A healing bowl of Celery Soup – comforting, affordable, and flavorful, that can be made in 35 minutes. Healthy, delicious and vegan adaptable- watch the 35-second Video!
Love soup? Take a peek at 25 Cozy Vegetarian Soup Recipes!
When we come to a great barrier, when we find a place inside us we do not know how to navigate, when we are in a painful experience that we cannot avoid, we need to sit right down there–at the root of that experience, at the root of the tree of life- and be still. ~Adyashanti
This recipe for Simple Celery Soup is creamy and luscious ohhhhh so comforting! If you’ve been here a while, you’ll know how much I love to take simple, ordinary ingredients and try to elevate them. It’s something I learned from my very frugal, immigrant parents who would often host the most delicious dinners while using the humblest, most cost-saving ingredients.
This Celery Soup could be the start of a grand meal. It could also be a wholesome homemade supper, simply served with crusty bread. What I love most about this is, how adaptable it is. It is really easy to make this vegan. For more plant-based soup inspiration, take a peek at our 25 Cozy Vegetarian Soup Recipes!
Watch how to make Simple Celery Soup!
Oftentimes I’ll skip the dairy completely and make this with cashews, cooked right in the soup.
Sometimes I’ll make it with sour cream, giving it a delicious tanginess and extra richness.
Traditionally, it’s made with butter and heavy cream, which is totally fine too. Up to you!
Do what feels best.
Here I’ve topped the soup with crispy celery leaves and toasted nigella seeds and some hemp seeds, but really, you can top it any way you like.
Croutons are always a nice option, as well as my new favorite, halloumi croutons, or millet croutons if going grain-free.
The crispy celery leaves are a beautiful touch and are really simple to make too.
Nigella Seeds are often used in Indian and Middle Eastern cooking and offer up a pungent, oniony-peppery, herbal flavor, that is especially nice when toasted in a little oil. Sometimes they are called black cumin or black caraway seeds.
They are not imperative to the recipe, but if you have Nigella seeds, try them out-they will elevate!
And if you are curious about the health benefits of celery – they are numerous!
Seriously, just google it!
Celery fights inflammation, lowers cholesterol, lowers blood pressure and is super high in antioxidants, just to name a few.
Health benefits aside, I personally just really loooooooove the flavor. I am one of those people who fill celery stalks with almond butter and sprinkle them with sea salt and fresh cracked pepper. A tasty snack!
As common as celery is, it truly is a flavor enhancer.
So for me, to have a bowlful of this Celery Soup with warm toasty bread ….. is beyond amazing!
I hope you like it too!
More recipes you may like:
- 25 Cozy Vegetarian Soup Recipes
- Potato Leek Soup
- Coconut Corn Chowder
- Homemade Tomato Soup
- North African Carrot Soup
- Creamy Celeriac Soup
- Parsnip Soup
- Simple Cabbage Soup
- Farmers Market Vegetable Soup
Have a lovely weekend!
xoxo
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Simple Celery Soup
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 20
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 7 cups 1x
- Category: Soup, vegan, Gluten free
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
A healing bowl of Celery Soup- comforting, affordable and flavorful, that can be made in 35 minutes. Healthy, delicious and vegan adaptable!
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, or butter
- 1 onion, diced
- 4 fat garlic cloves, rough chopped
- 6 cups celery, sliced thin (about 1 1/4-1 1/2 pounds) 1 extra-large head, save some leaves for garnish
- 2 cups potatoes, sliced into 1/2 inch thick rounds ( about 3/4 lb – 1 extra-large russet peeled, or use a few yukons, unpeeled.
- 4 cups veggie or chicken broth ( or 4 cups water + 1 tablespoon “Better than Bouillon” Vegetable Base)
- 1 cup water
- 1 bay leaf (optional), remove it before blending
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1/8 – 1/4 teaspoon cayenne, start conservatively, add more to taste or leave it out entirely.
Add:
- 1/4 cup fresh dill (small stems ok)
- 1/2 cup fresh parsley (small stems ok)
- Stir in: 1/2 cup (or more) of probiotic sour cream, vegan sour cream, heavy cream or cashew cream. (see notes)
- Garnish: Crispy celery leaves, nigella seeds, hemp seeds (all optional, but delicious!)
