Vegetable Noodle Soup Recipe + Video

A really good garden vegetable noodle soup brimming with flavor and comfort to carry you through the winter months. Easy and oh so delicious, just the way grandma used to make it.

Vegetable Noodle Soup

A simple classic vegetable soup that is both nutritious and comforting, something wholesome and meatless to feed the belly and nourish the soul. This naturally vegan soup is as good as it gets, the best alternative to chicken noodle soup without any of the cholesterol.

What are the best noodles for soup?

Both my tastebuds and my soul are forever partial to very thin and long angel hair noodle nests / capellini or little stars aka stelline, simply because that is what my grandma used to make from scratch. All things considered, any short shape pasta will work just fine, acini de pepe, ditali or small thimbles, tiny sea-shells, orzo and conchigliette come to mind.

Let’s not forget toasted fregola pasta – the classic round shape used in Italian wedding soup and the comforting classic Pasta e Ceci. Roasted angel hair spaghetti squash makes a nice gluten free swap while in season.

Recipe Tips + FAQ

• Can i cook the noodles in the vegetable broth? – We’ve always cooked our noodles in the broth so they can absorb all those wonderful flavors. If you prefer an extra clear soup or might be using a bigger pasta shape (maybe a gluten free variety), you might want to store half of the broth for later and only add noodles to what you are going to eat that day.
• The Vegetables – Root vegetables are what gives this broth its depth of flavor. The classic suspects are carrot, celery and onion but if you want to make it special make sure to use the parsley and celery root the recipe calls for, including the green leafy tops. Alternatively you can use parsnips if need be, just take your time and allow the broth to reduce and concentrate its wonderful flavors.
• Herbs – fresh Italian parsley, onion chives and dill added just before serving were the classics I grew up with. You can certainly take this a different direction with fresh lovage, cilantro, thyme or fennel.

• Noodle Soup Variations  – Load up on protein with some sliced up silken tofu or cooked chickpeas. Wilt some baby bok choy or chopped spinach at the very last minute, or add in any of your favorite steamed veggies like green peas, broccoli or green beans to make it more hearty.
• Noodles or Dumplings? When there was no time for making noodles from scratch, grandma would mix together semolina dumplings fluffy as a cloud called “galuste” and drop them straight in the soup. They were made of equal parts egg white and semolina flour (the coarse not very fine grind), an old world recipe i now make with water and will revisit in detail in a future post for those of you interested.

watch how to make vegetable noodle soup video

5 from 1 vote

Vegetable Noodle Soup

A really good garden vegetable noodle soup brimming with flavor and comfort to carry you through the winter months, just the way grandma used to make it. A healthy alternative to chicken noodle soup, as good as it gets.

Print Recipe

Prep Time:15 mins

Cook Time:1 hr

Total Time:1 hr 15 mins

Ingredients

• 5 qt filtered water (+ more if desired)
• 1 yellow onion (cut in half keep skins on)
• 1 parsley root quartered
• 1 small celery root (about 1 cup)
• 3 carrots sliced into 1/3 inch rounds
• 2 celery ribs chopped
• 3 cloves garlic
• 3 leaves bay
• 1/2 red bell pepper
• 1 roma tomato halved (optional)
• 10 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1/8 tsp turmeric for color optional
• 2 tsp peppercorns
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp onion powder
• 4 tbsp nutritional yeast
• 1/2 cup fresh Italian parsley roughly chopped
• 8 oz angel hair noodle nests or your favorite short shape pasta
• sea salt + black pepper to taste

Instructions

• Inside of a large stock pot add the onion, parsley and celery root, chopped celery ribs, carrots, garlic, bay leaves, thyme, bell pepper, tomato and peppercorns. Fill with the filtered water and bring to a constant simmer. Partially cover with a lid and cook on medium low heat for 45 minutes until all the vegetables have softened and the broth has reduced by a couple of inches.
  1 yellow onion, 1 parsley root, 1 small celery root, 3 carrots, 2 celery ribs, 3 cloves garlic, 3 leaves bay, 1/2 red bell pepper, 1 roma tomato, 10 sprigs fresh thyme, 2 tsp peppercorns, 5 qt filtered water
• Stir in the turmeric, nutritional yeast, garlic and onion powders and simmer another 15 minutes or so.
  1/8 tsp turmeric for color, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, 4 tbsp nutritional yeast, 2 tsp onion powder
• Fish out the bay leaves, thyme sprigs, onion and garlic cloves and discard. You can choose to discard the parsley and celery root or dice up and return into the soup. Feel free to also strain the soup if desired but not necessary.
  1 yellow onion, 3 leaves bay, 10 sprigs fresh thyme, 3 cloves garlic
• Taste the soup and season with sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper.
  sea salt + black pepper to taste
• When ready to serve bring the broth to a simmer and add the angel hair noodle nests. Cook for a few minutes until the noodles are al dente taking care not to overcook them. Serve hot with freshly chopped Italian parsley and cracked black pepper on top.
  8 oz angel hair noodle nests

Video

Notes

 

• Can i cook the noodles in the vegetable broth? - We've always cooked our noodles in the broth so they can absorb all those wonderful flavors. If you prefer an extra clear soup or might be using a bigger pasta shape (maybe a gluten free variety), you might want to store half of the broth for later and only add noodles to what you are going to eat that day then repeat when eating the rest. To avoid the leftovers soaking up all the broth I like to divide the broth into 2 or 4 portions and store in glass containers in the refrigerator for the week. When I warm it up I add the noodles to absorb all the flavor while cooking.
• The Vegetables - Root vegetables are what gives this broth its depth of flavor. The classic suspects are carrot, celery and onion but if you want to make it special make sure to use the parsley and celery root the recipe calls for including the green leafy tops. Alternatively you can use parsnips if need be, just take your time and allow the broth to reduce and concentrate its wonderful flavors.

Nutrition

Calories: 191kcal | Carbohydrates: 40g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 136mg | Potassium: 640mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 4528IU | Vitamin C: 30mg | Calcium: 106mg | Iron: 3mg

Course: Soup

Cuisine: European, Romanian Italian

Keyword: noodle soup, vegetable soup

Servings: 8 people

Calories: 191kcal

Author: Florentina

Soups + Stews