Recently my sister Jamie shared a link to this Creamy Vegan Navy Bean & Tomato Vegetable Soup recipe because she really loved it. Jamie has awesome taste and I trust her opinion. I decided to once again try a vegan dish to see if I could walk that walk, even a little.
I hate using canned legumes so I got out my Instant Pot Pressure Cooker and cooked the navy beans ahead of time.
The recipe called for 1 large leek which was supposed to give me 3-4 cups…??? What?! So I added 2 chopped leeks but started to get a little nervous.
After cooking the leeks, carrots and garlic, I added the diced tomatoes and tomato paste.
Instead of adding just water or vegetable broth (I was really starting to get nervous) I used chicken broth to add more flavour.
The recipe called for 1 tbsp of dried dill. One TABLESPOON?! That is a hell of a lot of dried dill. I added just under 1 tbsp and kept my fingers crossed.
I let it cook down for 15 minutes until the veggies were soft.
I added the kale and beans. Then I saw I was supposed to add 3 tbsp of honey. OMG, that is a lot of sweetener!
I started to feel a little more comfortable when my immersion blender actually did a good job of breaking down the soup and making it creamy.
Foodie Results & Problem Solving Techniques
Many times I find vegan dishes pretty flavourless but not this one. So dilly and sweet! Yet, the bones for a good soup were there. This recipe made a lot of food and was not a super cheap dish for me to make so I went about problem solving to try and tweak it.
First, I added some cayenne to cut the sweetness. I had some the next day and nope, it was not enough of a change. I added sour cream. Nope, still good enough. I tried adding goat cheese. Nope. Then it hit me. To cut the dill, which was just too strong for me, I would add fresh lemon juice. Yes! Success!
I told Reg that I finally fixed the soup and was going to share it with him. Then, I fell down the stairs! I got the soup all over me and smashed my back on the stairs. I have been couch-bound ever since.
OK Universe, I am listening.
I know that veganism is all popular right now but it just is not my way. It is way too much work to make something taste good for me and Reg. I know who I am. I left my vegetarian roots a long time ago now. I am glad vegan dishes make other people happy but I know now to no longer tempt foodie fate. I am not vegan and that is OK.
Honey is not vegan …. glad you could make it palatable in the end but it seems like the goddess of the stairs is telling you to eat cheap. and eat meat.
I hadn’t thought of that Janet, really, honey isn’t vegan? Well they did say in the recipe you could use agave instead.