This sausage and kale soup recipe puts the essence of Italy right in your bowl. Flavors of sweet Italian sausage mingle with savory herbs and garlic. This combination is rounded out with some onion and a dash of red wine vinegar. Carrots and emerald kale add gorgeous color and, combined with the cauliflower, loads of nutrition. This soup makes a satisfying and warming lunch or dinner and only takes one pot to prepare, making clean-up a breeze.

To customize the soup for your tastes, I have a few ranges in the list of ingredients. The first is in the amount of crushed red pepper flakes. These flakes add a pop of heat to the soup. Everyone has their own tolerance to this kind of spice. A quarter teaspoon adds some interest and adds some complexity to the flavor. At a half teaspoon, we start to get a bit more heat. Feel free to add more if you like. If you really love hot spices, you may also consider switching from sweet Italian sausage to hot Italian sausage. It’s really about making it work for you!

The second range I have is in the amount of salt. I used a range because homemade broth and different brands vary in the amount of salt they contain. I recommend using a low-salt broth so that you have more control of the end result. As the soup cooks, steam comes off, concentrating the liquid left behind. Because of this, regular broth may be too salty without even adding any salt. Be sure to taste the soup at the end of cooking and add salt accordingly.

This soup makes an easy, comforting and satisfying meal. It’s a delicious way to warm up on a chilly day.

Yields 6 servings of Sausage and Kale Soup

The Preparation

1 lb. sweet Italian sausage, ground

sweet Italian sausage, ground 1 Tbsp. butter

butter 1 medium yellow onion, chopped

yellow onion, chopped 1 medium carrot, peeled and diced

carrot, peeled and diced 2 cloves garlic, crushed

garlic, crushed 2 tbsp. red wine vinegar

red wine vinegar 1 tsp. dried oregano

dried oregano 1 tsp. dried basil

dried basil 1 tsp. dried rubbed sage

dried rubbed sage ¼ – ½ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

crushed red pepper flakes 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth

low-sodium chicken broth 1 cup heavy whipping cream

heavy whipping cream ½ medium head cauliflower, cut into small florets

head cauliflower, cut into small florets 3 cups kale, chopped

kale, chopped ½ – 1 tsp. sea salt, or to taste

sea salt, or to taste ½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper

The Execution

1. Heat a large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium high heat. Add ground sausage, breaking up the meat. Cook, stirring occasionally until browned and cooked through, about 5 minutes.

2. Using a slotted spoon, remove cooked sausage and allow to drain on a plate covered with paper towels. Discard drippings, but do not wash pan.

3. Melt butter over medium heat. When bubbling subsides, add onion and carrot. Cook until onion begins to brown on the edges and becomes somewhat translucent.

4. Stir garlic into onion and carrot mixture. Cook one minute. Add red wine vinegar and cook until syrupy, scraping up browned bits-about 1 minute.

5. Stir in oregano, basil, sage and red pepper flakes. Pour in stock and heavy cream. Increase heat to medium high.

6. When soup reaches a simmer, add cauliflower and turn heat down to medium-low. Simmer uncovered until cauliflower is fork-tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in kale and cooked sausage. Cook 1 to 2 minutes longer, or until kale wilts and the sausage is reheated.

7. Season to taste with salt and pepper. The amount of salt needed may vary due to variation in brands of broth.

This makes a total of 6 servings Sausage and Kale Soup. Each serving comes out to be 298 Calories, 24g Fats, 6g Net Carbs, and 16g Protein.

Sausage and Kale Soup Calories Fats (g) Carbs (g) Fiber (g) Net Carbs (g) Protein (g) 1 lb ground sweet Italian sausage 676 38.2 9.5 0 9.5 73.2 1 tbsp. butter 100 11 0 0 0 0 1 small yellow onion 25 0 5.7 1.2 4.5 0.8 1 medium carrot 25 0.1 5.8 1.7 4.1 0.6 2 cloves garlic 9 0 2 0.1 1.9 0.4 2 tbsp. red wine vinegar 4 0 0 0 0 0 1 tsp. dried oregano 3 0 0.7 0.4 0.3 0.1 1 tsp. dried basil 2 0 0.3 0.3 0 0.2 1 tsp. dried rubbed sage 0 0 0 0 0 0 1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes 3 0.2 0.5 0.2 0.3 0.1 4 cups chicken broth 40 0 0 0 0 8 1 cup heavy whipping cream 809 85.87 6.52 0 6.52 6.76 1/2 medium head cauliflower 72 0.5 15 7 8 5.5 3 cups kale 24 0.4 4.2 1.7 2.5 2.1 1 tsp. sea salt 0 0 0 0 0 0 1/2 tsp. black pepper 3 0 0.7 0.3 0.4 0.1 Totals 1795 136.27 50.92 12.9 38.02 97.86 Per Serving (/6) 299.17 22.71 8.49 2.15 6.37 16.31