Name: 30 Minute Healthy Turkey Vegetable Soup
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 30 min
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil plus more for drizzling; 1/3 cup chopped shallots (2-3 large shallots); 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped; 1 pound ground turkey; 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt; 4-6 cups vegetable broth or chicken broth; 2 cups tomato puree; 1 medium cauliflower, leaves and core removed, the rest roughly chopped (to substitute cauliflower rice, see notes below); 2 teaspoons dried basil; 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano; 1/4 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes; 1 bunch of curly kale, leaves pulled from the thick stems and roughly chopped; Grated parmesan cheese for serving

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This healthy turkey vegetable soup is a flavorful and comforting one-pot meal that's ready in 30 minutes. It starts with ground turkey sautéed with shallots and garlic and then simmered in spiced tomato broth with a whole chopped cauliflower and a big bunch of kale. A great recipe for the weeknight dinner rotation.

Sometimes my favorite recipes on the blog are the ones I didn't intend for the blog. This is one of those dishes. A flavorful, satisfying, veggie-packed dinner soup that makes you want to go back for seconds. A last minute, throw-everything-into-a-pot creation that was devoured happily and heartily by my husband Eddie and me, after which we both agreed ...this has to to go on the blog!

I love using ground turkey in recipes. It's a great source of protein that's lower in fat and calories than beef and soaks up whatever flavors it's cooked with. If you're looking for other delicious things to make with ground turkey, from soup to meatballs to meatloaf to meat sauce, you're in the right place.

Ingredients for healthy turkey vegetables soup

Ground turkey - I prefer using dark meat turkey for this recipe, or a mix of dark and white. You can also use ground chicken, if you prefer. If a package of ground turkey doesn't specify whether it's dark or white meat, it's often a mixture of both.
Shallots and Garlic - Sautéed shallots and garlic add the first layer of flavor to this soup.
Chicken broth - Use your favorite low-sodium chicken broth. My favorites are Swansons and Pacific.
Tomato puree - Use your favorite canned tomato puree. My absolute favorite choice is Whole San Marzano Tomatoes which I puree myself. My second favorite is Muir Glen organic tomato puree.
Cauliflower - A whole chopped cauliflower goes into this soup. That's about a pound of cauliflower after you've removed the leaves and core. If you prefer to use riced cauliflower, you'll need about a pound of it, or 4 cups.
Dried Spices - This soup uses dried basil, oregano and crushed red pepper flakes, which give it an Italian flavor profile.
Curly Kale - A whole big bunch of Curly Kale goes into this soup - a delicious way to get a big dose of super healthy dark leafy greens!
Parmesan Cheese - Use your favorite parmesan cheese, freshly grated if possible, to sprinkle on as a topping. For dairy free, omit the parmesan or make vegan parmesan.

How to make 30 minute turkey vegetable soup

This recipe is super fast, ten minutes of chopping, a few minutes of sautéing and ten minutes of simmering. Ten minutes is enough time to develop a flavorful broth while keeping the vegetables bright and fresh.

Ground turkey is sautéed with chopped shallots and garlic in a large heavy pot or Dutch oven. Next, chicken broth, tomato puree, dried spices and a whole chopped cauliflower are added to the pot. The soup simmers for ten minutes and is then partially pureed with an immersion blender or food processor, creating a thick broth with some larger hunks of turkey and veggies. Chopped kale is added at the very end, and the soup is simmered for a few minutes longer, just long enough to wilt the kale and heat the soup through.

What to Serve with this Healthy Turkey Vegetable Soup

After the soup is ladled into bowls, I recommend topping it with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and a generous sprinkle of freshly grated parmesan cheese.
As for what to serve on the side, there's nothing like a crisp salad with a steaming bowl of soup. Although this healthy turkey vegetable soup is a whole balanced meal by itself, a good green salad or this Italian Tricolore Salad will be great alongside.
Crusty bread on the side will be delicious, too.

Other delicious hearty dinner soups to try:

Minestrone Soup with Beef
Italian Wedding Soup with Turkey Meatballs (gluten-free, dairy-free, low-carb, paleo)
Persian Meatballs Soup with Apricots, Brown Rice and Yogurt

Here's the Healthy Turkey Vegetable Soup Recipe. If you try this recipe, I hope you'll come back to leave a star rating and a comment. I'd love to know what you think!