Vegan Soup for Colds and Flu (Immunity Boosting)
This delicious and creamy vegan soup is packed with wholesome and highly nutritious ingredients. This healing soup is a perfect way to boost your immunity during the cold, flu and winter season.
Servings: 12 servings (depending on preferred serving size)
Calories: 85kcal
Ingredients
Soup:
- 2 tablespoon Oil (or 1 tablespoon if using vegan butter)
- 1 tablespoon Vegan butter (optional, for creamier taste)
- 7 Garlic cloves
- 1 Red chillies 1 (use 2 chillies for spicier soup)
- 1 Leek chopped
- 1 Yellow Onions (brown onions) finely chopped
- 2 Celery sticks finely chopped
- 1 Carrots finely chopped
- 1 inch Fresh turmeric root finely chopped
- 1 Roasted bell pepper/capsicum red/mixture of red and orange x 1 (see below for instructions to roast pepper)
- 1 Red bell pepper/capsicum (or orange/green pepper) (optional)
- 1 Zucchini/courgette chopped (optional)
- ½ cup Water
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- ½ teaspoon Fresh finely ground black pepper
- 1 small (or ½ large) Butternut squash chopped
- 2-3 Sweet potatoes chopped
To roast bell pepper
- 1 teaspoon Olive oil 1 tsp
- 1 Bell pepper red/mixture of red and orange remove stem, 1 roughly chopped
Instructions
To roast bell pepper/capsicum
- Brush a non-stick frying pan with olive oil. Add chopped peppers and roast in pan on medium heat for 4-5 minutes or until soft and roasted.
Make soup
- Sauté garlic and chillies. Heat oil in a large heavy bottomed pan on medium high heat, add garlic and chillies and sauté for 1 minute, until slightly golden. Add chopped leeks and cook for another 2 minutes.
- Add chopped onions, celery and carrots and fresh turmeric (if using, see recipe notes) cook for 2 minutes, stirring intermittently.
- Stir in the chopped bell peppers (unroasted) and zucchini (if using) and cook for another 1-2 minutes. Season with salt and black pepper.
- Add butternut squash, sweet potatoes and water. Cover and cook for 15-20 minutes or until soft. Stir intermittently (every 5 minutes) to evenly cook vegetables.
- Add roasted peppers and cook for another 2 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool for 10-15 minutes.
- Blend until smooth and serve in bowls. Transfer into a blender and blend until smooth (see recipe notes about turmeric). Serve fresh soup in bowls and enjoy! Optional - garnish with spinach puree/lemon juice or a drizzle of olive oil, vegan yogurt or vegan sour cream and some fresh herbs!
Notes
- Fresh turmeric root: wear food-grade gloves when peeling turmeric as it can cause yellow staining. Turmeric can also stain your blender yellow. To avoid this I recommend a few options: (Option 1) Omit turmeric if you are using a blender to blend soup. (Option 2) Use a handheld/immersion blender to blend soup in pan if you are adding turmeric.(Option 3) If you wish to add turmeric but do not have a handheld blender – do not add turmeric at step 2. Instead add during step 6 (transfer blended soup into pan and stir in minced turmeric).
- Prepare ingredients in advance: this helps the soup come together easily.
- Do not overcook: to help retain the nutrients it is important not to overcook the vegetables. Cook until soft and tender (not squidgy).
- Adjust as desired: this soup is versatile and works with a range of veggies! You can modify the vegetables and spices in this soup depending on your preferences and taste.
Nutrition
Calories: 85kcal | Carbohydrates: 13g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 0.5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Sodium: 231mg | Potassium: 277mg | Fiber: 2g | Vitamin A: 7063IU | Vitamin C: 37mg | Calcium: 28mg | Folate: 26µg | Iron: 1mg | Zinc: 0.3mg