternative!
• Chicken broth — Vegetable broth or stock will also work well.
• Seasonings — I like using dried oregano, salt, and black pepper. Feel free to play around with other herbs and spices if desired; this recipe is quite flexible. You can ass red pepper flakes for some extra heat.
• Beans — I like using cannellini beans, though white navy beans would be a nice substitute.
• Kale — Be sure to remove stems before adding to soup.
• Parmesan cheese — Freshly grated parmesan cheese will have the best taste, though pre-shredded or grated will still be yummy.

Instructions

Instructions to Make this Kale Soup

Prep work:

• Chop onion, dice celery, mince garlic, and set aside.
• Peel, halve, and remove seeds from your squash. Dice it into small, half-inch cubes.
• Remove stems from kale and chop it into bite-sized pieces.

Sauté:

• Measure olive oil into a large soup pot or Dutch oven and place on the stovetop over high heat. Once the oil is hot, reduce the heat to medium and add the ground beef. Crumble meat with a wooden spoon and allow it to brown completely.
• Once all of the pink color is gone, add the onion, celery, and garlic. Mix it in and sauté with beef for approximately 5 minutes.

Boil the soup:

• Mix in your butternut squash cubes, then add chicken stock and spices.
• Cover the pot and turn the heat to high. Once boiling, reduce heat to medium and simmer 15 minutes or until the veggies are tender.

Serve:

• Mix white beans and chopped kale into the soup. Once the kale has wilted, do a taste test and add more salt/pepper, if desired.
• Ladle soup into serving bowls, top with freshly grated parmesan cheese, and enjoy.

How To Store Leftovers

• To Store: Allow this kale soup to cool and place it in an airtight container. Refrigerate for 3 to 4 days.
• To Freeze: Allow leftovers to cool and place them in a freezer-safe food storage container, leaving some space at the top as the soup will expand when freezing. Store frozen for up to 3 months.
• To reheat: You can reheat this soup straight from frozen. Use the microwave or place soup in a pot on the stovetop, over medium heat, until warmed through completely.

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