Hey friends! I’m coming in hot, to drop this stellar soup recipe on you, while the weather is still fine and early fall produce is at its peak. The bell peppers in my region are bountiful and beautiful, and because I am the biggest sucker for roasted pepper anything, I came up with this dish to celebrate a seasonal favourite.
But first, can we take a moment and please talk about how I just invented giant croutons? I think it might be my personal opportunity to break the internet. How is this not a thing yet?! Sure, I guess you could look at the cheese toast on French onion soup and say that is a giant crouton, but in my opinion, it’s merely an open-faced grilled cheese sandwich. Pfff. Not even close to this. My crouton is a cube of sourdough (important shape-distinction), kissed with garlicky oil and seared to toasty, golden perfection. The outsides are caramelized and crisp, while the center is fluffy, creamy and studded with nooks and crannies for the soup to slide in to. Guh. Too good to be true! Honestly guys, I’m pretty proud of this.
But I also need you to know that this soup is darn good too, even without the crouton. The recipe is loosely based on the North African Sun-dried Tomato Soup in my second cookbook, except I left out many of the warming spices, which felt prematurely winter-y. It’s still t-shirt weather here, so the ginger and cinnamon had to go. Plus, I doubled the pepper count, added a teeny splash of balsamic (to round out the flavor), and made it bisque-y without the cream. Guess what I used?! Lentils!! Mic drop. But instead of bulking it up and putting the soup on legume-overload, I was conservative in my approach and just used half a cup. This made the soup rich and creamy without the cream, but in a very hush, hush way, so that you literally have no idea that they’re there. But their presence can be felt, because this soup is the real meal deal, not just a bowl of blended up veggies that will leave you hungry again in 20 minutes. With the bonus lentils, you’re getting way more protein and fiber that you’d normally expect from a pepper soup, and they will fill you up, and keep you energized for hours. This suddenly feels very infomercial-y. Did I mention there is a giant crouton?
Moving on! Let’s talk about peppers because they are in the nightshade family and that is a hot topic, if I ever heard one.
Nightshade vegetables are a part of the Solanaceae family, and include tomatoes, peppers (and chilies), eggplant / aubergine, and all potatoes except for sweet potatoes and yams. Originally cultivated in South America, nightshade vegetables were brought to Europe and Asia by Spanish explorers. Their name supposedly comes from the fact that they grow at night (as opposed to mushrooms, which grow in the shade).
You may have heard rumors that Nightshade vegetables are toxic, that they can cause inflammation or that they’re linked to autoimmune disorders. While it is true that edible nightshades contain high levels of glycoalkaloids, specifically solanine, which at very high levels is toxic, it only seems to trigger reactions in individuals who are sensitive to it. Those with pre-existing inflammatory conditions may experience worsening of their symptoms when they consume these foods, but an elimination diet would be the only way to determine if nightshades are in fact, causing the issues. For people who do not suffer from chronic inflammatory ailments, enjoying ratatouille, a pizza, or a baked potato is likely just fine, and certainly not going to cause you to get these conditions.
As far as autoimmunity is concerned, alkaloids from edible nightshades have been shown to irritate the gut, since solanine is effectively natural insecticide produced by this plant family. Gut irritation can contribute to intestinal permeability, which can set off an autoimmune reaction when proteins that should remain in the digestive tract leak into the bloodstream. The level of irritation depends on the amount consumed, and how sensitive the individual is. The highest amounts of solanine are found in green potatoes, and sprouted potatoes, but we should avoid eating those anyway.
Let’s review: if you have an autoimmune disorder, leaky gut, or you exhibit symptoms of discomfort (digestive or otherwise) after consuming nightshades, try eliminating them from your diet for at least 6 weeks and see if you notice a difference. Then, re-introduce them one at a time and be aware of how you feel within a 24-hour period after eating them.
