Leek Asparagus Soup with Herbed Goat Cheese
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This leek asparagus soup is made from scratch without cream or milk for a lightened up and healthy meal. It takes just 30 minutes to make this pureed soup and is perfect for the whole family to enjoy!
To me, soup is a year round type of dish. A soothing soup recipe is always delicious, no matter what time of year! The type of soup depends on the season: heartier chilis and stews for fall, lighter seasonal vegetable soups for spring and summer.
Asparagus leek soup is an all-time favorite of mine, but I was looking to make a healthier version of the creamy asparagus soup recipe, that also happened to be vegan friendly.
So what did I swap in for cream?
Chickpeas.
Yes, chickpeas, and it worked beautifully! It gave the soup a super creamy, rich consistency and no one could tell that it was dairy-free! And instead of all the fat & calories that comes from using heavy cream, we got a ton of lean protein and fiber from the chickpeas. Win win.
For a little bit of decadence, I added a dollop of herbed goat cheese before serving this smooth soup, but you could totally leave that out if you were looking to keep this leek asparagus soup vegan or dairy-free.
👩🏽🍳 Why This Recipe Works
- Vegetarian
- Easily Adaptable to Vegan
- High in Fiber
- Healthy Soup Recipe, packed with green vegetables
- Only 30 Minutes Start to Finish
- Gluten-Free
- Fresh Spring Ingredients
- Great as a first course or a light main meal
🥘 Ingredients
A bouquet of fresh vegetables gives this asparagus and leek soup its bright green color. All of these ingredients can easily be found at your local grocery store!
Leeks: Leeks have a mild onion flavor. They are considered alliums and are related to garlic, chives, shallots, and onions. Clean leeks thoroughly to get rid of any sand or dirt before using.
Asparagus: Perfect in the spring, asparagus is a healthy stalk green vegetable. When preparing asparagus, make sure to wash thoroughly and chop off the woody ends. The bottom portion of asparagus is more bitter, as well as tough to chew.
Parsley: Use broad leaf or curly parsley. It gives this soup a nice fresh herbal flavor.
Chickpeas: The chickpeas make this recipe super creamy and also add a nice amount of protein!
Pine Nuts: A small nut or seed that has a rich flavor.
Olive Oil: Used to sweat the veggies. You can also use melt butter if you prefer.
🍽 Equipment
- Chopping Knife
- Large Stock Pot or Large Saucepan
- Medium Saucepan
- Cutting Board
- Immersion Blender or Regular Blender
🔪 Instructions
Step 1: Chop your veggies including the asparagus stalks, leeks, and parsley in small pieces. In a large soup pot, heat oil. Sauté leeks, onions, and garlic over medium heat. Let mixture sweat, but do not let the garlic burn. Stir with a slotted spoon.
Step 2: Once the onions and leeks have turned translucent (about 5 min), add the vegetable broth and chickpeas. Increase heat to medium high allow come to a boil. Add asparagus and cook on medium-high heat until tender but not limp. Add half of parsley, and all the spices (salt, pepper, crushed red pepper) and stir until incorporated.
Step 3: Blend hot liquids (I used an immersion/hand blender which worked great – I just took the pot off the heat and blended it in right in the pot!) If you don’t have a hand blender, you can use a regular blender, you just have to puree it in batches. Once you’ve pureed the soup, add lemon juice, parsley and pine nuts. Continue to blend until combined.
Step 4: Add salt and black pepper to taste, top with 1/2 Tbsp herbed goat cheese.
❓Recipe FAQs
Will kids enjoy this soup recipe?
This easy asparagus leek soup recipe has a pretty mild and creamy flavor that will appeal to most kids. But if your kids are on the pickier side they might shy away from the super green color or distinct asparagus taste! For picky eaters I recommend giving them tiny portions to start alongside a dish they love – encouraging them to take as many bites as they are old. And then you can work your way up from there!
Can I freeze leek asparagus soup?
This soup will last in the freezer for up to 3 months, or in the fridge for up to 4 days!
To freeze: Let the soup cool and portion the soup into freezer safe containers, leaving the goat cheese out (goat cheese will not freeze well!)
To reheat: Thaw the soup in the fridge overnight, then reheat using the defrost setting on your microwave or in a large pot on the stovetop.
Can you use the woody ends of the asparagus?
The woody ends of asparagus are pretty hard, tough and stringy, so while they might technically be edible, they are not fun to eat! I recommend snapping off the ends of the asparagus using your fingers – and either composting them or saving them for use in a homemade vegetable stock at a later date!
Is Leek Asparagus Soup Healthy?
If you’re at a restaurant and you order “cream of asparagus soup” or “cream of asparagus and leek soup”, chances are, it’s not going to be healthy because it’s made with heavy cream. But this recipe uses chickpeas instead of cream, making this a super healthy asparagus leek soup recipe!
