Kale, White Bean & Sausage Soup

I love rustic meals like this one. I stumbled across this recipe about a year ago on Epicurious and made it right away. It's very easy and makes the perfect Sunday night supper. This soup is full of the good stuff: creamy white beans, tender carrots, salty rounds of sausage, and lots of wilted kale. It's pretty cheap to make and wonderfully satisfying!

Kale, White Bean & Sausage Soup

1 lb dried white beans such as Great Northern, cannellini

2 onions, coarsely chopped

2 tablespoons olive oil

4 garlic cloves, finely chopped

5 cups chicken broth
2 qt water

1 (3- by 2-inch) piece Parmigiano-Reggiano rind (optional)

2 teaspoons salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1 bay leaf (not California)

1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary (or a a couple t. dry)

1 lb smoked sausage such as kielbasa, sliced crosswise (I used Italian)

8 carrots , 1/4 inch thick slices

1 lb kale (preferably lacinato), leaves coarsely chopped

Preparation Cover beans with water by 2 inches in a pot and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and let stand, uncovered, 1 hour.

Drain beans in a colander and rinse.
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 beans, broth, 1 quart water, cheese rind, salt, pepper,

bay leaf, and rosemary and simmer, uncovered,

until beans are just tender, about 50 minutes or more.
While soup is simmering, brown sausage in batches

in a heavy skillet over moderate heat, turning,

then transfer to paper towels to drain.
Stir carrots into soup and simmer 5 minutes.

Stir in kale, sausage, and remaining quart water and simmer,

uncovered, stirring occasionally, until kale is tender, 12 to 15 minutes.

Season soup with salt and pepper.

I didn't add the cheese rind, instead I just sprinkled some ground Italian cheeses on top. I also think a splash of white wine vinegar is nice in this soup. It wakes up the flavors and gives it a nice tang. I also added a few very generous pinches of red pepper to our batch. This makes a good amount of soup and gets better with age so count on leftovers!

Enjoy!