If you don’t have these issues, don’t worry about it! There is absolutely no reason to limit your intake of these highly nutritious vegetables if they seem to do your body good. Bell peppers contain an astounding amount of vitamin C, high levels of A, and B6, with very good levels of folate, fiber, and vitamin E. They also provide flavonoids, and carotenoids. Remember to buy bell peppers that have fully ripened – anything other than the greens ones, which are typically unripe red, orange, yellow, or purple peppers. Their nutrient profile will be at its peak, and the natural sugars will be fully developed, easing their digestion.
Let’s get to the recipe!
If you’re really pressed for time, skip roasting the peppers in the oven, and just dice them up, and add them to the pot along with the garlic in step 3. The overall flavour will be less rich, but still incredibly delicious. When I’m in a crunch, I’ll pull this move and have dinner on the table in 30 minutes. If you want to change things up, try orange or yellow peppers instead of the red ones.
As far as sun-dried tomatoes go, I like organic, dried ones, instead of the oil-packed ones, but either would work here. With the canned tomatoes, go for whole, since they tend to be of higher quality than the diced ones.
Let’s talk bread. If you have access to a bakery where they make the real thing (sourdough), please use that. If you don’t, find an unsliced loaf at your supermarket; bonus points if it’s made with wholegrain flour, organic, yeast-free, or all of the above. The bread should be cut into cubes with the serving bowl size in mind (you’ll want to see some of the soup around it), but if you have a huge bowl, go crazy and make that crouton as gargantuan as you want! And don’t throw the offcuts away – I put them in the toaster and slathered them with hummus for my son. He was stoked about the oddly-shaped chunks.
Bell Pepper Bisque with Giant Croutons
Makes 8 cups / 2 litres / Serves 4
Ingredients:
2 Tbsp. coconut oil or ghee, divided
2 medium yellow onions, diced
½ tsp. fine sea salt
3 large garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp. ground cumin
2 tsp. ground coriander
½ – 1 tsp. hot smoked paprika (depending on how spicy you like it)
4 large red bell peppers (stems, seeds, and ribs removed)
5 – 7 cups / 1 ¼ – 1 ¾ liters vegetable broth
1 14.5-oz. / 400ml can whole tomatoes
½ cup / 45g sun-dried tomatoes, roughly chopped
½ cup / 100g dried red lentils, soaked for 1 – 8 hours, if possible
2 tsp. balsamic vinegar
Directions:
1. If you have time, soak the lentils in water overnight, or for up to 8 hours. Drain and rinse very well. If you’re starting from dried, that is okay too, just give them a very good wash and drain before using.
2. Preheat oven to 400°F / 200°C. Prepare the peppers by cutting each of them in half, scooping out the seeds, and rubbing with a little coconut oil. Place peppers cut-side down on a parchment-lined baking sheet and place in the oven. Roast for 25-30 minutes until the skins are totally wrinkled and charred in places.
3. In a large stockpot, melt the remaining coconut oil over medium heat. Add the onions and salt and stir to coat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions soften and begin to slightly caramelize, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic, cumin, coriander, and smoked paprika, and cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add a little broth to the pot if the mixture becomes dry.
4. Add the whole tomatoes and their juices along with the sun-dried tomatoes, lentils, and the rest of the broth. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, and break up the whole tomatoes with your spoon. Simmer, covered for 15 minutes. Stir once or twice during cooking to prevent sticking.
5. The peppers should be done by now, so take them out of the oven, transfer all of them to a bowl with a lid or plate over the opening, making sure there are no gaps (this technique steams the peppers so that the skins will just slip right off, without using plastic wrap). Once cool enough to handle, remove the skins from the peppers, and place the peeled peppers in a blender.
6. Remove the soup from the heat and take off the lid to let cool just for a minute. Transfer to the blender, and blend on high until completely smooth. Add balsamic vinegar, and broth or water to thin, until your desired consistency is reached. Season to taste. Transfer back to the pot and keep warm.
7. Make the croutons (recipe below).
8. To serve, ladle the soup into bowls, top with fresh herbs, edible flowers, a drizzle of good olive oil, and of course place one giant crouton in the middle of each bowl. Enjoy!
Giant Croutons
Make as many as you want!