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a big pot over medium-high heat and add the onion, stirring occasionally, letting the onions get golden, about 5 minutes.
- Add the garlic and stir 1-2 minutes, until fragrant.
- Add the celery, potatoes, broth, water, bay leaf, salt, pepper, and cayenne. The liquid should just cover the veggies ( if not, add a little more water). Cover, bring to a rolling boil, turn heat down and simmer gently until potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes.
- Turn heat off, remove bay leaf and add the fresh herbs and just wilt them (don’t cook herbs or you lose the vibrant color!)
- Using an immersion blender blend until very silky smooth – OR if using a regular blender, let cool before blending in smaller batches. ( If blending warm soup, fill blender no more than halfway full, cover tightly with a lid and kitchen towel, holding it down firmly, when you start the motor (on the lowest setting, working up gradually) to prevent a blender “explosion”).
- Blend well, a full minute, until herbs are fully blended, creating a vibrant colored soup. For extra “green” color, add a handful of raw baby spinach if you like, or more fresh parsley.
- Place it back in the same pot over low heat. Stir in your choice of sour cream, or any of the other options. Gently heat, careful to not over-simmer, or you may lose the lovely vibrant color.
- To make the crispy celery leaves, heat a generous amount of olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Wait until the oil is hot. Fry a “tester” celery leaf for 10-20 seconds on each side. Set on a paper towel. If it is crisp, continue on. Adding a few at a time, not overly crowding. If not crisp, fry them a little longer. You want about 3-5 leaves per serving bowl. In the same oil, you could fry the nigella seeds until you just begin to hear popping. Turn heat off. Arrange the crispy celery leaves in a crescent shape. Spoon a little of the nigella seeds along with a little oil in the same shape. Sprinkle with hemp seeds if you like.
Enjoy!
Notes
If using cashew cream, adding a little splash of lemon juice, enlivens the soup. Sour cream and yogurt have a natural tanginess, so you may not need it.
A quick way to make this vegan version ( with cashew cream), is toss the ½ cup of cashews into the simmering pot at the beginning with the celery and potatoes, letting them soften. Then just blend it all up!
Slicing the celery thinly will prevent fibers texture.
If freezing, best to freeze without the sour cream, as it may get granular- then add it later when reheating.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1.5 cups made with ½ cup sour cream
- Calories: 183
- Sugar: 5.2 g
- Sodium: 478.2 mg
- Fat: 9.3 g
- Saturated Fat: 2.9 g
- Carbohydrates: 22.1 g
- Fiber: 4.8 g
- Protein: 4.5 g
- Cholesterol: 8.1 mg
A raised bed full of home grown celery prompted me to look up a soup recipe ~ as I read through your recipe, I realized I could use our home grown potatoes, home grown garlic, home grown onions, added in some home grown sorrel just because, and some home grown chives ~ the best part is going out to the back to snip off a few bay leaves from our two very old bay bushes. As I read through the reviews, I think I’ll do a little home grown lemon squeeze, from our little generous lemon tree, because it sounds like a nice finish. I’m making it a day ahead for supper tomorrow, I like our soups to sit overnight to meld flavors. Thank you for an easy to follow recipe and your lovely photos and side notes.
Thanks Monica!
SO EASY – USED UP SOME OLD CELERY THAT WAS BEYOND SALAD-WORTHY, ADDED DILL SEEDS TO THE STOCK AND WHITE PEPPER AT THE END- AMAZED BY THE SMOOTH AND CREAMY NATURE WITHOUT THE ADDITION OF CREAM.
Thanks so much Sam!
Great soup. All I added was leeks. In my opinion, no soup should be without leeks. I did finish with a big squeeze of lemon juice as well.
Absolutely delicious! I am not keen on canned celery soup, but this is out of this world. I used it as a cold dressing over a kale salad and had it piping hot for lunch…it is addictive. I substituted a small sprinkle of dried red pepper flakes for the cayenne pepper; and left out the dill; added sour cream. Will definitely make this again
Tastes excellent and will try it cold, but no way did it turn out green as in the pics.
