White Bean, Sausage and Kale Soup

One week ago we were having 100 degrees weather, air conditioners were on, the pool was full of people. Fast forward to today and we are at 70 degrees.  Chilly mornings and evenings, sunny days with gentle breeze.  Fall is here! The drastic change had me thinking about my favorite fall foods and craving apple pie, pumpkin bread and soup.  I love soup!

  
I've been drinking green smoothies with kale for the last couple of weeks and have a refrigerator full of kale, so I knew I wanted to do something that had kale in it.  Don't say "ewww"!  Kale is fabulous and so good for you!  It has very little flavor and basically takes up the flavor of whatever ingredients you cook it with.  In a smoothie it will taste like all of the yummy fruits you mix it with.  It tastes fabulous sauteed with garlic and prosciutto.  It is also perfect in soups. Sausage in the freezer, cans of white beans, fresh thyme out in the garden!  Sounds like the ingredients for a great soup to me!

This is a very easy soup with very few ingredients and it comes together in no time at all.  Feel free to experiment with it and add more vegetables, different beans, you could even use a different type of sausage.  The point is, this is a very good, easy, and healthy soup that will warm you up on a cold fall night!

See? I don't just sit around all day eating cupcakes!  I even like to eat the healthy stuff!  LOL  ;)

Enjoy!

White Bean, Sausage and Kale Soup

1 lb Italian Sausage (I used Italian chicken sausage), cooked and sliced

1 small onion, coarsely chopped

2 tablespoons olive oil

4 garlic cloves, finely chopped

6 cups chicken broth

2 cans white beans (such as great northern), drained and rinsed

1 piece parmesan rind

1 bay leaf (not California)

1 teaspoon fresh thyme

1 lb kale, stems and center ribs discarded and leaves coarsely chopped

salt and pepper, to taste

hot sauce, to taste

Cook onions in oil in an 8-quart pot over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, 4 to 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Add cooked sausage, beans, broth, cheese rind, bay leaf, thyme, salt and pepper, and kale. Simmer, uncovered, about 30 minutes.  Check seasoning, add hot sauce to taste.

Recipe shared on:

Foodie Friends Friday

"The Hearth and Soul Blog Hop" at 21st Century Housewife

"Thursday's Treasures" at Chocolate, Chocolate and more Chocolate