Ingredients:
1 loaf of good bread (wholegrain sourdough is preferred)
2 Tbsp. expeller-pressed coconut oil (the unscented kind – very important!) or ghee, divided
1 clove of garlic, finely minced
flaky salt, to taste
Directions:
1. Cut the bread into 2 ½” (6cm) slices – mine weighed 1.25 oz / 35g per piece. Cut off the edges and make a cube (save the off-cuts for snacks).
2. Spread a little coconut oil on each side.
3. Heat remaining coconut oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and sauté for a few minutes, just until the garlic is starting to turn golden.
4. Lower the heat to medium-low, and add the bread cube. Rub each side in the oil to coat with some of the garlic and sprinkle lightly with salt. Let cook on each of the six sides for a couple of minutes until golden brown. Remove from heat and enjoy immediately.
I hope that wherever you are on this earth, you’re enjoying the seasons shifting and embracing the changes that come with that. When I started writing this post, it was a very hot day, and now, just 48 hours later, I can feel a significant shift in temperature and weather. Here we go, fall! I’m happy you’re here.
Big thanks to my friends at Foragers Farms for letting me crash the greenhouse at the crack of dawn to get these pics.
Love to all, happy fall!
Sarah B
What a Fantastic Post!! Love your work.
It was an interesting article. Thank you
Thank you for this great read! Well done! 🙂
This looks so good! But I got heartburn hiccups just reading about it. Lol. Not that it will stop me from making it!
But it should! Heartburn is your body speaking directly to you about what it can handle – ignoring this is literal ignor-ance. But I can see how you would wish to try this recipe – it looks incredibly good. Consider making it for others and just enjoying a taste so you can honor your body as well!
Thank you for sharing the recipe! God bless! I will recommend this one to my mom.
Just realized! Surprisingly refreshing and comforting at the same time. You figured a wonderful dressing! Thanks a lot for sharing this nice recipe.
Thanks for this excellent recipe, I can’t wait to make it.
Oh my god!!! The perfect recipe, I love pepper and I LOVE croutons, I should try this very soon, yum!
Cejanah // Karrysmovseren.dk
Thanks for sharing such a lovely recipe
Wow, I’m already drooling. Thanks a ton for this recipe. I’m sharing this to my colleagues. 🙂
Going to make one like this soon. I will add goat cheese in my Bisque and topped it with homemade toasted parmesan cheese herbed. This is an exciting recipe especially we all know that we are under quarantine and we don’t a lot to do so we have plenty of time to try new recipes.
Yum! Enjoy 🙂
amazing post thanks for share
great site!
Awesome,
I loved this one.
iam very thankful for this.
Thanks for sharing.
thanks for your articles i love this bell pepper recipe 🙂 and this a free ebook about weight-loss food recipe https://docs.google.com/document/d/1UoXiJWY-NAjvSy5Jl-5SNXIZKyDvcxqLzE5pQzHXI1E/edit?usp=sharing
This was really interesting to read! I love the range of posts, there is really something for everyone, great post!
As soon as I saw this I got incredibly excited by the idea of a giant crouton, haha. I don’t know why. Sounds and looks so fun and delicious, though! I can’t wait for peppers to be back in season — bookmarking this for when they are.
I’m a wedding photographer as well as a food photographer. IMO, your post images are awesome.
Nice blog to follow while preparing recipes.Thank you so much for sharing with us.
Nice blog to follow while preparing recipes.Thank you so much for sharing with us.This look so fresh and delecious.
Thank you!
I love that red. Thank you for shared us your recipe
Thank you so much for taking the time to share this. I love tomatoes a lot and your recipe looks delicious as well. You actually discuss it well and you even guide us on how to cook it. I will try this tomorrow! Thank you so much again!
Thank you for taking the time to read it! Enjoy 🙂
Thank you for this recipe and the presentation is incredible. I plan to prepare this as an appetizer for company this weekend!!!!
Great idea, hope you and your guests loved it as much as I do!
Great recipes – amazing photos. Very inspiring.
The best wishes from a food ie in Denmark.