It is:
High in Fiber and Protein: One serving of this soup has a little over 8g fiber and 8g protein. Fiber is important because it aids in digestion and heart health, while protein is critical for building muscle, tissue, and supporting most functions in the body.
Low Calorie: Typically one serving of cream of asparagus soup will run you about 400 calories. While this recipe is still super creamy and rich, one serving comes in at almost half that: 221 calories!
Packed With Vitamins and Minerals: Asparagus and leeks are both high in anti-inflammatory nutrients including Vitamin C, A, E and K. Chickpeas are rich in B vitamins, Iron and Magnesium.
📖 Variations
- Vegan Leek Asparagus Soup: Use coconut milk instead of the goat cheese or try a plain vegan yogurt to give this soup it’s creamy texture! You could also use a vegan parmesan cheese.
- Instead of Goat Cheese: If you can’t find goat cheese, you can swap it out for creme fraiche, sour cream, or even plain Greek Yogurt.
- More Greens: If you want to make this soup even more green and add some more veggies, you can add 3 cups of baby spinach or baby kale into the soup before you blend it! If you do that, be sure to adjust the seasonings so that the soup doesn’t turn out too bland.
- Different Toppings: Try a bit of lemon zest, or chopped chives!
- If you don’t have green onions, you can just use 2 leeks instead of 1.
- Potato Leek Soup With Asparagus: Add 1-2 yukon gold potatoes, diced, into the soup pot before simmering. Cook until they are soft and easy to blend. Adjust seasonings to account for the increase in veggies!
- If you are not vegan or vegetarian you can swap the vegetable broth for chicken broth or chicken stock.
💭 Expert Tips
- Don’t use the woody ends of the asparagus as they are too tough. You can easily snap the ends off by bending the asparagus.
- If you don’t have vegetable stock, you can use water in its place.
- To make the soup smooth and keep this a one-pot meal, an immersion blender is a great option. If you use a stand blender, you will have to let it cool first and then blend it in batches. Or you can also blend in a food processor.
- Feel free to garnish with your favorite fresh herbs!
- The best way to serve this soup is in soup bowls garnished with fresh black pepper, with a side of crusty bread, garlic bread or this garlic bread grilled cheese.
🍲 More Healthy Soup Recipes!
- Light and Creamy Tomato Soup
- Chunky and Hearty White Bean Soup
- Roasted Tomato and Garlic Soup
- Sweet Potato, Poblano and Coconut Curry Soup
- Roasted Sweet Potato and Butternut Squash Soup by Slow The Cook Down
- Yummiest Vegetable Soup Recipe by Hummusapian
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📋 Recipe Card
Leek Asparagus Soup with Goat Cheese
This asparagus and leek soup is made from scratch without cream or milk for a lightened up and healthy meal. It takes just 30 minutes to make and is perfect for the whole family to enjoy!
Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 221kcal
Ingredients
- 1½ lbs asparagus spears trimmed and chopped in 1 inch pieces
- 5 cloves garlic chopped
- 5 green onions chopped
- 1 large leek, finely chopped (white and green parts)
- 4 cups low sodium vegetable broth
- 1 15oz can chickpeas rinsed and drained
- ½ cup flat parsley chopped
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon pine nuts toasted and finely chopped
- ½ tsp salt or more to taste
- ⅛-¼ tsp crushed red pepper for some kick!
- Freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 2 tbsp Herbed Goat Cheese (1/2 tbsp per bowl)
Instructions
- Chop your veggies. In a large pot, add olive oil, onions, leeks and garlic over medium heat. Let mixture sweat, but do not let the garlic burn.
- Once the onions and leeks have turned translucent (about 5 min), add the stock and chickpeas. Increase heat to medium high allow come to a boil. Add asparagus and cooks until tender but not limp. Add half of parsley, and all the spices (salt, pepper, crushed red pepper) and stir until incorporated.
- Blend ingredients (I used an immersion/hand blender which worked great – I just took the pot off the heat and blended it in right in the pot!) If you don’t have a hand blender, you can use a regular blender, you just have to puree it in batches. Once you’ve pureed the soup, add lemon juice, parsley and pine nuts. Continue to blend until combined.
- Add salt and black pepper to taste, top with 1/2 to 1 Tbsp herbed goat cheese.
Notes
Asparagus Soup Variations
- If you can’t find goat cheese, you can swap it out for creme fraiche or even plain Greek Yogurt.
- If you want to go vegan or dairy free, just leave out the cheese and it will still taste wonderful!
