Cheeseburger Soup

This cheeseburger soup is dairy-free and it really tastes like a cheeseburger in a bowl!

Everyone is always asking me what my favorite food is and what my favorite recipe is. I can never decide. And I am never indecisive. I am good that way — I can make a decision quickly and confidently… usually. Except when I’m asked this question. But if you ask Steve this same question, he will tell you, without any hesitation, that cheeseburger soup is his all-time favorite meal.

The cheesy flavor comes from cashews and nutritional yeast. When you blend these up with some chipotle chilies for extra flavor… it’s like an awesome cheese sauce coating all of the amazing grass-fed beef in your bowl. It’s like magic!

Words cannot do this soup justice. When I was a fairly new blogger, I posted this recipe and it’s been a favorite ever since. It’s a cheeseburger in a bowl. A cheeseburger in soup form. It’s the most satisfying thing I have eaten in a long long time. And yet, it’s dairy-free and has so many nutrients that you will be doing your body a favor by eating it. Can this all possibly be true? YES!

I can’t take credit for coming up with the idea for this recipe; that credit goes to Kelly at The Spunky Coconut — and it’s genius!

If you like this recipe, you should also try my recipe for Slow Cooker Vegetable Minestrone — after all, having some veggies to balance your meat is always a good thing.

Here are some of the ingredients that make this soup so good for you:

Beef is good for a lot of ailments. It’s good for edema/swelling in the body, it helps many people with their weak back and knees and, believe it or not, it’s good for that bloated, distended feeling we sometimes get in our stomachs. In the olden days, beef was stewed for hours so that the liquid could be sipped to combat chronic diarrhea. I try to buy organic, grass-fed beef whenever possible — and it’s become pretty easy to find it in ground beef form in lots of markets!

Onions are great for your immune system; they are a natural antihistamine. Recently, I recommended that a patient with bronchitis put sliced raw onions in her socks when she went to sleep… she woke up so much better. (I know I’ve told you this before, but it really is awesome!) Onion is a superhero in the food world!

Cashews are really a multi-tasking nut. I use them all the time so I say it all the time: Cashews have a lower fat content than most other nuts. Most of the fat in cashews is unsaturated and is made up of oleic acid; this is the same acid that is found in olive oil, making these nuts a heart-healty choice. I know some of you have a problem finding raw nuts sometimes — I’m happy to try to help you locate them if you need shopping suggestions, so just leave a comment and I will try to help. I buy then whenever and wherever I see them. I’m also lucky enough to live near a Whole Foods, so I sometimes buy them from the bulk bins here.

Nutritional yeast gives things a cheese-y taste without using any dairy and it adds amino acids and Vitamin B, so it’s perfect here.

Chipotle peppers are jalapenos that have been smoked. The ones that come in the can are perfect to use here. These spicy peppers are a good source of vitamin A and potassium. Hot peppers contain more vitamin C than any other vegetable and they are good at fighting off the common cold. Whenever I have a cold I eat lots of hot sauce. So, if you like spice, as I do, use a generous amount of chipotles here. The main component of hot peppers is capsicum. Capsicum actually works with your body and mind to make you feel happy. It’s also good for reducing swelling and can relieve arthritic joint pain. If you have high blood pressure, check with your doctor before eating too many hot peppers because they can actually raise the blood pressure in some people.

Scallions, as I tell you often, are one of my favorites. In Chinese medicine, the root of the scallion is a healing herb (Cong Bai). I always keep scallions on hand in my refrigerator so that I can whip up a batch of cold and flu fighting tea (scallion roots and ginger) the second anyone feels that scratchy throat coming on. It helps the body sweat out toxins. Scallions are antiviral and antibacterial; they are good for the common cold and general nasal congestion — just don’t eat too many if you have a fever.

Garlic is amazing in its antiviral and antibacterial capabilities. Garlic is actually a Chinese herb (Da Suan). It’s used to kill toxins and parasites and also to reduce swelling in the body. It’s what I call a great “A” herb: anesthetic, antibacterial, anti fungal, antioxidant, antiviral, etc….