Kale and Bean Soup

It rained today.  Torrential downpours complete with thunder from 10am - 11am.  And it snowed/hailed in downtown Huntington Beach.  On the beach.  On the pier.  They got 1/2 inch.  Crazy.

No better day for soup.  This was a little random, thrown together with whatever I had in the fridge and pantry.  I had 1/4 head of leftover roasted cauliflower that went in.  You could of course use fresh or omit.  I also used pinto beans because that's what I had, but canellini beans would be good, too.

Kale and Bean Soup


Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons coconut oil
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 large carrots, diced
• 2 cans beans, drained
• 1/4 head cauliflower, chopped
• 3 cups vegetable stock
• 3 cups water
• 1 large bunch kale, washed and chopped
• salt & pepper to taste
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• crumbled feta

Directions:

• In a heated soup pot over medium heat, add the coconut oil and sweat the onion.  Add the garlic and stir for 30 seconds.  Add the carrots.  
• Mash half the beans with a fork, then add all the beans to the pot.  Add the cauliflower, vegetable stock and water.
• Bring to a boil, then reduce to simmer.  Cook for about 15 minutes, uncovered, until the carrots and cauliflower soften.
• Add the kale.  Add salt & pepper to taste, as well as the lemon juice.
• Simmer for another 10 minutes or so.
• Serve hot, topped with crumbled feta.

I served it over brown rice and added some leftover roasted asparagus for garnish.

Lentil and White Bean Soup with Arugula

Yesterday was supposed to be Meatless Monday in the house, but it was the hub's birthday, and he requested steak.  He is incredibly supportive of my endeavors to convert us to a more healthy lifestyle, but he draws the line at birthdays.  Fair enough.  :-)

So Meatless Tuesday it is for this week.

Lentil and White Bean Soup with Arugula

Ingredients:

• 1 cup dry lentils
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 2 ribs of celery, chopped
• 1-ish teaspoon cumin
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 (15 oz.) cans white beans, drained and rinsed (I used Great Northerns)
• 1 (14.5 oz.) can petite diced tomatoes
• 5 cups water
• a couple large handfuls of arugula, washed and dried 
• feta cheese (optional)

Directions:

• Rinse the lentils and drain.  Place lentils in a bowl and cover with water; set aside to soak for an hour or so.
• Heat oil in a soup pot or dutch oven over medium heat.  Sweat the onions until translucent.  Add the carrot, celery, cumin and a few dashes of salt and pepper and stir for a minute.
• Drain the soaked lentils and add them to the pot.  Add the beans and tomatoes and water. Stir and bring to a boil.  Reduce to simmer and cook, uncovered, until the carrots and celery and lentils are tender, about 45 minutes.  Taste and add salt and pepper as necessary.
• Once the veggies are tender, add the arugula and stir it in so it wilts, about 30 seconds.
• Serve immediately with a sprinkle of feta cheese.

Simple Escarole and Beans

My friend Melissa mentioned on Facebook last week that she'd made escarole and beans.  I adore escarole and beans.  A long, long time ago I used to have a delicious escarole and beans recipe.  But of course now I can't find it.  Anywhere.  I don't remember everything that went into it, but I do remember there was Parmesan.  And escarole.  And, well, beans. 

Tonight I tried to re-create it partly from memory and partly by making things up as I went along.  It turned out really good.  The hubby, who had never had escarole before and was leery of the dish, was a good sport and tried it.  And went back for seconds.  I'd call that a success.

Simple Escarole and Beans

Ingredients:

• a couple tablespoons of olive oil
• 2 15-oz. cans of cannellini beans, drained (I used great northerns tonight)
• 1 cup water
• 2 large heads of escarole, washed and roughly chopped
• Tastefully Simple Garlic Garlic
• Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• a large handful (or two) of shredded parmesan

Directions:

• Heat olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat.  Add the beans and water and stir for a few minutes until heated through.  Mash some of the beans with your wooden spoon, it helps to thicken the sauce.
• Add the escarole.  2 large heads may seem like a lot and that it won't all fit into the pan, but the escarole does wilt down a lot, I'd say to about 1/3 or 1/4 its original volume.  I did this in handfuls, starting with the firmer white pieces, stirring them until they wilted a bit, then adding more, and ending with the more tender green pieces.  Once the escarole is all lightly wilted, add a few dashes of TSGG and some TSSS and black pepper to taste.  
• Stir in the shredded parmesan.
• Ladle into bowls and top with an additional sprinkle of parmesan.  Serve with crusty bread.

Italian Peasant Soup with Cabbage, Beans and Cheese

This soup is simple and delicious. Instead of one big slice of bread in the middle, I cubed mine into crouton-size pieces.  And I had regular green cabbage on hand, not savoy.  And I used chicken broth instead of vegetable broth, again because that's what I had in the pantry.

I bet this would also be very satisfying with some shredded rotisserie chicken added in.

Italian Peasant Soup with Cabbage, Beans and Cheese
Taken directly from this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 2 15-oz. cans cannellinii beans, washed and drained
• olive oil
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
• 1/2 medium head of cabbage, shredded
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 clove garlic, halved
• 5 cups vegetable or chicken broth (I used chicken)
• Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• slices of toasted crusty bread (I used sourdough)
• parmesan cheese

Directions:

• Mash half the beans and set aside.
• In a dutch oven, saute the onions on medium heat in a couple of tablespoons of olive oil until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.
• Add the cabbage and garlic.  Cook for a few minutes, stirring often, until the cabbage wilts.  Add in the beans (both mashed and whole) and broth.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, partially-covered, for about 15 minutes until the cabbage is tender.  Season with TSSS and black pepper.
• Arrange bread in soup bowls.  Ladle the soup over the bread.  Grate some parmesan cheese over the top and drizzle with a little extra virgin olive oil.  Serve immediately.