- If you want to make this soup even more green and add some more veggies, you can add 3 cups of baby spinach or baby kale into the soup before you blend it! If you do that, be sure to adjust the seasonings so that the soup doesn’t turn out too bland.
- If you don’t have green onions, you can just use 2 leeks instead of 1.
- This soup would go great with some garlic bread or this garlic bread grilled cheese.
- Don’t use the woody ends of the asparagus as they are too tough. You can easily snap the ends off by bending the asparagus.
- If you don’t have vegetable stock, you can use water in its place.
- To make the soup smooth and keep this a one-pot meal, an immersion blender is a great option. If you use a stand blender, you will have to let it cool first and then blend it in batches. Or you can also blend in a food processor.
- Feel free to garnish with your favorite fresh herbs!
- The best way to serve this soup is in soup bowls garnished with fresh black pepper, with a side of crusty bread, garlic bread or this garlic bread grilled cheese.
Nutrition
Calories: 221kcal | Carbohydrates: 33.4g | Protein: 8.3g | Fat: 7.1g | Saturated Fat: 1.3g | Cholesterol: 3.1mg | Sodium: 724.3mg | Potassium: 535.9mg | Fiber: 8.5g | Sugar: 5g
This leek and asparagus soup turned out great. It was so creamy and delicious. The whole family loved it!
So happy you loved this recipe!!
What a delicious combination of flavours! I love the added protein from the chickpeas too.
Thanks Helen! Yes the chickpeas have the added benefit of bringing both creaminess and protein to this dish!
What a gorgeous, flavorful soup! Perfect for summer.
Thanks so much Kate! I’m sure you will love it!
What a delicious and vibrant looking soup. I love the idea of goats cheese on top.
Thanks so much Dannii! Enjoy!
This soup looks so delicious and refreshing and inviting – my kinda soup packed full of goodness!
Yay!! Thanks Shashi – enjoy!
Loving all the flavors in this soup. Definitely a must try with the chickpeas. Love that you used those instead cream.
Thanks Jill! You won’t even be able to tell that there is no cream in this soup! The chickpeas still make it super creamy! 🙂
This looks so yummy! I have been looking for healthier recipes for the summer. I can’t wait to try this.
Yay! I’m sure you will love this recipe Shanna!
I think asparagus soup might be one of my favorite soups! I love this version with herbed goat cheese, it’s delicious!
Yay! So happy to hear that Emily!
Since asparagus season is pretty much over in NE, can I use frozen asparagus?
Absolutely! Frozen asparagus should work fine in this dish. Hope you love this soup Tonja!
This is my favorite soup by far! I am so happy I found this recipe. I always make a double batch so it lasts a while. I’ve made the recipe about 8 times! Thanks for posting this!!!
Oh wow!!! That is so awesome Rachel! I’m so happy to hear that 🙂 I usually make double batches of most of my soups too — because they taste so great after the flavors have more time to blend together in the fridge!
I’ll definitely let you know how we like it and thank you! 😀
Hehe sounds great, thanks Ali!
Thank you so much, Anjali! I pinned this yesterday on Pinterest and wanted this info to have my hubby make it in the future! We’re starting to eat healthy and get fit. 🙂
No problem at all Ali! You’ll have to keep me posted on how you and your hubby like this recipe! And congrats on starting your health journey! Let me know if I can help in any way or if you have any other questions 🙂 Happy healthy cooking!
Do you know how many calories per serving this has, and how large the serving size would be?
Hi Ali! Here is the nutritional information for this recipe:
Makes 4 servings
Per serving: 255 Calories, 9.3g Fat, 33.6g Carbs, 7.8g Fiber, 2.2g Sugars, 10.4g Protein
I’ll add this to the printable version of the recipe as well. Hope that helps!
sounds good
thanks Julia! enjoy!
This looks amazing. The color is so gorgeous. Asparagus soup is usually so green that I can’t get anyone to try it but me. I will make this sometime soon. And most likely eat all of it.
Thanks so much Erin!! The chickpeas make the color a little less green for this soup – and I agree it ends up looking gorgeous 🙂 Enjoy!
Hi Anjali,
I love soups and especially asparagus!! Great idea to use chickpeas. Love you blog!
Love,
Raksha aunty
Aw thank you so much Raksha Aunty!! I can’t wait for you to try this recipe! Hope you’re doing well! 🙂
I love soup so much that I can eat it during hot summer months as well. What a great idea to use chickpeas.
Thanks Kathy! I’m with you – I can eat soup just about anytime of the year 🙂 I save my heartier soups for winter, and do lighter ones in the summer. It’s the perfect balance!
So glad this soup was a success for you. It was one of the first soups we ever made. It has a very nice nutty flavor in each bite. Yum. Goat cheese is welcome anytime.
Thanks for the inspiration!! 🙂