Finding Soup at a Hair Salon? The Healthy Librarian's "Enlightened" Cajun Kale with "Spicy Sausage" & Rice Soup and More Of Course

 

The Healthy Librarian's Enlightened Cajun Kale "Spicy Sausage" & Rice Soup

 

 

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I found this recipe hiding in a magazine at my hair salon.

On Tuesday I got my hair cut & colored (don't judge!), and while I waited for Michelle to mix up my "hair coloring",  I started leafing through the January issue of O (Oprah) Magazine.  The cover pitched recipes for "Healthy Hearty Soups".  "OK.  Let's check 'em out,"  I thought.

Well, they weren't exactly up to my "health" standards--filled with ingredients like beef, oil, salmon, chicken broth, or coconut milk.

But, two of these soups had "great bones"--and I knew I could easily "enlighten" them to fit my plant-based, no-added oil specifications.

So, on Thursday, I did the grocery shopping and picked up all the fixings to test out these two O Magazine soups.  As I put the groceries away, my husband graciously offered to whip up soup recipe #1:  the Cajun Kale with "Spicy Sausage & Rice.

When we took our first tastes, we both looked at each other and simultaneously said, "Whoa! This just might be one of the best soups I've ever tasted!" 

OK--you know I can sometimes get overly enthusiastic, but, honestly, if you like a little spice, and are a fan of Cajun flavors--I just know you are going to love this easy-to-prepare nutritious powerhouse of a soup.

But, soup may be a misnomer.  This is so thick, it's more like a stew.  Definitely, a one dish meal.  Add a salad, and you'll be set for the evening.

 

I had to work on Saturday, so I brought in a giant bowl of leftover Cajun Kale Soup for lunch. 

I was working with Dee--so I offered her a sample. 

Now, you have to understand--Dee is not a fan of health food, or many of my plant-based creations.  This girl is picky.

She's 100% Paula Deen style-cooking & taste preferences.   But, I just wanted to see what she thought of this soup.  

And, she LOVED IT!  She wanted the recipe on-the-spot---and was ready to head right on over to Whole Foods after work to get a package of Field Roast Mexican Chipotle so she could make the soup on Sunday.

See what I mean.  I told you it was good.  It passed the Dee Test!  And she's a hard grader!

 

PS:  I plan to "recipe-test" O Magazine's Soup #2 on Tuesday.  It looks AMAZING.  Stay tuned.

 

The Healthy Librarian's Enlightened Cajun Kale "Spicy Sausage" & Rice Soup

 

 

This just might be one of my new all-time-favorites!   A perfect mix of spicy flavors and textures--and it's chock full of nutrition!

It's a meal in a bowl--a thick soup, that's really more like a stew.

Click here to get the recipe on one page.

 

Serves: 6 generously, 8 regular portions

Preparation Time:  30 minutes

Total time:  1 hour

 

This just might be one of my new all-time-favorites!   A perfect mix of spicy flavors and textures--and it's chock full of nutrition!

It's a meal in a bowl--a thick soup, that's really more like a stew.

Serves: 6 generously, 8 regular sizes

Preparation Time:  30 minutes

Total time:  1 hour

 

Ingredients

• 6 cups of packed kale (curly or lacinato--I used lacinato)  Stem the kale, remove the ribs, & chop
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 2 large celery rib, thinly sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 medium green bell pepper, seeded & chopped
• 1 medium red bell pepper, seeded & chopped
• 2 links of Field Roast Mexican Chipotle thinly sliced  (or substitute 6-12 oz. or gluten-free TJ's Soy Chorizo sausage  NOTE: LOVED the soup with Trader Joe's Soy Chorizo MORE than with Field Roast  
• 1 Tablespoon dried thyme
• 1/4 teaspoon allspice
• 1 (15 ounce) can of Muir Glen Fire-Roasted crushed, chopped or diced tomatoes, juice included
• 4 cups of low-sodium vegetable broth (NOTE: this makes a VERY THICK SOUP--more like a STOOP.  Use 6-8 cups of broth if you like a soupier soup)
• 1-15 oz. can of white beans (cannellini or navy), drained & rinsed
  
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
• 1 teaspoon agave nectar or maple syrup (optional)
• 4 cups of prepared brown rice  (I've used both Trader Joe's/Rice Expressions frozen cooked brown rice (microwavable) & Trader Joe's Microwavable Rice Medley (brown rice, red rice & Black Barley).  2 pouches=4 cups)  LOVED the Rice Medley.

