Beet and White Bean Soup (Low Cholesterol, Easy)

Looking for a beet and white bean soup that actually fills you up? This one does. It’s bright pink, it blends up creamy without any cream, and white beans do the heavy lifting.

For those of you I haven’t met, I am Veronica, a Registered Dietitian and Certified Diabetes Educator. I work with people who want to lower their cholesterol and blood pressure using food they already know how to cook.

Everything cooks in one pot, and the longest step is waiting for the beets to soften. Below you’ll find what makes this soup heart healthy, a few things to know about cooking beets, and ideas for serving it.

Why make this beet and white bean soup

When someone tells me they need to lower their cholesterol, the first thing I do is look for what we can add. This soup adds vegetables, fiber and plant protein, and it uses olive oil instead of butter or cream. All important components of the portfolio diet.

It’s also a soup you can make on a weeknight. Chop the vegetables, simmer, add the beans, blend. If you’re after more ideas like this one, my low cholesterol soup post covers what to include in a bowl and what to leave out.

What’s in this beet and white bean soup

Beets bring the color and a natural sweetness. Carrots and onion make the base, and garlic and thyme keep the flavor from tasting flat. A splash of apple cider vinegar or lemon juice at the end brightens everything up.

White kidney beans or cannellini beans are the part that makes this a meal. They blend into the soup and make it thick and smooth, so you don’t need cream. I use canned beans, drained and rinsed, to keep the prep short and to cut down on sodium.

Low sodium vegetable broth keeps the salt in your control. The recipe has no added salt at all, just black pepper, and it still tastes like something.

Why this beet and white bean soup is heart healthy

Beans are rich in soluble fiber, the kind that forms a gel in your gut and helps carry cholesterol out of your body before it gets absorbed. You can see where beans land in my soluble fiber food list.

They also bring plant protein, which is why they show up on my plant protein foods chart. Protein and fiber together are what keep a bowl of soup feeling like dinner instead of a starter.

Olive oil adds the kind of fat I’m happy to see in a heart healthy diet. Fat isn’t the enemy here. Saturated fat is the one to watch, and one serving of this soup has only 0.4 grams of it, with 7 grams of fiber and 251 mg of sodium.

Does beet soup lower blood pressure?

Beets are known for their dietary nitrates, which the body converts into nitric oxide, a compound that helps relax blood vessels. That’s why so many people ask me about beets and blood pressure.

Here’s the catch for soup. Heat can lower nitrate levels, which is why I use raw beets in my beet juice for high blood pressure. A pot of soup that simmers for 30 minutes isn’t the same thing as a raw beet drink.

So I won’t promise that this soup lowers your blood pressure. What it does bring is potassium from the beets, carrots and beans, 474 mg in one serving, along with fiber and only 251 mg of sodium. If you want to read more about that mineral, see my post on potassium in chickpeas.

A real story from my community

One of the members of my Heart Connection community wrote to me after a visit with her care team. She told me, “I was also told I have the bp of a 16yr old,” and she gave the program credit for it.

She also keeps her LDL cholesterol at target, with a little help from a statin because her Lp(a) is high. (Lp(a) is a type of cholesterol particle that’s mostly set by your genes.) She isn’t doing anything fancy. She keeps learning, keeps cooking, and keeps showing up. Learn more how to lower your Lp(a) here.

Individual results vary, and every person’s health is different. But it’s the kind of everyday change I see most often: small steps that add up.

Beet soup and diabetes

Many of my readers have diabetes or prediabetes, so here’s how this soup fits. The carbohydrate in it comes from the beets, carrots and beans. Beets have natural sugar, but they’re also full of fiber, and so are the beans.

Fiber slows down how quickly carbohydrate is absorbed, which helps keep your blood sugar steadier after a meal. A spoonful of plain Greek yogurt on top adds a little protein, and that helps too.

One serving has 23 grams of carbohydrate, 7 grams of fiber and 8 grams of sugar. Most of that sugar is the natural sweetness of the beets and carrots. Check the carbohydrate number against your own meal target. If you want more of a meal, pair a bowl with a slice of whole grain bread and some protein on the side.

Tips for making the best beet and white bean soup

Beets stain, so wear gloves when you peel and chop them, or rinse your hands in cold water right after. A cutting board you don’t love is a good idea too.

Cut the beets into pieces about the same size so they cook evenly. Small cubes soften faster, and the soup is ready when a fork slides through the beets with no resistance.

Blend until it’s completely smooth with an immersion blender. If you don’t have one, let the soup cool a little and blend it in batches in a regular blender, with the lid vented so steam can escape.

Taste before you serve. The vinegar or lemon juice is what makes the flavor pop, so add a little more if the soup tastes flat.

Watch the video

Can I use cooked beets for this soup?

Yes, and it’s a good shortcut when you’re short on time. Store bought cooked beets are already soft, so you only need to simmer the soup long enough for the carrots to soften, about 15 minutes, before adding the beans.

Check the label first. Some packaged beets are packed with added salt or vinegar, which changes the sodium and the flavor. Plain cooked beets with nothing added are the best choice for this soup.

If you roast a tray of beets earlier in the week, those work well too. Let them cool a little, chop them and add them with the broth.

Make it for the week

This is a soup that does well as a meal prep recipe. Make a pot on the weekend, portion it into jars or containers, and you have lunches ready for a few days. Pack the yogurt and dill separately and add them when you’re ready to eat.

It also doubles easily if you have a big pot. A double batch gives you dinner tonight and a few bowls for the freezer, which is the kind of planning I try to make easy for the members of The Heart Connection.

How to store and freeze it

This soup keeps in the fridge for 3-4 days. The flavor often gets better the next day, so it’s a good one to make ahead on a Sunday and eat through the week.

It also freezes well. Cool it completely, pour it into containers with a little room at the top, and freeze it. Thaw in the fridge overnight and warm it on the stove. Add the Greek yogurt and dill after you reheat it, not before you freeze it.

Swaps and variations

No white beans? Chickpeas or any other canned beans will work, though the color and flavor will change a little. Lemon juice works in place of the apple cider vinegar.

Dairy free? Skip the Greek yogurt, or use a plain unsweetened plant based yogurt. If you need lactose free, a lactose free plain yogurt works too.

Want it chunkier? Blend only half the soup and stir it back in. If you like a bit of heat, add a pinch of red pepper flakes or cayenne with the thyme.

You can use fresh thyme in place of dried. Use about a tablespoon of fresh leaves for the 1 teaspoon of dried.

What to serve with beet soup

A slice of whole grain bread is the easy answer. For a bigger meal, a side salad with olive oil and lemon fits well. My low cholesterol bean salad is a good match if you want even more plant protein.

If you like beets in other forms, my beet and broccoli salad is sweet and salty, and my beet smoothie to lower blood pressure uses them raw.

More heart healthy soups to try

Soup is one of the easiest ways to eat more vegetables and beans. If this one worked for you, try my roasted white bean blended soup or my carrot lentil ginger soup.

For a longer list built around blood pressure, my DASH diet soup recipes are all low in sodium. And if your pantry is bare, the staples in pantry staples for heart health will get you most of the way to this soup.

Like this recipe and want more inspiration? Join The Heart Connection membership for weekly heart healthy meal plans, live coaching calls with me and a community that cooks along with you.

Final thoughts

A beet and white bean soup doesn’t need to be fancy to do its job. It brings fiber, plant protein and vegetables to the table, and it’s easy to make a big batch. Next time you pick up beets, try making a pot and see how it keeps in your fridge.