Holger
Its really awosome
Thank you so much for this healthy recipe.I also added water instead of vegetable broth.I loves your dishes.
nice blog thanks for the information
Hello Sarah, thanks for great recipe. After read your post, i just wanna try to create these superb pepper soup!
Hi Sarah – I’ve been looking for a great rich-tasting bisque that’s vegan and not so fatty/processed – seems like there’s a lot of that going on lately. But I digress.. Thanks for this recipe- I can’t wait to try it. Keep up the great work!
Audrey
It was perfect the first time. This is very really unique helpful information.I learn so much from you as well!
Thank you so much for sharing your helpful information. Keep it up.
Hii,
Awesome recipe.delicious looks.
I like the red color you made. It’s incredible. Thank you so much
Bisque has to eb one of the more underrated foods of all time. It can be delicious, savory and healthy all at the same time.
Love your photos! Thank you for the nice recipe!
Hi Sarah, love your recipies, I learned so muc about healthy food , new ways of thinking, looking at myself in a different way. Thank you so much for sharing your path. Recently I have created my own blog and you are such a huge inspiration, thank you so muc !!
Hello Claudia,
Wow, your comment means so much to me! Thank you for sharing <3 I'm thrilled to hear that you're finding lots of inspiration on the site, and even making your own! Congratulations 🙂
Much love,
Sarah B
I made this a few days ago for my guests and it was fantastic! HUGE step up from plain tomato soup. Everyone loved it and I had so many requests for the recipe. Thank you, Sarah, for sharing this recipe with us! Pinned!
This sounds delicious and I will end up making it at some point for sure, but I am confused as to how this is a bisque? I followed a link here expecting a recipe for bisque and instead this is just lentil and pepper soup. Am I missing something?
Hi Despina,
It’s a “play” on a bisque, because it’s a smooth, creamy, highly seasoned soup, but without the cream or crustaceans! That’s all you need to know 😉
xo, Sarah B
great post thanks for share
I hope once you treat me with this home-made course, Sarah =)
I LOVE red pepper soup so much. My local Mexican supermarket sells them so cheap! You can get about 10lb for the price of two (singular) peppers from Whole Foods. I stick them on the BBQ to char and add smoked paprika to my soup for a Spanish spin. I am definitely trying your giant croutons – they look spectacular!
Thank you for the recipe.
Sarah
Thank you so much for this delicious recipe! I’ve made it 4 times in the past few weeks it’s that good and my friend came round on Sunday where we had it for lunch and she actually finished the whole bowl (she never fully finishes a plate of anything) . The best soup I think I’ve ever had I think!
Hi Hannah!
I am SO thrilled to hear this! Thanks for sharing…glad your friend liked it so much too 🙂
Hugs,
Sarah B
i enjoy making these delicious and easy recipes and im grateful to bit.ly/LoseWeightu to loose over 30 pound of fat i hope it will help you as well to get your dream body
Hi, would I be able to use another type of lentil here? I know it might impact the color, and other lentils won’t breakdown as the red ones do but I don’t have red right now. Also, how well and long does this soup last in the fridge and/or freezer? Thanks so much..
Hello ML,
Sure thing! Try green or brown lentils instead. The colour will change obviously, but if that doesn’t bother you, got for it. The soup will last in the fridge for up to five days, and in the freezer for 3-4 months. I hope you enjoy!
xo, Sarah B
This dish is looking so good. will surely try it and let you know how it was
Thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe with us.
This looks lovely….think it would freeze well?
The soup is excellent! I’m eating it right now!! I love that it has lentils in it . I am dairy free – so it’s special to be eating a tomato bisque soup. Beans is the perfect addition to make it smooth. I haven’t been on your site for awhile- it’s good to be back!
Thank you for this insightful recipe! I can’t wait to try it out, but was wondering if including some essential oils would ruin the taste or make it tastier?
Hi Rick!
Give it a try! What kind of oils were you thinking? Try them out on a spoon with some of the soup before adding to the entire pot…just in case 😉
xo, Sarah B
Hi Sarah, I don’t like tomatoes. However tomato juice, sauce or paste are all acceptable in recipes. Can I substitute one of them in this soup? I’m new to plant based eating, and loving your blog and recipes.
