Harvest Vegetable Soup

This homemade healthy Harvest Vegetable Soup is vegan and gluten free! It's made with beans and veggies like carrots, turnips, and kale.

This Healthy Vegetable Soup is a great way to utilize those late summer and early fall garden veggies. It's packed with vegetables that are simmered in a savory broth flavored with Mediterranean herbs and spices.

Soup is one of the best ways to use the vegetables that you've spent all summer growing in your garden. It's a great meal to enjoy as the weather turns colder, because it's not only healthy, but hearty and comforting as well.

There are lots of ways to prepare vegetable soup. This one is minimally seasoned, allowing for the flavors of the veggies to come through. It's not laden with dairy or heavy ingredients, but is totally delicious and satisfying in terms of texture and flavor.

This vegetable soup is loaded with carrots, root vegetables like turnips, kale, cannellini beans, and diced tomatoes. It's made in a Dutch oven on the stove top and makes for a great weeknight dinner.

This soup also makes for great leftovers and can be portioned out and eaten as a light lunch during the week. Alternately, it can be frozen and enjoyed at a later date.

Jump to:

• How To Add Flavor To Vegetable Soup
• Ingredients For Harvest Vegetable Soup
• Which Vegetables Go Best In Vegetable Soup?
• Do I Need To Peel The Vegetables First?
• Can I Sub Any Of The Veggies In This Soup?
• How To Make Harvest Vegetable Soup
• How Long Does Veggie Soup Take To Cook?
• What To Serve With Harvest Soup
• How Long Does This Soup Last In The Fridge?
• Can It Be Frozen?
• Harvest Vegetable Soup

How To Add Flavor To Vegetable Soup

This soup is made without any meat or dairy, so there are a few tricks that I like to employ that help to bring out the natural flavors of the veggies.

• Make sure to use plenty of aromatics, such as garlic, onions, and celery. Sautéing the aromatics in olive oil at the beginning of the cooking process helps to create a solid base that flavors the entire soup.
• Season the soup generously with kosher salt and pepper throughout the cooking process. Adding enough salt to the veggies as they sauté in a Dutch oven helps to bring out their natural sweetness, creating a more robust flavor.
• Adding an acidic ingredient, such as tomatoes helps to brighten up the flavors of any soup. For even more brightness, you can add a splash of vinegar or lemon juice.
• Dried or fresh herbs are a great way to add depth of flavor to any dish. This soup is made with dried Italian seasoning and fresh herbs such as thyme, rosemary, parsley, or basil can be added for even more freshness.
• Crushed red pepper flakes are added to this soup for an extra kick. Feel free to add some diced jalapeno, or any other hot peppers for even more heat.

Ingredients For Harvest Vegetable Soup

Here's what you'll need to make it.

• 6 cloves Garlic
• 1 Onion (any color)
• 3-4 stalks Celery
• 2 Tbsp. Olive Oil
• 4-5 large Carrots
• 2 Turnips
• 2-3 packed cups Kale (any variety)
• 4 cups Vegetable Broth
• 1 14.5 oz. can Diced Tomatoes
• 1 15 oz. can Cannellini Beans (can sub great Northern beans or kidney beans)
• 1 tsp. Italian Seasoning
• ¼ tsp. Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
• 1 tsp. Kosher Salt (split)
• ½ tsp. Pepper

Which Vegetables Go Best In Vegetable Soup?

Technically, you can add just about any vegetable to a soup, but it's important to remember that cooking times may vary depending on the type of vegetable used.

For instance, lighter vegetables with a higher water content, such as zucchini, asparagus, and bell peppers have shorter cooking time.

Heartier veggies, such as carrots, rutabaga, green beans, and sweet potatoes have a lower water content and take longer to cook.

Generally, the heartier vegetables with a longer cooking time are added at the beginning of the soup and ones that cook quickly are added toward the end of the cooking time.

This Harvest Vegetable Soup is made primarily with hearty vegetables, such as carrots and turnips, or any root vegetable of choice. These veggies take longer to cook than the kale, which is added just before the soup is finished cooking.

The garlic, onions, and celery are sautéed at the beginning of the cooking process, creating a rich base of flavor for the soup.

Do I Need To Peel The Vegetables First?

In the United States, root vegetables such as turnips, rutabaga, or parsnips are often coated in a food-grade wax when purchased from the grocery store.

I highly recommend washing and peeling any root vegetables to get rid of that food-grade wax before chopping and adding to the soup.

If the veggies are not coated in a food-grade wax, make sure to thoroughly wash and scrub them to remove any excess dirt. You can peel them if you like.

Can I Sub Any Of The Veggies In This Soup?

Absolutely, this vegetable soup can be customized to your tastes!

• Feel free to sub parsnips or rutabaga for turnips if you prefer.
• Any hearty greens of choice may be used in place of kale. Swiss chard, arugula, or spinach can be substituted for kale.
• Any canned beans may be used in place of cannellini beans. Feel free to sub great Northern beans or kidney beans if preferred.