Preparation

1.  Preheat the soup pot on medium-high heat.  Add the chopped onions and celery and cook for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally, adding a small amount of extra broth or water if the vegetables begin to get too dry or start sticking to the pan.  Cover pot & cook for another 3-5 minutes until the vegetables are tender and translucent.  Halfway through, stir the vegetables, & add just a little broth or water if they are getting dry or sticking to the pot.  Once the onions & celery are translucent, add the chopped kale, garlic, peppers, & sausage, and cook until the peppers soften--about 5 minutes.  Mix in thyme and allspice, stir, and cook 1 more minute.

3.  Add tomatoes, broth, and black pepper.  Bring to a boi, reduce heat to low, and simmer, covered, until greens are almost tender, 20 minutes.  

4.  Add the beans.  Add salt to taste, and agave or maple syrup.  (If freezing the soup, stop here and add the rice after defrosting)

4.  If serving immediately, add rice and continue to simmer soup, uncovered, until the kale is tender, about 10 to 15 more minutes.

 

6-8 Servings

Freeze for up to 2 months.

 

 

Here's What Else We Had for Dinner This Week

 

 

Farmer's Pie By Jill  (Increase the ingredients by a third to make enough for a  9 x 13 inch pan)

 

 

Farmer's Pie by Jill - French Lentils, Peas, Mushrooms, Onion, Garlic Topped with Mashed Sweet Potatoes

 

 

 

This quick, hearty casserole makes up quickly, and is large enough for plenty of left-overs, if you increase the ingredients by one-third.  So why not?

The recipe comes from Healthy Girl's Kitchen, and uses convenience ingredients like TJ's vacuum packed French Lentils, canned (but not sweetened) sweet potatoes, & frozen peas.

I thought it could use a little punch in the spice department (but, that's just me)--and it turns out that Penzey's new Salt-Free seasoning, Forward, adds just the right punch, to kick this Farmer's Pie up a notch!  I sprinkled it on my own serving--not into the pie.

Find the recipe for Jill's Farmer's Pie here  But I highly recommend you increase the recipe by 1/3 so it fits a 9 x 13 pan, and you'll have plenty of leftovers.

 

 

• Special extra bold black pepper
• Onion
• Paprika
• Garlic
• Turmeric
• Spice extractives (including oleoresin of celery, rosemary, black pepper, thyme, basil, paprika)

 

 

Robin Robertson's Roasted Vegetables with Luscious Lemon-Cannelini Sauce

 

This is a Gorgeous Nutritious Delicious Combination of Roasted Vegetables

Butternut Squash, Baby Yukon Gold Potatoes, Chopped Onions, Carrots, & Brussel Sprouts

 

We enjoyed this for dinner one night, along with a big salad, and there were plenty of leftovers for lunch the next day.  This is definitely a "keeper recipe".  

Imagine a warm sauce made from cannelini beans, lemon juice, nutritional yeast, & herbs.  Crazy, huh?   That's why Robin Robertson is one of my favorite recipe "designers".  This lady is creative, with a great sense for what tastes good.

I highly recommend this easy-to-do sophisticated no-oil vegetable dish.

Find the recipe here.   Just leave out the oil.  I did spray the vegetables very lightly with Spectrum's High Heat Canola spray, but you can certainly skip it.

 

Want to Make It a "Dinner & a Movie Night"!

 

Here's what I can recommend.

