kale & veggie soup.

My least favorite part of cooking is the prepping. I hate our garlic press so I always cut the cloves by hand. I have tried every trick in the book to protect my eyes from onion-cutting but somehow I always have to step out of the kitchen and take five while my eyes dry back up (give me some more tricks people! my eye sensitivity to onions is enough to dread cooking for the rest of my life!). And because we have a small kitchen counter, I dirty every dish we have by trying to keep everything in separate bowls with separate seasonings and separate cookware in various places all over the kitchen.

Anyway.

I knew I would blog this recipe before I even cooked it because of the lack of prepping needed. That's how excited I was about not having to dice my onions, you guys.

The recipe sent to me was unclear, leading me to ask my mom a lot of questions before I started cooking. As a result, the recipe below is in my own words.

Ingredients:

3 medium carrots, cut in 1/2 inch slices

2 tomatoes, cut in wedges

1 yellow onion, peeled and cut into wedges

6 cloves of garlic, peeled

1/2 butternut squash (OR eggplant), peeled and cut into cubes

1 bunch kale, chopped (stack it, roll it, thinly slice it)

1 can cannellini or white beans, drained

6 cups of veggie stock

1 heaping tsp. thyme

1 bay leaf

salt & pepper to taste

*my butternut squash was a fail -I had never worked with it before and when I couldn't cut it easily, I decided to bake it anyway, thinking I would scoop out chunks after. It came out undercooked in some parts and overcooked in other parts. What's the deal with butternut squash? Help me. Anyway, my soup didn't have any squash in it. And it was still scrumptious.

Directions

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.

On a baking sheet, place butternut squash (ha!) and carrots on one side and tomatoes, onions, and garlic on the other side. Roast for 30 minutes or until the vegetables are starting to brown. I like my carrots to still have a crunch so I used them as my indicator.

Pull ALL veggies out, but scoop the tomatoes, onions, and garlic, and throw them into the blender. Briefly puree ingredients in the blender. Set carrots and squash aside.

Pour puree into your soup pot. Add the veggie stock. Bring to a simmer.

Add the thyme, bay leaf, and kale. Cook for about 30 minutes or until the kale is tender (I only had to cook it for 20-25 minutes). Meanwhile, if you're like me and you know by now that the butternut squash is not your friend, maybe you'll decide to make some garlic bread on a whim! See below.

Add the carrots, squash (ha!), and white beans and cook for about five minutes more. Remove the bay leaf. Pour servings into bowl and add parmesan. And garlic bread.

My garlic bread had melted butter, diced garlic, and a little sprinkle of sage. I placed it on the same baking sheet and broiled it in the oven for maybe 8-12 minutes (just check it and pull it out when it's the way you like it). 

When I dunked the the garlic bread in my soup and it soaked up the tomato-y broth like a sponge, I swear I saw a little piece of heaven.

Sorry for this monster of a blog post, but I loved this meal that much. Enjoy!