Creamy Broccolini Soup with White Beans and Dill
This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Read my disclosure policy.
This broccolini soup with white beans is made with white beans instead of potatoes and a base of onion, carrot and celery (so no stock cube needed), and like many Baltic and Scandinavian soups, it has lots of fresh dill. It’s thick, smooth and has a lovely green color.
Serve it with a slice of sourdough bread or a handful of croutons, and it’s an easy weeknight meal, ready in 30 minutes. Plus, if you leave out the optional cream, it’s a dairy-free, vegan broccoli soup.
I used broccolini (called tenderstem broccoli in the UK), which is just a cross between ordinary broccoli and Chinese broccoli. It’s a tiny bit sweeter, but you can also use broccoli in this recipe. I just use whatever I have on hand.
Some people think broccolini and broccoli are boring, but that is so not true. As long as you don’t overboil them, they taste sweet and fresh and broccolini are full of vitamin A and fiber. And while my kids may not want to eat a plate of steamed broccoli, they will happily eat an entire bowlful of broccoli soup. Plus, nothing goes to waste. You can use the entire thing, the florets and the stems. I use broccoli a lot in my soups, like in this hearty broccoli and sweet potato soup and my easy broccoli asparagus soup.
Broccolini and White Bean Soup Recipe at a Glance
- Time: 30 minutes
- Serves: 4
- Main ingredients: broccolini, white beans, carrot, onion, celery, dill
- Texture: Thick without any added flour or potatoes
- Protein and fiber: from the white beans
- Great for: Quick lunch or weeknight dinner that includes veggies and protein
Why This Broccolini Soup Doesn’t Need Cheese
Many broccolini soups get their flavor from cheddar, but not this one. Here, the flavor comes from the vegetables themselves and fresh dill.
I just love this soup. It’s full of veggies, and the white beans give you protein and fiber, and blend in so smoothly that it tastes like there is cream in it, even when there isn’t. Plus, the herbs give you a light, fresh flavor.
Like many of my soups, I start this one with onion, carrot and celery softened slowly in olive oil. The French call this mirepoix. It gives the soup a sweet, rounded flavor, and that way you don’t need a stock cube.
I grew up with a Latvian mother and grandmother. Latvians put dill in pretty much everything, so of course, I put it in here too 🙂
If you would like to try more Baltic recipes with dill, try my zucchini soup with dill, salmon soup with dill , easy asparagus soup with dill or my red cabbage salad with dill.
Ingredients for Broccolini Soup
Full list and measurements are in the recipe card below.
- Broccolini – (tenderstem broccoli or broccoli) 2 bunches. Fresh is best, but frozen works well too. Old broccoli, that is starting to yellow gets more of a “cabbagy” flavor.
- Baby spinach (Optional) – a little bit gives this soup a nice green color. You don’t taste it, but it’s worth putting in just for the color. If you don’t have any, you can still make this soup, the color will just be less bright green.
- White beans – Cannellini or butter beans. Butter beans are a touch creamier. Rinse them well, because the canning liquid can taste tinny.
- Onion, carrot and celery – the base of the soup, so it has some depth.
- Water or homemade stock – I prefer plain water or homemade stock. I try not to use stock cubes, because they make every soup taste the same, and the mirepoix vegetable base gives some depth to the soup.
- Cream (optional) – (heavy cream in the US). The soup is creamy enough without it, as the blended beans make the soup creamy. But I love cream, so I sometimes put a bit in. You can use vegan cream to keep this a vegan broccolini soup.
- Fresh dill – a generous handful if you have it. You can use the stems as well. It gives the soup its fresh, Baltic flavor. If you only have dried, see the substitutions below.
- Salt – I prefer to use sea salt.
- Lemon (optional) – a small squeeze at the end brightens the flavor. I know that sounds strange, but if you have a bit of lemon, use it, it really makes a difference.
Substitutions and Additions
- Dill – You can use 1 teaspoon dried dill for every tablespoon of fresh dill. You add it with the water, not at the end. Dried herbs need a bit of time to soften and release their flavor.
- Broccolini – Broccoli is a little less sweet but fine to use (just use the same weight). Peel the thick stalk before chopping, or you may get little stringy bits in your soup.
- Garlic – You can add some along with the onion. It gives the soup a nice flavor.
