Kale, White Bean and Orzo Soup with Plant-Based or Turkey Sausage

Once the weather turns colder, a collection of soup recipes is great to have on hand. Soups make for an easy one-pot, healthy dinner (and oftentimes leftovers!). This healthy kale, white bean and orzo soup is one of my favorite soups – it has tons of vegetables (including green vegetables), protein from beans and sausage (plant-based or turkey), whole wheat pasta for extra fiber and a secret ingredient which adds a ton of flavor!

What Is In Kale and White Bean Soup?

• Carrots, onions, celery – This trifecta of ingredients is called “soffrito” in Italian or “mirepoix” in French. Soffrito is an aromatic flavor base that forms the foundation of many soups and sauces. With any soup, I typically start with this base.
• Garlic – Use fresh garlic instead of powdered.
• Broth – You can use chicken or vegetable broth. Always use low sodium and build your salt to taste. My favorite broth is is the Imagine Foods Low Sodium Vegetarian No-Chicken Broth.
• Canned diced tomatoes – Again use low sodium or no sodium.
• Whole wheat orzo – I always use whole wheat grains in my cooking for extra fiber. Whole grains are also lower on the glycemic index so they won’t as readily spike your blood sugar because they take longer to digest. Sometimes whole wheat orzo can be hard to find so in a pinch you can use substitute regular orzo. I think farro here would be great here as well! You will need to cook the pasta separately and add it to the soup.
• White beans – Use low sodium canned or pre-cooked white beans. Any variety of white bean will work – cannellini, great northern or navy!
• Sausage – This is a health food blog so I am recommending you use vegan sausage such as the Field Roast brand but vegan is not your thing, I recommend using turkey sausage often found at the meat counter. Read more below about my recommendations.
• Kale – Curly kale is the most common and works best for this soup. Baby spinach is a good substitute.
• Parmesan rind – THE SECRET INGREDIENT! Do not skip this step unless you are vegan! Read more below about cooking with the rind!

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Tips for Making This Kale, White Bean and Orzo Soup

Plant-based sausage vs. Turkey Sausage

If you’ve been wanting to experiment with “meatless meals” this kale, white bean and orzo soup is a great recipe to begin with since there are so many ingredients and the sausage is really meant to complement the other flavors. I highly recommend the Field Roast Italian Garlic & Fennel plant-based sausages which are made from a blend of vital wheat gluten (which is wheat flour removed of starches), vegetables and spices (my 4 year old loves it!). You could also use the Beyond Meat sausage but this brand contains a lot more fat and I have’t attempted to cook this soup with it.

If you aren’t into “vegan” look for Italian turkey sausage in the meat case at your grocer. Whole Foods carries Italian turkey sausage in their butcher case. Remove the casing and crumble. If you decide to use turkey sausage instead of the plant-based sausage, then you will add this to the pot first and cook, remove, cook the vegetables and then add back in the cooked sausage (see notes).

Cooking with Parmesan Rind

The rind is the protective layer that develops on the outside of the cheese as it ages. Its edible but is very tough to chew and probably not enjoyable. However, Parmigiano Reggiano rinds are full of flavor and can be used to add that umami (salty) flavor to sauces, soups and stews.

You may be tempted to skip this step and just add some cheese but I highly recommend you add the rind while cooking! The parmesan rind not only adds flavor but also helps to thicken the soup. Unless you are following a vegan diet I highly recommend this step!

How to Store Kale and White Bean

As this soup sits in the fridge, the pasta may soak up some of the liquid. If you find you need more liquid add some additional broth before reheating. You may need to adjust your seasoning (salt and pepper).

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