Kale and Sausage Soup with Cannellini Beans

Kale and Sausage Soup with Cannellini Beans

A few years ago a good friend came over for dinner and brought this amazing soup. It has been a family favorite ever since.

She is a great cook and has a special gift for Italian food. Her original version of this soup uses broccoli rabe instead of kale, but I almost always have kale in my fridge and it makes a great substitute, plus it’s cheaper.

This soup is loaded with flavor….don’t be alarmed by the amount of garlic I tell you to put in it…just do it! I promise it will be delicious!

This soup can also easily be prepared without the sausage to be a vegetarian or vegan meal. I have made it both ways and it’s still delicious and full of flavor without the sausage.

P.S. if you don’t have Cannellini Beans, Great Northern beans will work great too!

Kale and Sausage Soup with Cannellini Beans

 

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Prep time

5 mins

Cook time

25 mins

Total time

30 mins

 

I love to use one of the cans of beans to thicken the soup a bit. I use my emulsion blender to blend it into a paste. I drain the beans and add a little of the soups liquid and then blend it until it is smooth. This step is not necessary. The soup will still be delicious if you choose to just add all of the beans whole. Blending up some of the beans is also a good trick if you have members of your family who aren't bean fans and pick them out. This way if they eat the liquid of the soup they are getting the nutrients from the beans and don't even know it.

Serves: 6-8

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 7 large segments of garlic, crushed or finely chopped
• ½-1 lb Italian Sausage (I use 3-4 links of sweet Italian Sausage and squeeze it out of the links)
• 5 cups chicken broth or stock (if you are making it without sausage to be vegan use veggie broth)
• 2-3 cups water
• 4 15 oz cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed (I blend up one and add it at the end to thicken the soup
• ¼ tsp basil
• Dash of red pepper flakes
• 2 tbsp Italian Salad Dressing (can substitute ½ tsp Italian Salad Dressing mix and a dash of red wine vinegar)
• 2-3 cups roughly chopped kale
• Salt and pepper to taste
•  

Instructions

1. In a large soup pot add the olive oil, sausage, and onion. Cook until meat is almost completely browned and add garlic. cook for another 2-3 minutes I salt and pepper this mixture lightly while it is cooking.
2. Add broth, water, beans (not the can you blend up though you will add that at the end), basil, and crushed red pepper. let simmer for 5 minutes
3. Add Italian dressing, the blended can of beans and chopped kale
4. Let cook five more minutes or until kale is tender. Taste and adjust salt and pepper if needed.
5. *Note: I always drain and rinse my beans. If you choose not to do so you may need to adjust recipe by not adding any extra salt and possibly adding more water. The bean liquid will make the soup more salty.

3.2.1275

Keep it Real!!!

Maria