Status: ROGUE

I now know cold. This “cold” that I speak of is a relatively new state of understanding for me. I am from California, southern to be exact—55 degrees was cold to me back in 2006. In the last 10 years I have seen 0 degrees and less. I am well acquainted with “wind chill” and its effect on weather. I have lived through 100+ inches of snow in one winter. Typically in this weather, I love to make a good soup...it warms my soul and the colors remind me that another season is coming. Just hold on. Now that we are clear, let me tell you about this delicious soup I have found!

I came across Rachel Ray’s Chickpea Soup last year and have made it a few times since then. I found this recipe when I lived with roommates in Boston. One of them was having a hard time finding a delicious healthy canned soup. I told her how easy it would be to make her own soup and that the cost would be fairly low. She eventually tried it, and fell in love with how much better than a canned soup the soup she made tasted. I was moved to do the same thing, but since I was in the midst of a health kick, I wanted a veggie loaded meal. Insert the above mentioned soup, with a few changes—yup, I went ROGUE all in that pot!

Money Matters
The soup as a whole was about $20, which is $5 a bowl! (Side note: I typically get about 5-6 bowls out of one pot, so the cost could be closer to $3 a bowl) Plus, it keeps well in the freezer—so do not feel the need to eat it all in a couple of days.

#ROGUElyfe

I didn’t have chickpeas (aka I forgot to buy them), but red kidney beans were a nice protein replacement. Look into trying another bean or forgo it—do you.
I used extra kale because I did not want it to go to waste.
I added Italian spice sausage, but I have used Andouille sausage—it all depends on what flavor you are looking for. Maybe a nice mini meatball?
Someone let me know how this comes out in a crockpot—please and thank you :)

My Take
4 cups kale, center stems removed
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 cups of baby carrots, roughly chopped
1 large onion, chopped
3 tablespoons chopped rosemary
3 cloves garlic, chopped, plus 1 large clove garlic, halved
1 tsp. crushed red pepper
Salt and pepper
4cup vegetable stock
1 10oz can of red kidney bean
2 cups can diced tomatoes
½ lbs of Italian spicy sausage
2 tbsp. sea salt

Optional
1cup Grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
Minced red or white onions, for garnish
6 slices of artisan bread

Directions

In a food processor, pulse the kale until finely chopped. Transfer to a medium bowl, rinse out the food processor and return it to the base.

In a soup pot, heat 3 tbsp. olive oil, three turns of the pan, over medium-high. Add the carrots, chopped onion, rosemary, chopped garlic and pepper; season with salt and pepper. Cover, reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender but not brown, 7 to 8 minutes.

Stir in the stock, beans and tomatoes. Transfer half the soup to the food processor and coarsely puree. Return to the pot, add the chopped sausage and stir in the kale; season. Simmer, stirring often, until the sausages is cooked and flavors blend, about 10mins.

Serve up, and enjoy—unless you are adding the bread:

Preheat the broiler. Toast the bread under the broiler until charred, about 2 to 3 minutes per side. Rub the toasts with the halved garlic clove, drizzle with EVOO and sprinkle with sea salt. Place 1 toast in each soup bowl and top with soup. Garnish with the raw onion and/or cheese. Pass more EVOO at the table for drizzling.

Happy Cooking Y'all :)