Creamy Cannellini and Kale Soup

I discovered small sun dried tomato bits in the bulk spice section of a local market and thought they would be great to use in all sorts of culinary applications. The first thing I thought of was soup! I wrote out this recipe on a whim during the summer months, and finally the weather is cooling down to give me the opportunity to actually give it a go. Yum! The flavors go well together and are simple enough that they do not compete. Hope you enjoy it as well!

Creamy Cannellini and Kale Soup

1 Tb Olive Oil

1/4 cup Shallots, chopped

4 cloves Garlic, minced

2 – 15 oz. cans Cannellini Beans

4 cups Vegetable Broth

2 head Kale, chopped

½ cup Sun Dried Tomato pieces

Salt to taste

Sauté the olive oil, shallots and garlic until golden. Place the beans in a food processor along with the sautéed shallots and garlic and blend. Add broth until it's a smooth consistency. Add contents into a large sauce pan on medium heat. Add the remaining broth, kale and sun dried tomatoes. cook for about 20 minutes on medium-low heat. Add salt to taste before serving.

* If you are unable to find smaller sun dried tomato bits, you can use the regular size and just use scissors to cut them a little smaller. Using sun dried tomatoes that are not in the oil works best.

Dinner with the Fam - Part 2

My family amazes me on how open they are to trying new foods. My dad actually told me that he misses my cooking on Thanksgiving! This is coming from a person who loves his turkey (and if I am cooking, everything on the table must be vegan).

My nephew loves my cooking and it is great! I am impressed by his ability to eat raw bell pepper to the green stem and he love jicama (as everyone should). When I decided to make a kale salad, I wasn't sure what he would think. After the salad was prepared, I suggested he try a piece of the kale, so he did. He loved it! Everyone loved it!


Kale Salad

2 bunches of Kale
1 Red Bell Pepper, chopped
1 Yellow Bell Pepper, chopped
1 bunch Green Onion, chopped
1 tsp Olive Oil (or sesame oil)
1 Tb Braggs
1 tsp Lemon Juice

Rinse the kale and tear the stems off. Chope the kale and place in a pan with water. Bring to a boil and cook until kale is slightly cooked. Drain water and place kale in cold water to stop the cooking. Drain off water and rinse off kale as needed.

Add the chopped peppers, green onion, oil, braggs and lemon juice in a medium bowl with the drained kale. Toss to mix all ingredients together and serve.

Vegetable French Lentil Soup

Yesterday I made a soup that was really good. I am very picky with my soups and I am not a fan of lentils which make me liking this soup so amazing. It was a vegetable french lentil soup that I kind of just threw together, so I don’t really have a recipe, per se, but I can remember what I did fairly well.

I decided to make sushi rolls for phase 1 of my cleanse but since I could not have soy sauce, I wanted to create something to dip the sushi in. I decided to try and make a sauce from pumpkin seeds, lime, rice vinegar, salt and dates for sweetness. I did not like how it turned out.

I had already decided to make soup from some random French Green Lentils I had, already cooked and ready to go. I added some veggies to a pot and not wanting to waste the sauce I prepared, I put it in the pot to cook with the veggies. It lent not only a good taste to the soup, but also a really neat color since the sauce was light green. Here’s what I did if you want to try to replicate it.

Vegetable French Lentil Soup

Sauce:
¼ cup Pumpkin Seeds

1 Tb Ginger, grated
Juice of 1 Lime
1 tsp Rice Vinegar
½ tsp Salt
1 fresh Date, pitted
1 cup Water

Soup:
2 cup cooked French Green Lentils*
2 carrots, thinly slices
1 small Onion, chopped
1 bunch Kale, chopped (I used Russian Kale, my favorite)
4 cups Water
1 tsp Salt
½ tsp Black Pepper

For the sauce, add all the ingredients except the water in the blender. Add 1/4 cup of the water and blend until smooth. Slowly add the rest of the water to get a good consistency.

In a large pot, add the chopped onion and sliced carrot along with ½ cup of water and heat on medium high heat. Let this cook for about 10 minutes to soften the vegetables. Add the sauce, cooked lentils, kale, salt and pepper to the soup base and the additional water. Cook for another 15 minutes on medium heat. Add more water depending on the consistency desired.

* To cook the lentils, simply combine 1 cup of French Green Lentils with 3 cups of water. Bring to a boil, then lower heat to a simmer and cover pot with a lid. Cook about 30 minutes.

I start my juice phase of my cleanse now, so wish me luck!