Italian Minestrone & Happy Gray Skies

I seriously might run away with this soup.

Our family loved it, even J. Both times he has requested "more" 2-3 times.  (Of course, I do stir in cheese and sour cream for him.)  Warning: this makes A LOT.  We are having it for 3 meals, and I gave some away.  I would think a good 12-14 servings.  And, it's HEARTY.  So, halve it, plan to freeze it, eat it for 10 days, have it for company, and use a huge pot.  I almost ran out of room using my 8 quart stock pot.

Adapted from myrecipes.com from Food & Wine magazine.

Italian Sausage Minestrone

Ingredients

1. 2 tablespoon olive oil


2. 2 pound mild ground Italian sausage


3. 1.5 onions, chopped


4. 3 carrots, chopped


5. 3 clove garlic, minced


6. 1 teaspoon dried thyme


7. 4 (15oz) cans drained and rinsed cannellini beans


8. 8 cups chicken stock, plus 2 cups water


9. 1 large (28oz) can diced tomatoes with their juice


10. 1 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper


11. 2/3 pound kale, chopped, washed well (I used 2/3 of a 1lb bag, pre-chopped, pre-washed)


12. Grated Parmesan, for serving

Directions

1. In a large pot, heat the oil over moderately high heat. Add the sausage and cook, stirring frequently, until browned. Remove the sausage with a slotted spoon. Set on paper towels to drain.


2. Reduce the heat to moderate. Add the onion, carrot, garlic and thyme to the pot and cook in sausage grease, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables soften, about 10-15 minutes.


3. Meanwhile, combine 2 cans of the beans and about 4 cups (2 small cans) of the chicken stock in a blender and puree until smooth.


4. Add the tomatoes, the bean puree, 2 remaining cans of beans, the remaining chicken stock and water, the salt, and the pepper to the pot. Bring to a boil, skimming any foam that rises to the surface. Stir in the sausage, the remaining 2 cans of beans, and the kale. Simmer until the kale wilts and you are ready to eat. Serve the soup topped with grated Parmesan, and pass more Parmesan at the table.  I let it simmer for hours to make sure the carrots were soft and the flavors had come together. The kale holds up well.

Enjoy!

In other news... today is a little bleak outside.  Which kinda sends me into a panic.  In the mornings we usually take a walk, go to the park.  Key point here is WE GO OUTSIDE.

So, I tried my best to get creative.  Might need to stop by the store to help my creativity out.  My friend, Holly, said something very profound the other day: "its just to the point, where as a mom I need to have pipe cleaners on hand all the time".  Truer words never spoken.















Happy Weekend!!!