Hello Diane,
You can definitely substitute the tomatoes in the soup, but the flavour will be quite different. As long as you don’t mind that! Just add more peppers instead, maybe 2 extra, and a bit more liquid / broth too. I hope that helps!
Way to go trying to eat more plant-based. You’ll find a lot of inspiration here 🙂
Best,
Sarah B
Holy crap, Sarah! Bless you for these giant croutons. I am always on board for new ways to eat more sourdough and this looks diviiine! And thanks for that breakdown on nightshades. There’s so much confusing advice out there about them…
Hello Alex!
Hahaa, you’re welcome…I feel that the creation of them was rather selfish though 😉
And yes, lots of confusing health “info” out there. I actually went back and corrected a couple of old posts…I’m still learning too! I hope to never stop.
xo, Sarah B
Hello Sarah,
I am currently enjoying the leftovers of this really delicious soup. I have been an avid reader of your blog and your two cookbooks and just wanted to say thanks for all the great recipes. So many of them have become staples in our household because they are so delicious and easy to make. Keep up the good work and I hope I will be able to join one of your retreats one day.
All the best to you
Mara
Hello Mara,
Wow! What a heart-warming comment. Thank you! I’m so touched by your words, and thrilled to hear that my recipes are in rotation over there! That’s amazing. I hope you can join one of my retreats one day too. They are pretty incredible (if I can say that myself, haha!). See you then, can’t wait.
Love, Sarah B
Hi! The recipe sounds really delicious! I have a question. Can I use water to replace vegetable broth?
Hello Joshua,
Yes, you can absolutely use water instead of veggie broth. I would suggest adding a little more salt than the recipe calls for, in that case. I hope you enjoy!
Best,
Sarah B
This was unreal, thank you!
Hi Hannah!
So glad you loved it! Hooray! Thanks for letting me know 🙂
xo, Sarah B
I made this soup over the weekend and it was sooo delicious. I didn’t have sundried tomatoes so roasted a few ripe tomatoes along with the peppers and reduced canned tomatoes by half. It was very good, I’ll try it next time with the sundried tomatoes when fresh are no longer available. I love your giant croutons, but I did indulge by eating this creamy soup with a grilled cheese :0
Hi Anita!
No judgment here…a grilled cheese sounds like a pretty perfect accompaniment! Drool.
I’m sure even without the sun-dried tomatoes, it was great! Thanks for your comment!
xo, Sarah B
Hi Sarah! This recipe looks and sounds so good! But about this thing on autoimmunity and nightshade plants I hope you could help me clarify something. First of all my husband was diagnosed with diabetes type 1 this February ? So sad! Diabetes 1 is an autoimmune disease, so do you think it could have been triggered by nightshade plants? And should he avoid them now (this might be stupid, sorry, but it’s a chronic disease and I’m just trying to understand it?). Also, after giving birth I developed a tiny bit of psoriasis on my right knee and elbow. It’s so tiny that I’m not doing anything about it really (I already eat quite healthy and anti inflammatory), but do you think it could help avoiding nightshades? I’ve always thought of this ‘avoiding nightshade-thing’ as being rather extreme and I thought it was just for general health and so considering all the good things they contribute with as well I’ve been consuming plenty of them. Also in Denmark as you very well know potatoes are pretty hard to avoid (and also I love them so much, and don’t think I could live without…). Hope you could help me out, and sorry for this novel.. Love your world. Mathilde
Hej Mathilde,
To answer your questions:
1. the diabetes was definitely NOT triggered by nightshades. He could try avoiding them now, but only do so if he’s having digestive issues with them.
2. You also can try avoiding them for yourself – take them away for six weeks or so, then slowly re-introduce them. Start by trying them cooked, then raw. Monitor your symptoms.
I hope that helps! So sorry to hear about your husband. I hope you have good team of healthcare professionals helping you both.
Much love!
Sarah B