Vegan cream of broccoli soup with coconut milk, spinach, and basil.
Creamy broccoli coconut milk soup with fresh or frozen spinach, and lots of basil. A healthy, vegan soup for any season.
I am a soup person and I have “trained” my family into being a soup family as well. I could actually have some every day, either for lunch or dinner. I don’t, but I honestly could.
They are so versatile, you can always make something different, the possibilities are really endless. Creamy soups like this one or our favorite carrot soup, chicken, beef, Asian, well, anything goes, I have rarely cooked one I didn’t like.
What do you need?
Vegetables:
- Broccoli
- Spinach – fresh or frozen.
- I only used ½ a broccoli. First of all, that was what I had in the fridge, but even if I did have a whole head I would have used just half of it and replaced the rest with the spinach. Why?
- Well, I like any kind of dish made with spinach, but also I love the vibrant green color given by the spinach.
- If I ever had one issue with a pure cream of broccoli soup recipe, it was its color… khaki… no khaki food ever looks appetizing to me. And a pure broccoli soup, despite its wonderful taste, is just khaki and not pretty to look at…
- But add some spinach and voila: a boost of flavor and a beautiful green color!
- Basil – definitely fresh leaves, dried basil is not very flavorful and you will love the kick that the fresh one imparts the soup.
- Potatoes: they add more texture to the soup, making it creamy without the addition of cream or cream cheese.
Other ingredients:
- Coconut milk – adds a lot of flavor and makes the soup vegan.
- Other vegan options are soy milk, oat milk, or any kind of nut milk. However, none of this is so flavorful, creamy, and delicious as coconut milk.
- For a non-vegan soup, you can use whole milk or cream.
How to make?
- Prepare all your vegetables:
- onions and chili – chopped finely
- garlic and ginger – grated
- potatoes – peeled and cut into small cubes
- broccoli stem – cleaned and cut into cubes
- broccoli head – divided into florets
- frozen spinach – defrosted and drained
- fresh spinach, if using – chopped
- Cook the onions, chili, garlic, and ginger in the coconut oil, about 3 minutes.
- Add the potatoes and the stem. Cook until almost done, about 8 minutes, but check, it depends on the size of your potato cubes.
- Add the florets and the coconut oil. Cook for another 5 minutes or so, until all the vegetables are soft.
- Add the defrosted and drained spinach or the fresh one. Let wilt for about 2 minutes. Add the chopped basil and the lemon juice as well.
- Puree the soup in a blender or with an immersion blender. Adjust the taste with salt and pepper.
- Like any other soup, the broccoli coconut milk soup can be easily reheated.
- Serve with bread or crispbread.
More favorite soups:
German Lentil Potato Soup with Vienna Sausages
Tomato Ginger Soup with Poached Eggs
Turkey Meatball and Vegetable Soup
Broccoli Soup with Coconut Milk - Vegan
Yield:
4
Prep Time:
15 minutes
Cook Time:
15 minutes
Total Time:
30 minutes
Vegan cream of broccoli soup with coconut milk, spinach, and basil.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil (or olive oil)
- 1 small onion
- 1 large garlic clove
- 2 cm/ 0.8 inches ginger
- ½ teaspoon red chili flakes, more or less to taste (See note 1)
- 500 ml/ 17 fl.oz/ 2 cups vegetable stock
- 200 g/ 7 oz potatoes (1 medium to large potato)
- ½ head of broccoli, about 250 g/ 8.8 oz
- ½ can coconut milk, 200 g/ 7 oz
- 250 g/ 8.8 oz frozen spinach, defrosted and drained (See note 2)
- 15 large basil leaves
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Chop the onion finely. Grate the garlic and the ginger. If using fresh chili, chop it very finely as well. Peel the potatoes and cut them into cubes. Cut the stem of the broccoli into cubes as well. Divide the rest of the broccoli into florets, but keep them separated from the broccoli stem and the potatoes.
- Heat the coconut oil in a medium pot. Add the onion, garlic, ginger, and chili and stir for about 3 minutes.
- Add the vegetable stock, potatoes and only the broccoli stem. Bring to a boil and cook on medium-low heat for about 8 minutes or until the potatoes are almost done.
- Add the coconut milk and the broccoli florets. Cook for about 5 more minutes until all the vegetables are soft. Add the defrosted and drained spinach or the chopped fresh spinach. Stir until wilted, about 2 minutes. Add the chopped or torn basil leaves and the lemon juice.
- Puree the soup in a blender or with an immersion blender. Adjust the taste with salt, pepper, and more lemon juice, if necessary.
Notes
- Fresh chili can be used instead, to taste.
- If using fresh spinach you will need about 400 g/ 14 oz fresh spinach. Chop it and add it to the soup. Let it wilt in the soup and continue with the recipe.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1/4 of the soupAmount Per Serving: Calories: 233Total Fat: 15gSaturated Fat: 12gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 730mgCarbohydrates: 24gFiber: 5gSugar: 3gProtein: 6g
Nutrition information isn’t always accurate.
Mary Steelman
Friday 16th of August 2019
I love being healthy...
Anca
Tuesday 12th of March 2019
The soup sounds really delicious and it looks so fresh and colourful. I love this recipe.
angiesrecipes
Tuesday 12th of March 2019
I am a soup person and adore all the greens. This is a perfectly light and tasty meal for me.