Alberts Spinach/Kale/Barley-enhanced Pasta & Bean Soup
Ingredients 1 package Bean Cuisine (Find it in the organic foods
section. Alternately, you can use any variety of beans mix and
match at will though you may need to soak them overnight, if you
decide to get witchy with your selections.) 1/2 cup uncooked barley
(optional, instead of the miniature pasta bows provided with mix)1
32-oz (large) can of diced tomatoes1 32-oz (large) can of crushed
tomatoes2 large cans of College Inn vegetable or chicken broth (It
really doesn't matter which you use. Use whatever you prefer. For
added fun, make your own stock!)2 one-lb bags of frozen spinach1 lb
of kale, coarsely chopped (or frozen)2 cups of chopped carrots1
large onion, chopped2 leeks, chopped2 cups of chopped celery5 to 8
cloves of garlic, finely minced2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (or
canola oil)NaCl, piper, parsley, basil, oregano to taste
Directions1. Heat a LARGE stockpot. Add olive oil to heated pot,
and saut carrots, onions (and/or leeks), celery, garlic and kale in
oil until onions start to become clear.
2. Add seasonings from soup mix, including dried beans -- take
care not to let small, separate seasoning pkg inside bag fall into
pot. (Been there, done that.)
3. Add crushed and diced tomatoes and broth. Stir until all of
the veggies are coated, and bring mixture to a boil.
4. Once soup boils, reduce heat to simmer. If you want to use
the pasta bows that come with the Bean Cuisine mix, wait until the
soup has cooked for at least 2-1/2 hours; if you put them in too
soon, theyll disintegrate. If you take the barley route, add it
before you bring the liquid to a boil (if you forgot, you can
simply add it now, bring it to a boil again, and then reduce to
simmer).
This is an extremely healthy soup with lots of vegetables and
theres nothing stopping you from adding your own faves (like green
beans, wax beans and zucchini). You can also make a variation on
this one by using cabbage instead of kale and spinach -- tends to
come out a little sweeter. This recipe will feed 2 people lunch for
an entire week, or make an excellent light dinner on its own if you
don't have time to make anything else.
Enjoy!
