White Bean Kale Soup

Out of nowhere, New York is suddenly cold. Slightly depressed about the long, dark, cold, dreary winter ahead of us, I found refuge in cooking a big pot of soup. Nothing better than a healthy, scrumptious, hot bowl of soup (vegan, but packed with protein) to make me feel warm and homey!

Ingredients:

* 2 leeks, finely chopped

* 1 large yellow onion, finely diced

* 1 bay leaf

* 4 cups vegetable stock

* 2 tablespoons of olive oil

* 14 ounce can of white bean (cannellini)

* 1 bunch of dark green veggies, such as kale or swiss chard

* salt and pepper, as desired

Directions:

* Finely chop leek and onion, and heat the oil in a pot on medium heat.

* Add the onions, leeks, and bay leaf.

Lots of leeks.

Finely chop the onions — but if you are like me and can’t stop crying when you work with onions, then do your best (I cried so hard that I thought I would cut off my finger!)

The beginning smell of winter.

* Stir the veggies around in the pot until the onions become soft, but not browned.

Soft but not browned.

* Add the vegetable stock and the can of beans, and turn up the heat.

Broth, beans, and veggies.

* Once the soup boils, lower the hear and simmer for 20 minutes. Then, remove the bay leaf, and blend the soup together. Careful to put the lid on the blender ALL the way, or you will end up with a burnt hand and a big mess in the kitchen. UMMMM……

Blended bowl of beauty.

* Then, add the kale or swiss chard, and let the green veggies wilt for 3 minutes.

Kale! (I added a little too much. Yes, I can’t believe that I said that there was TOO much kale in any dish, but in this one, less is more).

3 minutes!

* Season the soup with salt and pepper, and serve!

Sweet home in a bowl.

Enjoy! Hope you all have a great weekend. We are off to Pound Ridge for some needed R&R.