Creamy Green Asparagus Parsley Soup (Vegan & Gluten-Free)

This soup is very simple and quick. It is creamy from potatoes and cashews, but green from asparagus and parsley.

What Will I Need For This Recipe?

Ingredients:

• Fresh Asparagus: Using fresh is always best! If necessary, frozen can be used. Chop off the woody ends of the fresh asparagus and you're ready to cook!
• Potatoes: I used the Teeny Tint Potatoes found at Trader Joe's. However, any small yellow potato or Yukon gold potatoes work very well!
• Fresh Parsley: This ingredient is one where freshness is necessary. Using dried parsley won't work here. Grab a bunch of fresh parsley from the store (or from your garden!) and throw it in!
• Vegetable Broth: I love using a rich vegetable broth to add more flavor. Low sodium is fine to use as well, just be sure to taste throughout.
• Raw Cashews: Unsalted, not roasted, raw cashews. Often, cashews are cheaper when they are in "pieces" form. Cashew pieces will work here, and they'll even cook faster and blend better!
• Diced Shallot: If you don't have a shallot, use ½ of a yellow onion.
• Garlic Cloves: Raw garlic will add the best flavor!
• Lemon Juice: Save some zest for the garnish!
• Olive Oil

Tools:

• Immersion Blender or High Power Blender
• Large Pot
• A Sharp Knife
• Cutting Board

How to Make This Recipe

Seriously, this recipe is so simple, just cook it all and blend it up!

Step 1: Prep all of the Ingredients

Begin by chopping 1 bunch of asparagus into roughly 1-inch pieces and dice the potatoes until you have about 1 ¾ cups diced potatoes.

Roughly chop 5 cloves of garlic and dice 1 large shallot (⅔ cup). Don't worry too much about having perfect cuts. As long as they are about equal in size so that they cook evenly.

Juice 1 lemon.

Step 2: Cook all of the Vegetables

In a large pot or dutch oven, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Add the chopped garlic and shallot and let those sizzle until fragrant.

Add in the chopped potatoes and asparagus pieces and stir until the asparagus becomes a bright green color.

Once the veggies are all about half-cooked, add 1 ⅓ cup raw cashews and combine well.

Then, pour in 2 ½ cups of vegetable broth until the vegetables are covered. Bring this to a boil and cover the pot.

Step 3: Turn The Vegetables Into a Soup

Once the pot has reached a boil, reduce to a steady high simmer and simmer for about 5-10 minutes. Once you can easily poke a fork through the potatoes and the cashews have softened, it's time to blend!

If you have an immersion blender, simply insert the immersion blender and blend in the pot until there are no pieces remaining.

If you don't have an immersion blender, slowly add all of the soup into a high-powered blender (you may have to blend in batches).

Once all vegetables and broth are added, blend on high and allow some steam to release. Continue blending until there are no large chunks remaining.

After blended, add in a large handful of fresh parsley (roughly 1 cup). Blend once more until completely combined. The blend should become slightly brighter green.

Step 4: Finish and Serve the Soup

Pour the soup back into the pot. On a low heat, stir the soup and add 1 tablespoon of salt as well as some fresh cracked black pepper. Add in the juice from one lemon and combine into the soup.

Taste and adjust as necessary.

Ladle the soup into serving bowls. Garnish with remaining asparagus heads and fresh parsley.

Optional: combine a tablespoon of lemon zest, ½ tablespoon of coarse kosher salt, and some more black pepper. Sprinkle this mixture on top of the finished soups as a tangy garnish.

Expert Tips

• For a lower carb version, try swapping half of the potatoes for cauliflower! The consistency may be a bit thinner, but still just as tasty!
• A regular yellow onion will work in place of a shallot. If not using a shallot, I recommend adding another 1-2 cloves of garlic.
• Any type of broth will work here as well as very salty water if you don't have broth!

If you enjoyed this recipe, you may also like:

Chickpea Tortilla Soup

Butternut Squash Soup

Vegan Pho Noodle Soup

Can I make this soup thinner? Definitely! To achieve a thinner soup, use 3-3.5 cups of broth

Can I use this as anything other than soup? Absolutely! Since it has such a thick texture, it works very well for pasta sauce. If you chill it, it works as a dip as well!

What can I add to this soup? Anything you want! I think that adding spinach, kale, and more/other herbs would be really fun! You could also add extra vegetables such as mushrooms or peas!