This vegan marry me soup is made with hearty chickpeas, tender pasta, and baby spinach in a luscious, garlicky sundried-tomato cream broth. It's intensely flavorful, easy to make, and about as decadent as a bowl of soup can get. This soup is love at first spoonful.
Well, my husband just proposed, again. This is the third time. The first time, we got married. The second time was when I made my marry me chickpeas — and I reminded him we were already married. The third time happened after he tasted this marry me soup, and frankly, I can’t blame him. It’s that good.
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I’m joking (kind of… but not really). My marry me chickpeas not only got a lot of love from my own household, but also racked up some rave reader reviews. Have you tried them? They’re my vegan spin on the viral marry me chicken, made with chickpeas in a creamy cashew-based sauce with sun-dried tomatoes, spinach, and basil. Such a simple combination, but heavenly to taste.
Recently, I started seeing marry me chicken soup recipes pop up online. Being the soup lover that I am, I had to follow suit with a vegan marry me soup of my own, and it might just be my favorite thing ever. I transformed that creamy sauce into a creamy broth, kept the chickpeas, and added pasta. The texture is rich and silky smooth, and the flavor is out of this world. Want someone to marry you? Make this and thank me later.
Ingredients You'll Need
Below you'll find a list of ingredients in this recipe, with notes and substitutions. Scroll all the way to the bottom of the post to see the full recipe, including the amount of each ingredient.
- Raw cashews. It's super important that they're raw (not roasted). Raw cashews blend up super creamy and make a great dairy substitute in recipes like this. Roasted cashews will make the soup taste like nut butter.
- Olive oil. You could substitute another high-heat oil if you'd like.
- Shallots. Use an onion if you don't have shallots on hand.
- Garlic.
- Tomato paste.
- Vegetable broth.
- Chickpeas. Other types of beans can be used, if you'd like. Cannellini beans, butter beans, and lentils are all great options.
- Sun-dried tomatoes. Dry-packed sun-dried tomatoes are preferable for this recipe. If you have oil-packed on hand, feel free to use them as long as you drain them well.
- Spices. You only need some dried thyme and red pepper flakes.
- Pasta. I like ditalini, but other small pasta shapes like orzo or shells are just fine.
- Baby spinach.
- Fresh basil.
- Salt and pepper.
How It's Made
Below is a detailed photo tutorial on how to make this dish. Scroll all the way down if you'd like to skip right to the recipe!
Step 1: Soak the cashews. Place them into a bowl, cover them with water, then let them soak for at least 4 hours.
Step 2: Cook the shallots. Sweat minced shallots in some olive oil in a large pot. Stir them occasionally and cook them for 3 to 4 minutes, until they start to soften.
Step 3: Cook the garlic and tomato paste. Add both to the pot and cook them with the shallots for a couple of minutes, stirring constantly.
Step 4: Simmer. Add your broth, chickpeas, sun-dried tomatoes, and herbs. Bring the soup to a boil, then lower the heat and let it simmer for a bit.
Step 5: Blend the cashews. Drain and rinse them, then add them to a blender with some broth. Blend until smooth.
Tip: Blending your cashews can take a few minutes, especially if you're not using a very high-powered blender. Be patient!
Step 6: Cook the pasta. Add the pasta to your soup and let it continue simmering until the pasta is al dente, or just barely undercooked.
Step 7: Add spinach and cashew cream. First stir in the spinach and let it wilt, then add the cashew mixture. Continue simmering the soup just if it's cooled down too much.
Step 8: Finish the soup. Take the pot off of heat, then stir in fresh basil, salt, and pepper. It's ready!
Step 9: Serve. Ladle your marry me soup into bowls and chow down! You can top it with some vegan Parmesan cheese, if you'd like!
Variations
- Vegan marry me "chicken" soup. Add some seitan or your favorite vegan chicken substitute.
- Add veggies. The sky is the limit here! Broccoli, carrots, peas, green beans... they'd all be delicious in here. For a no-fuss hack, throw in some frozen veggies at the same time as the spinach.
- Switch up the greens. Kale, chard, and arugula would all work well. Just keep in mind that kale and chard will take a few extra minutes to wilt as compared to spinach.
Frequently Asked Questions
It sure can! Use your favorite gluten-free pasta, or skip the pasta and double the chickpeas.
Probably! I think a vegan heavy cream alternative like those made by Silk and Califia Farms would make a good substitute. I have not tested them but they worked great in my vegan tomato soup.
The red pepper flakes give it a mild, subtle heat. You can leave them out if you prefer — or use extra to dial up the heat!
Leftover marry me soup will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. It will thicken as it sits, and the pasta will continue to soak up liquid. You can thin it with some broth or water during reheating if you'd like.
More Vegan Soup Recipes
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📖 Recipe
Marry Me Soup
Ingredients
- ¾ cup raw cashews
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ cup chopped shallots (1 medium or 2 small shallots)
- 5 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 8 cups vegetable broth, divided
- 1 (15.5 ounce/439 gram) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- ½ cup julienne cut sun-dried tomatoes (dry packed — not oil packed)
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- Pinch red pepper flakes
- 1 cup ditalini pasta (or another small pasta shape)
- 4 cups baby spinach leaves
- 1 cup fresh basil, roughly chopped
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Place the cashews into a small bowl and cover them with water. Let the cashews soak for 4 to 8 hours.
- When the cashews have finished soaking, coat the bottom of a large pot with the oil and place it over medium heat. Give the oil a minute to heat up, then add the shallots. Cook the shallots for 3 to 4 minutes, until they start to soften, stirring frequently.
- Stir in the garlic and tomato paste. Cook the mixture for about 2 minutes, stirring constantly, until the garlic becomes very fragrant and the tomato paste darkens a bit.
- Stir in 7 cups of the broth, along with the chickpeas, sun-dried tomatoes, thyme, and red pepper flakes. Raise the heat to high and bring the liquid to a boil, then reduce the heat and let the soup simmer for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- While the soup simmers, drain the cashews, then rinse them well. Add them to a blender with the remaining cup of broth. Blend until completely smooth.
- After the soup has simmered for 15 minutes, stir in the pasta. Bring it back to a rolling boil, then reduce the heat slightly and let it simmer until the pasta is al dente, stirring occasionally. This should take about 10 to 15 minutes, depending on the size and brand of your pasta.
- Stir in the spinach and let the soup continue to simmer until the spinach has wilted, then stir in the cashew mixture. Let the soup heat back up on the burner if it has cooled down too much.
- Remove the pot from heat and stir in the basil. Season the soup with salt and pepper to taste.
- Ladle into bowls, serve, and enjoy.
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Amazing! I've shared this recipe with several friends and they all love it, too!
Absolutely delicious Alissa & quick & easy to make. Having some right now for lunch. Thank you!