Soup's on!

The other night I finally got to make the kale and sausage soup I've had my eye on for days. I used this recipe as my inspiration, which is a copycat recipe from the Olive Garden restaurant. It was a perfect soup for a snowy winter day. Leftovers turned out well; I liked that it thickened a bit when it was reheated. The original recipe is as follows, with my version below.

Toscana Soup

• 12 links spicy pork sausage, sliced
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 3/4 cup diced onion
• 1 1/4 teaspoons minced garlic
• 2 tablespoons chicken soup base
• 4 cups water
• 2 potatoes, halved and sliced
• 2 cups sliced kale
• 1/3 cup heavy cream

• 
  
• Directions for original version:
• 1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C).
• 2. Place sausage links on a baking sheet and bake 25 minutes, or until cooked through. Slice into 1/2 inch slices.
• 3. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Saute onions until translucent; add garlic and cook 1 minute.
• 4. Stir in broth, water and potatoes; simmer 15 minutes.
• 5. Reduce heat to low and add sausage, kale and cream; simmer until heated through and serve.

My cleaned-up version:

• One package Jennie-O spicy Italian turkey sausage, removed from casings and browned/drained (minus 4oz once it was cooked, for another recipe)
• About 1 tablespoon olive oil
• One diced yellow onion (co-op)
• 3 cloves minced garlic
• 2 packets low-sodium chicken broth packets from Trader Joe's
• 4 cups water
• 2 potatoes, halved and sliced (co-op)
• 2 cups sliced kale, cram-packed full!
• 3 small carrots, washed and sliced (co-op)
• Half package sliced baby portobello mushrooms
• 1 can white kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• Splash of half-and-half (if I had more time or energy, I would've pureed some of the soup after adding the beans and before adding the kale and sausage with the hope that I could cut out the cream altogether. Maybe next time!)

1. Remove sausage from casings and brown in large skillet. Drain well and set aside.

2. In large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat, saute onion in oil until translucent. Stir in garlic, cook about 1 minute.

3. Stir in broth, water, mushrooms, carrots, and potatoes; cover and cook until potatoes are nearly fork-tender, about 20 minutes.

4. Reduce heat to low and add sausage, kale, beans, and half-and-half. Simmer until heated through. Serve hot.