1.  Departures.  This won the Academy Award for the Best Foreign Language Film for 2008.  I  don't want to say too much--lest I spoil the surprise of your own discovery.  My husband & I both put this on our list of the top 10 best films we've ever seen. Unlike anything I've ever seen.  On Sunday night, our book club will be watching this for a "Dinner & a Movie Night".

2.  Paul.   This one was a big surprise.  A warm, sweet, goofy, hilarious, irreverant film that feels like ET for grown-ups.  It's all about friendship and loyalty.  Sexual language, some drug-use, & religious commentary that some might find offensive--so click on the link & read the review first.

 3.  Want some recommendations for some "Movies for Grown-Ups" that you might not have thought of?  Check out Frederic & Mary Ann Brussat's List of the Most Spiritually Literate Films of 2011.  That's how  I discovered, Paul.  I always check with Frederic & Mary Ann whenever I add films to my Netflix queue.

4.  My Week with Marilyn.

5.  Carnage.  

6.  The Way.  One of my favorites.

 

 

 

Comments

[Mike Cherol]

Dear HL,

Well this roasted veggie dish is definitely a keeper. You know I had to "chef it up" a bit.
My lemon cannellini sauce had about 3 cloves roasted garlic (great addition to any fridge)
and a pinch of raw garlic instead of garlic powder. Play with white wine in the sauce if you have
some in the fridge. I used some Chardonnay with my broth.

Lemon pairs awesome with artichokes, and my medley added some TJ's frozen artichokes to the fray.
They don't need 45 minutes. Maybe half that, I just added them the last 20 minutes.

If you like balsamic vinegar products, try a little balsamic glaze drizzled on top of the whole thing.
It worked for me.

Thanks for helping me find another great veggie dinner!!!

Mike

[Cherie Perkins]

Hi Librarian. I can't wait to try the soup. It sounds great. One thing I will change. I will make a batch of the Happy Herbivore's Spicy Sausage (first book) which is made with pinto beans. I love knowing exactly what is in our meals as we are pretty strict on the 'NO OIL' Dr.Esselstyn demands. The HH Sausage is a bit of a project but the recipe yields quite a few sausages which pack a flavor punch and can be used in so many meals. I always wrap mine in parchment before the foil just to keep the aluminum away from our food.

[Janet Novak]

Debby,

The soup looks great! I can't wait to try it this week. But I will steam the kale. I just can't see boiling it and then pouring all those nutrients down the drain! I'd like to check out some of those movies, too. Thanks!

Janet

[Constance Braid]

I have to thank you for finally pushing me over into veganism. I watched Forks Over Knives this past weekend with my 13-year-old and was totally convinced that it is time to cut out the fish, oil, dairy, and sugar from my so-called vegetarian diet! Oddly enough since I began reading your blog I have seen Dr Esselstyn's and Dr. Caldwell's names everywhere. While at Whole Foods, I see that the movie is being screened here in my city this very week and I think Dr. Esselstyn will be speaking at Whole Foods! Also I signed up for My Food Diary and think this is the way I will actually lose those final 10 lbs and belly fat. Also looking into buying the Vita mix, but only one available at Costco is $649! It comes with a knife, dry blade, cutting boards, etc. etc. I am wondering if I will use all of those extras. Anyway, I made the Vindaloo Three Bean Curry on Saturday and it is absolutely wonderful so thank you! Now I just have to convince the rest of my family, one of whom (22 year old son)is trying to lose weight on the Atkins diet...ugh...also my 13-year-old who is ADHD and very difficult to feed...

[Health Librarian]

Janet, You are so right! My husband made the soup--and he followed the directions for boiling the kale--so that's how I posted it--but, I agree. Next time I'm just chopping up the kale & cooking it along with the broth. I'm going to update the recipe, too! Thanks for the suggestion.

[Health Librarian]

@Cherie: Thank you so much for your suggestion. I was taking the quick & easy way, buying the Field Roast. But, if I can make my own, I know they don't oil, & I can really just copy the FR spice ingredients with the HH recipe!

