This hearty vegan lentil and black bean soup recipe is the perfect comfort food for chilly days. Only 223 calories per generous serving! 223 calories and 2 Weight Watcher Freestyle SP
In the spirit of Meatless Monday, I pulled together a healthy, vegetarian (actually, this one will satisfy those who prefer vegan, too) soup for dinner. Truth be told, I needed something light after a weekend of hot gravy sandwiches – that would be a piece of bread, smeared with cranberry-maple sauce, loaded with turkey and stuffing and drenched in gravy. Oh yeah. You can see why I needed to get back to basics. A simple soup of lentils simmered with black beans, onions, garlic and flavored with smoked paprika is just what the diet doctor ordered. My jeans concur. All this talk about meatless meals leads me to this cookbook.
Last week I attended a book signing for Pam Anderson’s new book, Cook Without a Book: Meatless Meals. You may remember that I am a big fan of Pam Anderson’s recipes and books – her Spicy Coconut Shrimp Stew is one of our favorites. Pam speaks to the home cook, developing recipes that can be made and enjoyed by novice and experienced cooks alike. She is a down-to-earth, kind soul who clearly loves what she does. She was accompanied by her daughter Maggy, who is a force of her own – she has one of the biggest hearts of anyone I know and spunk to spare. Pam, Maggy and Sharon (Pam’s other daughter) together are Three Many Cooks.
There are plenty of books out there that are packed with vegetarian recipes. So, what makes Pam’s book different? One of the most appealing things to me is that the book provides formulas for whipping up healthy, meatless meals while providing latitude so that you can come up with your own flavor combinations depending on what ingredients you have on hand. If you’re not in the mood for being creative, that’s okay. There are plenty of suggestions for each type of meal and the categories run the gamut from oatmeal and breakfast pizzas to skillet stews and fast-food favorites (Italian, Asian and Mexican).
This Lentil & Black Bean Soup recipe doesn’t come from Pam’s book, but is inspired by her philosophy of working more meatless meals in our repertoire.
The lentil black bean soup recipe:
Heat olive oil in a large sauce pan set over medium heat. Add onions and celery and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are beginning to soften, 6 to 7 minutes.
Add garlic, smoked paprika and bay leaves and saute for 30 seconds.
Stir in diced tomatoes with juices, lentils, 3 cups vegetable or chicken broth and 3 cups water. Increase heat to medium-high and bring the mixture to a boil.
Reduce the heat slightly and cook, stirring occasionally, until lentils are tender, 25 to 35 minutes.
Remove from the heat and let cool for about 10 minutes. Remove and discard the bay leaves. Transfer half of the lentil mixture, half of the black beans and 3/4 cup chicken broth to the bowl of a blender or food processor. Pulse until combined, but not pureed. It should be a chunky texture.
Pour the blender mixture back into the lentils in the saucepan, along with the remaining 1 cup of vegetable or chicken broth and remaining black beans. Stir and reheat over medium heat. Stir in parsley. Serve.
Other recipes with lentils:
Instant Pot Lentil Soup with Sweet Potatoes {Cookin’ Canuck}
Dal Makhani {Indian Simmer}
Lentil Drops in Garlic Tomato Sauce {eCurry}
Curried Lentil Soup {Namely Mary}
Roasted Shrimp & Green Lentils {Blue Kitchen}
Hearty Lentil & Black Bean Soup with Smoked Paprika
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 large onion chopped
- 2 large stalks celery diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 14 ounces can diced tomatoes
- 1 cup dried brown lentils
- 4 3/4 cup low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth divided
- 3 cups water
- 1 14 ounces can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1/4 cup chopped parsley
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large sauce pan set over medium heat. Add onions and celery and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are beginning to soften, 6 to 7 minutes.
- Add garlic, smoked paprika and bay leaves and saute for 30 seconds.
- Stir in diced tomatoes with juices, lentils, 3 cups vegetable or chicken broth and 3 cups water. Increase heat to medium-high and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat slightly and cook, stirring occasionally, until lentils are tender, 25 to 35 minutes.