I love this soup (the 1/16 tsp cayenne I used was too much for me though, next time chili powder). I’ve already eaten it both hot and cold. I prefer it cold. It’s so refreshing. Thanks for a great recipe. That it is also super fast and easy is a bonus.
Delicious
Felt so accomplished making this. I loved it. The crispy celery leaves and the hem seeds were brilliant. Thank you for sharing.
My husband even liked it, and he’s not a fan of celery. This speaks volumes!
I had waay too much celery and found this recipe. Made it and my family enjoyed it! We ate it cold (like a bisque) but I had it when it was warm. Nice either way 👍
Delicate taste with a little added kick with the cayenne. We enjoyed it very much-healthy as well.
Great to hear! thanks John!
This soup looks so good . I would like to try it . I don’t eat potatoes. Any other light carb alternative?
The potato gives a little creaminess, how about cauliflower?
Such a great idea! Love it, thanks.
Love it. Easy, tasty and healthy.
Simple & effective. I made half a batch
Surprisingly EXCELLENT! I had no idea that celery could taste this good! Great way to use up the enormous amount we received from our Misfits Marketplace box!
I’ve made this celery soup recipe several times. It is so wonderful and full of flavor. Thank you for sharing!
Thanks and great to hear!
Delicious! I made it last night in my instant pot, so I didn’t have to slice anything small, I just chopped the potatoes and onion in quarters, and chopped the celery stalks in half. I threw the parsley and 1/2 cup of cashews in the instant pot as well, and added just 1/8 teaspoon of cayenne since we have kids and they don’t like it too spicy. I pressure cooked for 10 minutes, and let it pressure release naturally. I garnished with a dollop of Greek yogurt, and added a dash of Trader Joe’s chili lime seasoning blend on top of each of the adult bowls. Thank you!
Love it! Such a great idea, thanks for sharing!
Love that you pressure cooker it. I will too next time
I like the soup, its delicious and I really like the extra nutrition info. I also appreciate the alternative ingredients that make the soup a bit different each time. I’m a fan of feasting at home thanks
Awww thanks!
How many litres does the recipe make? I need to make a large amount.
Roughly 2 litres.
I’m going to try this tomorrow
Is this freezable??
I think so, but haven’t personally tried. Has anyone else?
I;ve frozen it as it if made with cashew cream. If I’m making it with sour cream or yogurt, I add that only to the portion I’m not freezing. It’s easy to just stir into each bowl. I then do this again when I use the frozen soup. I do this with any soup with dairy and it works perfect. Hope this helps.
Thanks Deb~!
Currently making celery juice in the blender. Since I do not have a juicer I am left with celery pulp afterwards, hence looking for ideas to make celery soup and landed on feasting at home. I followed your recipe for inspiration with what I had on hand, celery pulp. potatoes, chicken stock, pepper flakes, & yogurt (nice & tangy) and it turned out amazingly heart warming. I like your variations on the soup too (I only have oat not cashew milk on hand though) that I might try with more left over celery. Thank you for creating all the creative & healthy recipes! I hope to try more of them like the Brazilian Fish. I am inspired 🙂 Many thanks for sharing!
Thanks so much for commenting Brenda- This is such a great idea!!! I love that you reused the pulp form the celery juice. BRILLANT!!!
Have made the soup according to recipe.
The best part of the recipe is it is very well explained.
Options suggested are very similar & can be used from a normal stock of grocery in the refrigerator.
Very good for people conscious of excessive fat.
I just made this wonderful soup just as written. I had tons of leftover celery so it was a perfect use and the soup turned out so delicious!. I had some leftover lemon cashew cream that I stirred in from another dish and that just sent it over the top! Thank you for the inspirational recipe!
It came out delicious. I replaced potatoes with sweet potatoes, paprika with chilli powder.Also, after adding little cashew paste, i added few cashew crumbles, which were a nice Surprise for tongue. I added celery leaves and. Parsley to garnish. I used Trader joes free range chicken broth. After sauteeing and boiling the veggies, before adding chicken broth, i used regular blender to blend to fine paste in 2 batches and coarse in the last batch, so i still can feel the veggies. After blending, i put it back on stove and added chicken broth. Let it boil for few min, tasted and adjusted salt and pepper and served hot.
Thanks for sharing your adaptations!