Lemony Kale and White Bean Soup

Last Year's Post: Italian Tuna
Two Years Ago:   Grilled Hawaiian Filipino Adobo Pork

This is a wonderfully comforting soup with the touch of lemon, rich chicken broth, and creamy beans, plus it's incredibly good for you.  For some reason I think white beans are very soothing, maybe because they're so creamy.  Anyway, this would be a great dinner to have during a particularly stressful week because it's light, healthy, warm and comforting all at the same time.  Make it in advance and all you have to do is reheat it on your worst day.  And because the soup is relatively light, it makes a nice transition into fall without going all the way to a big bowl of chili.

The chicken broth plays an important role her so use the best quality that you can find, or make your own.  I did that recently and it was actually a fun project plus I have containers sitting in my freezer just ready for the next recipe. Click here if you're interested.

If you don't want to make your own broth, be sure to use a low sodium variety.  One of the main reasons to make your own soup is to control the sodium.  Prepared soups (whether canned, from the deli or in a restaurant) have unbelievable amounts of sodium - check it out next time.  I love Panera soups, for example, but a bowl of their soup can have as much sodium as you should consume in a day, if not more.  I didn't list the amount of salt to add to the soup because it all depends on the sodium level in your chicken broth - start with a small amount and taste as you go.  You can always add more at the table.

Serve the soup with some crusty bread for a very satisfying meal.

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Lemony Kale and White Bean Soup

Serves 4-6

Note: There are no amounts given for salt and pepper because it really depends on the chicken stock you use.  I used zero-sodium chicken stock and add ½ teaspoon of both salt and pepper while cooking and it still needed more salt at the table.

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 large stalk of celery, diced

1 carrot, peeled and diced

1 clove garlic, minced

1 shallot, diced

1/8 cup dry sherry

6 cups good quality low-sodium chicken stock

2 sprigs fresh thyme

1 bay leaf

Salt and pepper

1 bunch Tuscan (Lacinato) kale, stemmed, washed and chopped

2 (15 oz) cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed (or 8 oz dried white beans, cooked and drained)

Zest of 1/2 lemon

Juice of 1 lemon

In a large soup pot, heat the oil over medium heat.  Add the celery, carrots, garlic and shallots and sauté until just tender, 5-8 minutes.  Deglaze with the sherry, then add the stock, bay leaf and thyme.  Bring to a gentle simmer and cook for 15 minutes.    Taste and adjust seasonings with salt and pepper.

Remove the thyme and bay leaves, then add the kale and simmer for an additional 8 minutes. Add the beans and lemon zest and juice and cook, stirring, for 5 more minutes to make sure everything is hot.  Taste and adjust seasonings again if needed.  Serve hot.