Toscana Soup

INGREDIENTS
12 links Italian pork sausage, sliced
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
3/4 cup diced onion
1 1/4 teaspoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons chicken broth
4 cups water
2 potatoes, cubed
2 cups sliced kale
1/3 cup heavy cream (I use 1 % milk and it works just fine)
1 tsp. Epicure Roasted Red Pepper dip mix (optional)
2 large carrots

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C).

Place sausage links on a baking sheet and bake 25 minutes, or until cooked through. Slice into 1/2 inch slices.

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Saute onions until translucent; add garlic and cook 1 minute.

Stir in broth, water, carrots, potatoes and dip mix; simmer 15 minutes.

Reduce heat to low and add sausage, kale and cream; simmer until heated through and serve.

Kale Potato Soup

1 large bunch kale (chopped)

Steam and set aside. (Don't cook it with the potatoes; the flavor will be too strong.)

1 tablespoon butter

1 large onion (I use 1/2 of quite a large onion)

1 tsp. garlic powder or 1 clove of garlic

Melt butter in soup pot. Add onion and saute until golden. Add garlic and saute another minute.

2 large potatoes

2 cups hot water or broth (I use chicken broth)

Add to pot with the onion, bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer until potatoes are soft. Remove half of the cooked potatoes; puree the rest with the cooking liquid and return to the soup pot. Return reserved potatoes and steamed kale to soup pot. (Puree everything if a smooth texture is desired. I puree the kale as well but leave some potato chunks as Kyle likes some chunks in his soup.)

3 cups water or broth

1/2 teaspoon salt (don't over salt, not much is needed with this soup)

pepper to taste

Add along with additional hot water or milk to preferred consistency. Heat gently until hot and serve. ( I like to add 1 cup of milk mixed with 2 heaping tablespoons of flour to make a creamier soup)

Kale is a good source of calcium, beta carotene, vitamin K, vitamin C and iron.