Italian Sausage Soup with Kale

After lots of heavy foods over the holidays, I’ve been craving something light. I had a package of sweet italian sausages in the fridge that needed to be used, so here is what ended up happening.

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 pound Italian sausage
• 2 onions, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 cup chopped carrots
• 1 1/2 cups shredded or finely chopped cabbage
• 2 x 19 oz cans diced peeled tomatoes with juice (I used the ones with onions, celery,etc in them)
• 6 cups chicken broth
• 3 teaspoons dried basil
• 4 handfuls baby kale or chopped kale
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 cups bow tie pasta, cooked separately to al dente and set aside

Directions:

1. In a soup pot, heat olive oil.
2. Squeeze sausage out of the casings into small meatballs.
3. Cook sausage over medium heat until browned, adding in onions, celery, garlic and carrots part way through.
4. Cook uncovered for 5 minutes, or until onions are soft.
5. Add tomatoes, chicken broth, cabbage, and basil. Bring to a boil and season with salt and pepper.
6. Simmer until carrots are almost done, then add kale.
7. Cook until carrots and cabbage are cooked through. Check seasoning again.
8. To serve, put some cooked pasta in the bottom of the bowl, add soup, stir to combine.