- Beans – Any kind of mild white beans, like cannellini beans, butter beans, white beans, but not chickpeas. You can also substitute two medium potatoes peeled and diced.
- Dairy-free and vegan – Just leave out the optional cream or use vegan cream.
- Kefir – I like a splash of kefir in my soup right before serving. It gives the soup this nice tangy flavor, but my husband prefers a bit of cream.
- Croutons – homemade are best. They are quick to make. Or you can also toast some bread, chop it up and scatter it on top.
- Fresh chives, dill or parsley – A sprinkling of fresh herbs for the garnish.
- Cheese – You can sprinkle some grated parmesan or cheddar on top if you like, but it is not needed for flavor. The beans make it hearty and the fresh herbs and broccolini add enough flavor as is.
Instructions
1. Prepare the soup base. Soften the carrot, onion and celery in the olive oil over medium heat. Try not to brown them as you want to keep the flavor clean and not “browned”. I was a touch impatient here and my veggies are a bit on the brown side, but this recipe is forgiving. (But I would not go much browner than this).
2. Add the water and simmer until soft, about 10 minutes. You want to make sure the veggies are soft and tender. The carrots should squish easily on the side of the pot, or you can take one out to test how done it is. If they’re not cooked enough, you’ll get small hard bits in your soup when you blitz it up.
3. Prepare the beans. Wash and strain the beans.
4. Add the broccolini/broccoli stems and white beans. Separate the stem from the top flowery bits. If you are using a large broccoli, then you may want to peel the outer layer of the stem depending on how tough it is. You don’t need to do this for tenderstem broccoli. Then chop the stems up into 1 inch (2 – 3 cm) slices and add to the soup base. Simmer for just a couple of minutes.
5. Add the broccoli tops and simmer for another 2-3 minutes only. Don’t overboil or the broccoli gets this dull olive color.
6. Add the baby spinach and simmer until it wilts (about 30 seconds).
7. Blend the soup using a stick mixer or blender until smooth. You can add some more water if it’s too thick for you.
8. Add the fresh dill, a squeeze of lemon, if using and salt and pepper and stir it or blend it in. Note: you can keep a tablespoon or two of dill for garnish.
Tips for the Best Broccolini Soup
- Make sure your carrot, celery and onion are properly cooked and soft before adding the broccolini, otherwise you may get hard bits in your soup…
- But don’t overcook the broccolini. You only need a few minutes. The taste is much fresher if you don’t overcook it.
- Blend the soup properly. Take the time to blend it a few extra minutes so it’s extra smooth and creamy from the beans.
- Add the lemon right before serving. Lemon can turn a soup a more dull olive color with time.
- Add the croutons at the end. Better yet, serve them at the table. Croutons can get soggy quickly.
What to Serve with Broccolini White Bean Soup
In our house, on a busy weeknight, I serve this hearty soup with some toasted sourdough or other good bread and that’s it. It’s simple, nourishing and full of flavor.
In Latvia, a Baltic country, this would be served with dark rye bread and butter, or a selection of open-faced sandwiches, like cottage cheese avocado toasts or red radishes and cottage cheese on bread.
For a French-style lunch or dinner, you could either serve this as the main meal or as an entree, followed by a main such as this quiche Provençale or quiche Lorraine. And you would always find some baguette on the table 🙂
Storage and Make-Ahead
- Fridge: keeps for up to 3 days in the fridge in an airtight container.
- Freezer: freeze without adding any cream. Freeze for up to 3 months in an airtight container.
- Make ahead: You can make the whole soup ahead of time, but it’s best to add the lemon, cream and fresh herb garnish at the end, right before serving.
- Reheating: Reheat slowly and don’t boil. The color may fade a tiny bit, but the flavor will be just as good.
FAQ
Yes, just use the same weight and peel the stalk if it’s very thick. Broccoli has a slightly stronger, more cabbage-like flavor, but is still very good in this soup.
There is no difference. It’s the same thing, but different countries use different names. In the UK, it’s called tenderstem broccoli and in Australia and the USA, it’s called broccolini.
No, once you blend the soup, you don’t taste them. All you get is the creamy background.