@Mike: You're a recipe guru! Thanks for your expert suggestions!

[Carol]

"...gluten-free TJ's Soy Chorizo sausage ..." - bless your heart!!!!

Signed,
Carol, the gluten challenged :)

[Mary in southern Vermont]

Constance, try the Vitamix web site - I think I got mine there (reconditioned) a couple of years ago and have been completely happy with it. I already had cutting boards. ;-)

[Elena in PA]

This recipe is very similar to one in The Victory Garden Cookbook by Marian Morash (circa 1980s and definitely not plant strong!)) I added canned white beans to this along with the Field Roast Sausage, made it a bit thicker. Delicious!

[Wendy (Healthy GIrl's Kitchen)]

This soup recipe seems delicious! Thanks for the shout out about Jill's Farmer's Pie. So glad you enjoyed it! I did not think it lacked seasoning when I tried it, but I did not make it myself yet. I'm really looking forward to getting this Penzey's no salt seasoning. How do you like it? Have you ever tried Benson's Table Tasty?

[Pam Mayne]

HH, if you do take on updating the Happy Herbivore sausage recipe to mimic Field Roast, could you post it, here or on FB? I would LOVE to have a repliac of Field Roast that doesn't have oil, and I'm not the cook you are, to get there by myself. :)

Thank you for that, and for all your posts, and recipes, and updates -- you're a constant source of information and inspiration!

Pam

[The Healthy Librarian]

@ Pam. I'm really going to work on this one! But, then the lazy side of me says--I'm going to try to get my local stores to start carrying 1.5 gram of fat Upton's Naturals Seitan--in Chorizo & Italian flavors. I'm pretty sure they carry it at the St. Louis Whole Foods--so when I'm visiting there, next, I'm going to try it out. Here's the link: http://www.uptonsnaturals.com/ The reviews are good, and maybe it's already in your neighborhood.

[Janet]

I made the soup last night and it is FABULOUS!!!
Thanks for posting!
Janet

[The Healthy Librarian]

@Janet: Yay! Thanks for the feedback. Think I'm going to make a batch this weekend when my sister & brother-in-law visit for the weekend.

[elizabeth]

Made the white bean lemon sauce. Use baby limas I had cooked in the pressure cooker. Also used fresh garlic instead of powder, more lemon, water instead of broth. Ate with quinoa pilaf and steamed broccoli, very good. Thanks!
Watched Departures last night and liked it.

[The Healthy Librarian]

@Elizabeth: like your substitutions. I prefer real garlic to powder hands down, too. Re Departures...so? Just mildly liked it? Tell me more.

[Cherie Perkins]

I made the Cajun Soup last night and it was GREAT. The night before I made a batch of Happy Herbivore's Spicy Sausages swapping out her seasonings for the Field Roast style Mexican Chipotle seasonings. The sausages went well in the soup. Very nice. We had a great dinner with plenty of leftovers for tonight. Thanks for another great recipe.

[The Healthy Librarian]

@Cherie. So happy to hear you liked the soup--and even happier to hear you figured out a way to make oil-free chipotle sausages. Can you share the exact seasonings you used--and which of HH's cookbooks I can find the recipe. I can't wait to try this.

[Cherie Perkins]

I used the Spicy Sausage recipe in the first book "The Happy Herbivore". I took out the fennel, cayenne, sage, chili powder, thyme, and hot sauce. I added 1Tbs chipotle powder, 2 Tbs cumin powder, and about 2 tsp oregano. Keeping from the original recipe 1 tsp each of granulated garlic and onion powders and 1 tsp red pepper flakes. I have never had the Field Roast so I do not know how close I got but they were very tasty. I might turn up the heat a bit next time.

[Kristi]

I gave the cajun soup a try last night. DH and I really liked it. I made it too spicy for the wee ones. Thanks for the recipe!