Looking for more healthy soups? Don't miss these recipes!

• Chunky Italian Vegetable Soup
• Tuscan Vegetable Noodle Soup
• Cannellini Bean Kale Soup
• Sweet Potato Kale Soup
• Thai Potato Corn Chowder
• Dutch Oven Vegetable Stew

How To Make Harvest Vegetable Soup

The process of making homemade vegetable soup is pretty straightforward.

It starts by chopping and sautéing the aromatics and veggies with olive oil in a Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed soup pot. The veggies are then simmered in vegetable broth, along with some dried herbs until tender.

1. Start by mincing 6 cloves of garlic and 1 onion (any color).
2. Finely chop 3-4 stalks of celery.
3. Thoroughly wash and scrub 4-5 large carrots and 2 turnips (or root vegetables of choice). Peel the root vegetables to get rid of any food-grade wax. Peel the carrots if desired.
4. Chop the carrots and turnips, making sure that they are all relatively the same size to ensure that they cook evenly.
5. Roughly chop 2-3 packed cups of kale (or hearty greens of choice).
6. Place a large cast iron Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed soup pot on the stove top and heat to medium-high. Once heated, add 2 Tbsp. olive oil to the pot.
7. After the oil has heated, add the minced garlic, onions, and celery to the pot. Sauté for 5-6 minutes, stirring often.
8. Add the diced carrots and turnips to the Dutch oven, along with ½ tsp. each kosher salt and pepper. Sauté for 7-8 minutes, stirring often.
9. Add 4 cups of vegetable broth to the Dutch oven, along with 1 14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes (with juices).
10. Bring the soup to a boil. Once boiling, reduce to a low boil, cover, and cook for 15 minutes.

How Long Does Veggie Soup Take To Cook?

Veggie soup actually does not take very long to cook on the stove top.

The carrots and turnips cook on a low boil for 15 minutes. The rest of the ingredients are then added and continue to cook over a low boil for another 15 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender.

Overall, this vegetable soup takes 40-45 minutes to cook on the stove top.

1. After 15 minutes on a low boil, remove the cover and add 1 14.5 oz. can of drained cannellini beans (or canned beans of choice), along with 1 tsp. Italian seasoning, ¼ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes, ½ tsp. kosher salt, and 2-3 packed cups of chopped kale (or hearty greens of choice).
2. Stir all of these ingredients together, cover the soup pot, and cook on a low boil for another 15 minutes, or until the veggies are tender, but not mushy and the kale has wilted.
3. Feel free to cook for another 5 minutes or so if needed.

The carrots and turnips should be easily pierced with a fork when finished.

What To Serve With Harvest Soup

I always think soups like this are a great way to celebrate all that work we put into our gardens during the summer months. Soups made with vegetables that literally taste like the earth are perfect for paying homage to harvest time.

This soup can be enjoyed as-is, or topped with your favorite fresh herbs. Thyme, rosemary, parsley, or basil would all make for a great garnish.

You can also add some grated Parmesan or Romano cheese for extra richness if you don't mind the added dairy.

Feel free to add a splash of vinegar or squeeze of lemon juice if you'd like to brighten up the flavors even more.

I love soups like this one served with some cheddar chive scones or homemade biscuits for dipping. Any type of warm, crusty bread or pita bread is also a great pairing.

You can't go wrong with this Italian grilled cheese sandwich, pesto grilled cheese, Mediterranean flatbread pizza, or arugula pesto pizza for a tasty complement to this soup.

How Long Does This Soup Last In The Fridge?

Any leftover soup may be stored for 3-4 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Be sure to allow it to cool completely before transferring to the fridge for storage.

Can It Be Frozen?

Yes! Soups like this Harvest Vegetable Soup make a great freezer meal.

How To Freeze

1. Prepare the soup as directed and allow it to cool completely before transferring to the freezer for storage.
2. Once cooled, place in heavy-duty freezer bags or airtight freezer-friendly food containers, label with the date, and freeze up to 3 months.

How To Reheat

1. Transfer the soup to the refrigerator and allow it to thaw overnight.
2. Place the thawed soup in a soup pot and heat on the stove top or in the microwave.
3. You can also place the frozen soup in a Dutch Oven or heavy-bottomed soup pan, add some water or broth, thaw and reheat on the stove top.

During those busy fall weeknights when everyone is back in school it's nice to have meals like this pre-made in the freezer to heat up as we need them!

Looking for more vegan soups? Check out these recipes!

• Root Vegetable Soup
• Roasted Carrot Ginger Soup
• Mediterranean Lentil Soup
• Curried Cauliflower Potato Soup
• Butternut Squash Soup
• Potato Leek Cauliflower Soup
• Cauliflower Red Lentil Soup
• Vegetable Orzo Soup

Looking For More Healthy Soup Recipes? Don't Miss These!

Instant Pot Veggie Lentil Soup

Instant Pot Cauliflower Soup

Ginger Spinach Soup