Creamy Wild Rice Soup
Course: Popular, Soups4
servings30
minutes1
hour338
kcalLenny and I grew up in neighboring Minneapolis suburbs but didn’t officially meet until adulthood in Chicago. Occasionally we’ll have one of those strange conversations where it’s clear we likely crossed paths. In this case, it would have been at Byerly’s, the local high-end grocery store. Why would we both be there? Well, both of us were too poor growing up to actually shop for groceries there. But as a treat, we’d make a special trip for their locally legendary, most delicious Chicken Wild Rice Soup. It was our favorite childhood soup. Twenty years later, we took on the challenge of making this soup dairy (and chicken) free. Using some of the things we’ve learned from previous kitchen experiments, we feel like we’ve hit the jackpot recreating this comfort food classic. Turns out in addition to being dairy-free, it’s also WFPB SOS-Free, which is wild given how legitimately rich and flavorful it is. Since creating it, this soup was featured in the Vitamix 100-year Anniversary Cookbook and is one of our most popular recipes. It’s creamy and hearty and full of flavor. It warms your soul. Beloved by folks across the spectrum of diets, it’s our Creamy Wild Rice Soup. Midwestern comfort food made vegan, though nobody needs to know. One pot, one blender, one very happy family. xoxo Shalva.
Ingredients
1 cup (125g) raw, unsalted cashews, soaked
4 ribs celery, chopped
1 cup (128g) carrots, chopped
1/2 onion, chopped
4-6 cloves garlic, chopped
64 oz (2L) vegetable broth
1 cup (160g) wild rice
1 Tbsp (4.3g) dried thyme, or to taste
2 whole bay leaves
2 tsp (5.69g) salt, plus more to taste
8 oz (225g) mushrooms, chopped
15 oz (425g) can cannellini (white kidney) beans
Directions
- Prep
- Soak cashews overnight if possible
- If not, soak in boiling water as soon as you can – the longer the better
- Prep Vegetables
- Chop celery, carrots, onion, and garlic
- Chop mushrooms and set aside
- Make the Broth
- Reserve 1 cup (8 oz) of broth and set aside
- Heat the remaining vegetable broth in a large pot over medium heat
- Rinse and drain the wild rice
- Add wild rice, thyme, bay leaves, and salt to the hot vegetable broth
- Add your prepped vegetables (celery, carrots, onion & garlic)
- Cover pot with lid and set a 30-minute timer
- Make the Cashew Cream
- Drain the soaked cashews and the liquid from the cannellini beans
- Place cashews & beans in blender container
- Add the reserved cup of vegetable broth
- Blend on high for 1 minute until smooth
- Combine Everything
- When your timer goes off, add the creamy blender mixture to your pot
- Add the chopped mushrooms
- Replace lid, lower heat, and set timer for 15 more minutes
- When the timer goes off, check if wild rice is done (should be a bit chewy)
- Remove bay leaves
- Serve piping hot and enjoy
Recipe Video
Notes
- Time-saving tip: Skip sautéing the vegetables first. We’ve tried both ways and there’s not much difference. Save yourself a step and add them directly to the pot.
- Creamy base: The blend of white kidney beans, soaked cashews, and vegetable broth creates an excellent creamy base that works well for other creamy soups too!
- Perfect pairing: Serve with our homemade cornbread for a complete meal.
- Serving size: When divided by 6 servings, each portion would be roughly 1.5 to 2 cups
- Nutrition notes: This is a reasonably moderate-calorie option for a hearty, filling soup. The protein from the beans and cashews, along with the complex carbohydrates from the wild rice, provide good nutritional value for the calorie content.
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