“Portuguese” Kale Soup

Did you make a New Year resolution to find a few healthy recipes this year? I sure did! Here in the Northeast, we are in the midst of another cold winter. It isn’t looking like we will get the same snowfall we experienced last year, but we are still dealing with below average temps and looking for comfort food to keep us warm. Keeping my New Year resolution in mind along with winter comfort food, I always turn to soup. Soup is warm, filling and satisfying. When I received the soon to be introduced Bilinski’s Organic Kale Balsamic Chicken Sausage, my first thought was to create a “Portuguese” Kale Soup. While the soup is traditionally prepared with linguica sausage and potatoes, my version is light, healthy and full of flavor!

“Portuguese” Kale Soup
by Susan R-H
Serves 6-8

2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 medium white onion, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, finely diced
1/4 teaspoon course sea salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
1/4 teaspoon Aleppo pepper (or crushed red pepper flakes)
1 12-ounce package of Bilinski’s Organic Kale Balsamic Chicken Sausage, sliced into 1/4” coins

1/4 cup dry white wine
6 cups unsalted organic chicken stock
2 15.5-ounce cans of organic cannellini beans (white kidney beans), drained but not rinsed
8 ounces organic baby kale

Heat the olive oil until shimmering in a heavy bottomed 6-quart pot or Dutch oven. Add the onion and sauté, stirring frequently until the onions begin to caramelize. Add the garlic and cook for about 30 seconds to release the fragrance, but do not let the garlic start to brown as it will become bitter. Add the salt, black pepper and Aleppo pepper. Now add the sausage and white wine, stirring frequently, allowing the sausage to absorb the flavors of the onion and garlic. Continue stirring until the wine has cooked off. Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Add the beans and lower the heat to medium low. Let the soup simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in the baby kale and turn off the heat. Taste and adjust the salt and pepper as needed. Let the soup stand for 5 to 10 minutes. Ladle into bowls and serve with crusty bread or soup crackers.