- Remove from the heat and let cool for about 10 minutes. Remove and discard the bay leaves. Transfer half of the lentil mixture, half of the black beans and ¾ cup vegetable or chicken broth to the bowl of a blender or food processor. Pulse until combined, but not pureed. It should be a chunky texture.
- Pour the blender mixture back into the lentils in the saucepan, along with the remaining 1 cup of chicken broth and remaining black beans. Stir and reheat over medium heat. Stir in parsley. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve.
Notes
Nutrition
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Sheril
Great soup! I added a couple of handfuls of chopped kale as well as some red pepper flakes for an extra kick! Delicious.
Lori M
I made this last night and it was a hit! Even my son who is a picky eater ate every bit of it. Will definitely be making this again. Thank you so much! Can’t wait for more soup recipes. Love your site!
Carolyn
I saw this recipe on pinterest and had to repin. I am in love with black beans and considering switching to a vegetarian diet. With recipes like this one, the switch may be closer than anticipated. Thanks for the creation, I can’t wait to try it.
Sarah@Crazy Love Gamble-Style
Think this would work in a crockpot? If so do you think you could just throw it all in & let it go or would you still need to saute the veggies?
Shannon C
I like you on Facebook as well!
Shannon C
Sounds tasty 🙂 love the improv
Susan F Eaton
I don’t have Twitter but already follow you on FB and now “Three Many Cooks”. I also follow you both on Pinterest.:-). I found you when I googled thumbprint cookies a year or so ago and follow you ever since.:-). I followed you before you started thinking of marathon and I’m so proud of you. I need you to come over here to motivate me.:-)
CobyG
I follow Three Many Cooks on facebook
CobyG
I follow Cookin’ Canuck on facebook
CobyG
This sounds soooo good! The cookbook would be awesome too!
ElizabethH
Do not put hot soup in the blender. You know how you can hold a tight jar under hot water and it loosens the seal? Well, hot soup does the same thing to the bottom seal on a blender! I learned this the hard way while making this soup for dinner!
The soup was tasty, but not worth that mess. If I make it again, I’ll be experimenting with different techniques.
Dara (Cookin' Canuck)
Hi Elizabeth, I’m sorry you had such a mess on your hands. Believe me, I’ve had the same kind of experience (the steam blowing the top off of the blender). That I why I suggested letting the soup cool for 10 minutes before putting it in the blender. You might want to consider increasing the cooling time the next time you make a blender soup just to make sure you don’t have any more problems.
Christine B
Wow, that looks really good! I am supposed to be eating healthier and with less meat. It is hard when you are used to what you grew up with. That looks like a step in the right direction. I am definitely printing this to try! Thanks for sharing :o).
Staci
Thank you for sharing so many great recipes! Aloha!
Brandy
I made this the other day and it was sooo good!!! Mmm!! Since it was so thick I poured it over rice. It made it even better! I will have to make it again! Thank you so much for sharing! 🙂
Becky
I am making this soup now and it smells delicious! Thanks for posting a vegan recipe.
Jaime
I’m loving this soup! I made this last weekend, and am working on the leftovers. My hubby is allergic to lentils, so…more for me!
Courtney
I made this several nights ago and absolutely loved it. I usually eat mostly meatless meals but ended up adding some andouille sausage to this. It was so delicious and just what I was looking for. Thanks for the awesome recipe!
J. Marie Weldon
We’d love a chance to win–thanks for the opportunity!
Heather
I just stumbled upon your site, and found this recipe. Made it last night and it is so good. It tastes and smells like something that been cooking all day but really just takes as long it takes to chop things and cook the lentils through. I’m looking forward to having the leftovers for lunch today! Thank you!
Aggie
Wow, that soup looks incredible. I always make my lentil soup the same way, and it’s getting old. I need to try this!! And I need to get my hands on that book. It’s so nice to find meatless cookbooks to keep those meat free meals interesting.