Tuscan Kale and White Bean Soup

It’s Day 12 of my series Start with a Vegetable where we grab a vegetable and turn it into a simple weeknight meal.

And tonight we’re making kale! Tuscan kale to be exact. If kale is a leafy green that feels intimidating or unappealing to you, try it in soup. Chopping it up small and simmering it in flavorful broth tenderizes the leaves and adds flavor.

The move for this soup is to use the oil from a jar of sun-dried tomatoes to saute the aromatics. That oil is savory flavor gold.

Tuscan Kale and White Bean Salad
serves 4

🥬 2 Tbsp oil from a jar of sun-dried tomatoes
🥬 1 cup diced yellow or white onion
🥬 3 cloves garlic, grated or minced
🥬 1 tsp Italian seasoning
🥬 1/2 tsp kosher salt
🥬 3 Tbsp tomato paste
🥬 6 cups vegetable stock
🥬 1/2 cup finely chopped sun-dried tomatoes
🥬 6 oz dried pasta, like medium shells
🥬 1 15-oz can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
🥬 1 bunch kale, stems removed and leaves chopped (about 3 to 4 cups chopped)
🥬 parmesan cheese and black pepper, for serving (optional)

1. Heat a Dutch oven or saute pan over medium heat. Add the oil. When the oil begins to shimmer, add the onion and garlic. Cook, stirring, until the onions are soft and nearly translucent, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the Italian seasoning, salt, and tomato paste and stir a few more times.

2. Pour the vegetable stock over the aromatics and cook until it begins to simmer. Add in the sun-dried tomatoes and dried pasta. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the dried pasta is tender (check the package for recommended cook time).

3. In the last two minutes of cooking, add the beans and kale to the soup so that the kale wilts just as the pasta finishes cooking.

4. Top the soup with parmesan cheese and black pepper if you’d like.