We recently enjoyed a family trip to Portland, Oregon for a long weekend. From Chicago, the trek is a long one but it turned out to be a memorable adventure. The thoughts of airport hassles, security and four hour flights with a 10-month old wiggle worm had me shaking in my boots. One of my friends advised that should the baby start crying on the plane, just don’t look back or make eye contact with anyone. There is nothing you can do about it. Before leaving, I was talking to my friend Stephen about it and he said, “Well, you are going to be that ‘one’ with the baby.”
All in all, it went quite well. I saw our businessman seat mate deflate from his bad luck when he saw us approach his aisle. And, we endured some unbelievable diaper “situations” that will forever be burned in my memory and will surely be a source of teasing throughout Mini-Whipped’s teenage years. But, we made it there, made it back and were overall rested for the weekend away.
One of my best chums lives in Portland. She is the one who gave me this cheesecake recipe and who started this amazing non profit. The first evening we arrived at their house, Steph whipped up a delicious kale and white bean soup. The ingredients are few and the flavors are simple. And boy was it good. Salt-of-the-earth, hearty-winter-warming good. Back in Chicago, I made a simple version of the soup, adding a little sausage. Make this recipe vegetarian by adding vegetable stock and omitting the sausage.
Kale, White Bean and Sausage Soup
Makes 4 servings
2 links Italian Sausage
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
6 cups chicken stock
1 can white beans, drained and rinsed
1 small bunch kale
Remove sausage from its casing and saute in a skillet, stirring to break it up a bit. When cooked through, remove the sausage and put it on a plate lined with paper towel to drain it a bit. Wipe most of the grease out of the pan. Saute the onion and garlic in the pan for a few minutes, stirring.
Meanwhile, in a soup pot, bring 6 cups of chicken stock to low boil. Add the onions and garlic, beans and drained sausage. Wash all of the kale leaves. Remove the stem and the tough center part of the leaves. Chop leaves into about 1 inch strips. Add the kale to the soup. Stir and cook about 5 minutes or until kale is wilted. Serve right away.
February 6th, 2009 at 11:43 pm
mmm, I have actually made this very soup before, and it really is delicious and easy! Sometimes I add a can of stewed tomatoes for a different flavor base to the soup.
Glad you enjoyed Portland!!
February 8th, 2009 at 5:57 pm
That soup looks so yummy…I’ll have to make it up while it is still soup season here.
February 8th, 2009 at 10:41 pm
[...] Kale White Bean and Sausage Soup :: Whipped [...]
February 9th, 2009 at 5:15 pm
So simple and delicious, the kind of recipe I love!
February 10th, 2009 at 8:55 am
i made this last night, it was delicious! thanks :-)
February 12th, 2009 at 5:27 pm
Mmm. I’ll definitely have to try this. I like the addition of sausage to this soup. I have a similar recipe (though without meat) on my blog: http://eatingthroughsf.blogspot.com/2008/11/pot-of-soup-to-get-you-going.html
February 14th, 2009 at 8:28 am
This looks soooo good! I love all the flavors – I may try spinach instead of the kale.
October 9th, 2009 at 12:29 pm
Mmmm… Found your blog via google search for kale, white bean, and sausage soup. I’d made something like this last year and wanted to make some for supper tonight. It’s a chilly, wet, blustery fall day–this will be perfect. Thanks–I’ll be back!
Also, I’m about to take a trans-atlantic flight with my soon-to-be 4month old and am *DREADING* it, for all those reasons. Had to laugh at the “don’t make eye-contact” advice. Is it possible to avoid eye-contact for 8 hours?! :) Ugh. Glad to know it’s at least manageable, though.
January 25th, 2011 at 12:36 am
I liked this simplicity of the recipe, but it managed to taste a bit thin. I blame the TJ’s low sodium chicken stock.