Kale Sausage Soup

A couple weeks ago I wrote about the importance of adding cruciferous vegetables to your diet. Kale is one of my favorites.

I have made this soup four or five times, and each time I adjust the ingredients a little. I think it would be great as a vegetarian soup, with some white beans. I add the sausage because it makes it more of a full meal for us. This time I used Kielbasa sausage because we had some extra from the chili I made last week (my sister Alice’s recipe… I’ll include it at PWN blog sometime after Christmas because it’s the best!). Usually I use turkey sausage, but anything works.

Also, I used my Cuisinart food processor for all my chopping this time. It is fast and easy. But you don’t have to have a food processor to make the soup.

Recipe

Sausage (chicken, turkey, or any type you prefer; I usually use 4 large chicken sausages, precooked and sliced thinly; one Kielbasa sausage is a good amount too)

1 yellow onion, chopped

1 green onion, chopped

8 cloves garlic, chopped

4 cups chicken or vegetable broth

2 cups waterjuice of 1 lime

juice of ½ lemon

4 cups kale, finely chopped

2-3 cups canned hominy

3 tomatoes, chopped

1 fresh green chili pepper, chopped (optional, but I love the flavor!)

1 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

salt & pepper

Sauté onion for a few minutes. Add garlic and sauté for another minute. Add all remaining ingredients except for cilantro, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil on high heat. Then reduce heat and simmer 15-20 minutes, uncovered. Add cilantro, salt and pepper to taste, and serve.

This will make at least 6-8 servings. I usually freeze half of it, since there are only two of us. It’s a great winter dinner, and adding meat or beans will make it hearty enough for a full meal. Last night I served it with purple potatoes, boiled and mashed with the skins on, and a boiled sweet potato. That’s 2-3 servings of vegetables, all wrapped up in one dinner!

Enjoy.