The beans make it creamy. Once you blend them in, they make the soup thick and velvety. I sometimes add a splash, because I love cream in pretty much anything, but the soup does not need it (and if you do decide to add cream, restrain yourself, because a little goes a long way in this soup, since it’s already creamy). You can add vegan cream if you want that extra dairy cream flavor but want to keep it vegan.
Yes, substitute 1 teaspoon of dried dill for every tablespoon of fresh dill and add it with the water. Fresh tastes best, but dried also works.
More Easy Soups
Made this broccolini and white bean soup? Leave a star rating and a comment below. It helps other home cooks find the recipe, and I read every one.
Every recipe on this blog is made and tested in my own kitchen. You can read more about how I develop and test recipes here. 🙂
Recipe Card
Creamy Broccolini Soup with White Beans and Dill
Equipment
- 1 Dutch Oven or soup pot
- 1 stick mixer or blender
Ingredients
Soup
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 small onion finely diced
- 1 small carrot finely diced
- 1 small celery stick finely diced
- 4 cups water or homemade stock
- 14 oz can white cannellini or butter beans, drained and rinsed
- 12 oz broccolini (about 2 bunches)
- 1 to 1 1/2 cups baby spinach
- 4 tbsp fresh dill chopped, plus extra to serve
- ½ cup pouring cream optional
- Salt and black pepper to taste
- 1 to 2 tsp lemon juice optional
To serve
- Croutons
- Chives chopped, or parsley or dill for garnish
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot and celery and cook gently for 5 to 8 minutes until softened, without letting them brown.
- Add the water or stock and simmer for about 10 minutes, until the vegetables are completely soft and the carrot squashes easily against the side of the pot.
- Drain and rinse the beans.
- Cut the broccolini stems from the tops and slice the stems into 2 to 3 cm (1 inch) pieces. If using regular broccoli, peel the stalk first if it’s tough. Add the broccolini stems and white beans to the pot and simmer for 2 minutes.
- Add the broccolini tops and simmer for 2 to 3 minutes more, until just tender.
- Stir in the spinach and simmer for about 30 seconds, until wilted.
- Blend until smooth with a stick blender or blender. Add a splash of water if the soup is too thick.
- Stir in the dill and the lemon juice (if using). Season with salt and pepper. Keep a little dill aside for garnish if you like.
- Stir in cream if using.
- Serve topped with croutons and chopped chives, parsley or dill.
Notes
- Dill – You can use 1 teaspoon dried dill for every tablespoon of fresh dill. You add it with the water, not at the end. Dried herbs need a bit of time to soften and release their flavor.
- Broccolini – Broccoli is a little less sweet but fine to use (just use the same weight). Peel the thick stalk before chopping, or you may get little stringy bits in your soup.
- Garlic – You can add some along with the onion. It gives the soup a nice flavor.
- Beans – Any kind of mild white beans, like cannellini beans, butter beans, white beans, but not chickpeas. You can also substitute two medium potatoes peeled and diced.
- Dairy-free and vegan – Leave out the optional cream or use vegan cream.
- Kefir – I like a splash of kefir in my soup right before serving. It gives the soup this light tangy flavor, but my husband prefers it plain or with a bit of cream.
- Croutons – homemade are best. They are quick to make. Or you can also toast some bread, chop it up and scatter it on top.
- Fresh chives, dill or parsley – A sprinkling of fresh herbs for the garnish.
- Make sure your carrot, celery and onion are properly cooked and soft before adding the broccolini, otherwise you may get hard bits in your soup…
- But don’t overcook the broccolini. You only need a few minutes. The taste is much fresher if you don’t overcook it.
- Blend the soup properly. Take the time to blend it a few extra minutes so it’s extra smooth and creamy from the beans.
- Add the lemon right before serving. Lemon can turn a soup a more dull olive color with time.
- Add the croutons at the end. Better yet, serve them at the table. Croutons can get soggy quickly.
- Fridge: keeps for up to 3 days in the fridge in an airtight container.
- Freezer: freeze without adding any cream. Freeze for up to 3 months in an airtight container.
- Make ahead: You can make the whole soup ahead of time, but it’s best to add the lemon, cream and fresh herb garnish at the end, right before serving.
- Reheating: Reheat slowly and don’t boil. The color may fade a tiny bit, but the flavor will be just as good.
