Sausage and Noodle Soup with Kale

Hello, welcome to Sunday Supper! It’s funny but the morning after the Autumn Equinox, we woke up to chilly morning temperatures here in Athens. It’s as if a switch was flipped! So for the last couple weeks, it truly feels like fall has arrived. Cool, fresh morning air; pleasantly sunny afternoons and cool crisp evenings. So I guess it’s time for soup. This Sausage and Noodle Soup with Kale is hearty, yet the light broth and vegetables give it a fresh, vegetable forward flavor. Instead of making meatballs like I originally thought to do, I decided to simplify with sausage. This is a quick soup, perfect for a weeknight. Let’s get right to it.

Soup Prep

Let’s start with browning the sausages. I have a mix of Hot Italian and Sweet Italian Sausages. Over medium heat, In a Dutch oven or heavy pot, with a light drizzle of olive oil, brown the sausages on all sides. Turn them often to get an even browning.

While the sausages are browning, we can prep the rest of the ingredients. We have the veggies (carrot, celery and onion) for a mirepoix, but instead of discarding the veggies after they’ve given their flavor to the broth, I want to keep them in the soup because I like their flavors and textures in each bite of soup. So I will cut them a little chunkier and we won’t cook them a ton.

To have a flavorful broth, I am using 6 cups of low sodium chicken broth, 2 cups of water and 2 teaspoons of Roasted Beef Better Than Bouillon. You can substitute that with 2 cups of beef broth, mushroom or veggie broth.

Then we add a little more flavor with a little white wine and Worcestershire sauce. Use whatever pasta shape you like, I have 10 ounces of Campanelle.

When the sausages are evenly browned and mostly cooked through, use tongs to transfer them to a plate and set aside to cool enough to handle.

Building the Soup

Add the carrot, celery and onion to the pot. Still over medium heat, let cook only until the begin to sweat. Sweating the vegetables is the point at which the vegetables just begin to release their water. While we are waiting for the veggies to sweat, slice the sausages into bite-size pieces.

As soon as the veggies begin to sweat, add the sausage back to the pot. Then add the white wine, stir that into the veggies and let it bubble. Then add the Worcestershire and the Better Than Bouillon. Stir to dissolve the bouillon paste and mix into the vegetables and sausage.

Give the mix a stir and let it bubble a bit, meanwhile smash and roughly chop 3-4 cloves of garlic. Stir the garlic into the mixture. Now add the 6 cups of chicken broth and 2 cups of water. Stir and bring up to a boil.

When it’s boiling, add the pasta and stir it into the soup. Let it come back up to a boil, then reduce the heat and cover the pot, let it simmer for 6-8 minutes, just until the pasta is cooked.

Finishing the Soup

Test the pasta and if it’s tender, cut the heat. Taste the soup and add kosher salt and black pepper to taste. Then add two to three large handfuls of kale. I like the Tuscan kale because of its dark green color and less frilly texture. Stir the kale into the soup and cover. Let the radiant heat from the Dutch oven and the soup wilt the kale for about 3-5 minutes.

Sausage and Noodle Soup with Kale

This soup is ready to serve! Top each serving with a little more black pepper and grated Parmesan if you like.

I love the freshness of this Sausage and Noodle Soup with Kale. Because we used fortified broth, we don’t need the mirepoix vegetables to flavor the broth by themselves, so we can cook them less and enjoy their textures and flavors in each bite of soup. Which makes this a hearty, satisfying soup. Sausage is a perfect substitute for meatballs (which are technically little balls of sausage you’re making on your own); so ultimately we have a really quick soup ready for dinner in under 40 minutes.

I have other great soup recipes in the Djalali Cooks Archives; try Avgolemono Soup (Greek Chicken and Lemon Soup), or Sazón Chicken Tortilla Soup.

Now I have some special news! I’m thrilled to share with you my recent opportunity to guest on the Extraordinary Women podcast with Sharri Harmel. We discussed how I started Djalali Cooks, the special challenges of being an entrepreneur and how to keep moving forward in your dream of making your business successful as well as bringing personal joy and satisfaction. I’d love it if you’d give a listen! The episode is available, tomorrow, Monday, October 3. You can find the episode here, Extraordinary Women with Sharri Harmel or anywhere you listen to podcasts by searching for EXTRAORDINARY Women.

Here’s a little teaser of the podcast episode:

Thank you all so much for joining me today for Sunday Supper, take care and be well. xo Kelly

Print Recipe

Sausage and Noodle Soup with Kale

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Dinner, Main Course – Italian/American

By Kelly Djalali – Serves: 4-6

Prep Time: ~15 Minutes – Cooking Time: ~25 Minutes – Total Time: ~40 Minutes

This Sausage and Noodle Soup with Kale is hearty, yet the light broth and vegetables give it a fresh, vegetable forward flavor.

Ingredients

• 1 lb. Italian Sausage, 5-6 sausages
• Drizzle of Olive Oil
• 1/2 Large Onion, large diced
• 3-5 Carrots, sliced in rounds
• 3-5 Celery Ribs, large diced
• 1/4 cup Dry White Wine
• 1 tbsp. Worcestershire Sauce
• 2 tsp. Roasted Beef Better Than Bouillon
• 3-4 Cloves Garlic, smashed and rough chopped
• 6 cups Low Sodium Chicken Broth
• 2 cups Water
• 10 oz. Dry Pasta, like Campanelle, or other trumpet or tubular pasta shape
• 2-3 large handfuls Kale, large stems and ribs trimmed
• Black Pepper, to taste
• Kosher Salt, to taste
• Grated Parmesan Cheese, as garnish

Instructions

1

Over medium heat, In a Dutch oven or heavy pot, with a light drizzle of olive oil, brown the sausages on all sides. Turn them often to get an even browning.

2

When the sausages are evenly browned and mostly cooked through, use tongs to transfer them to a plate and set aside to cool enough to handle.

3

Add the carrot, celery and onion to the pot. Still over medium heat, let cook only until the begin to sweat. Sweating the vegetables is the point at which the vegetables just begin to release their water. While we are waiting for the veggies to sweat, slice the sausages into bite-size pieces.

4

As soon as the veggies begin to sweat, add the sausage back to the pot. Then add the white wine, stir that into the veggies and let it bubble. Then add the Worcestershire and the Better Than Bouillon. Stir to dissolve the bouillon paste and mix into the vegetables and sausage.

5

Give the mix a stir and let it bubble a bit, meanwhile smash and roughly chop 3-4 cloves of garlic. Stir the garlic into the mixture. Now add the 6 cups of chicken broth and 2 cups of water. Stir and bring up to a boil.

6

When it's boiling, add the pasta and stir it into the soup. Let it come back up to a boil, then reduce the heat and cover the pot, let it simmer for 6-8 minutes, just until the pasta is cooked.

7

Test the pasta and if it's tender, cut the heat. Taste the soup and add kosher salt and black pepper to taste. Then add two to three large handfuls of kale. Stir the kale into the soup and cover. Let the radiant heat from the Dutch oven and the soup wilt the kale for about 3-5 minutes.

8

This soup is ready to serve! Top each serving with a little more black pepper and grated Parmesan if you like.