sunday in the kitchen

I pulled a little potato love out from under my kitchen sink this afternoon. How perfect, I thought, as I peeled it and cut it into cubes, preparing it to give all its love to some homemade soup. Warming, nourishing, building, soup - the perfect meal on these cold winter days. I made two soups, actually. I love bulking it up to store away in the freezer for a ready-made meal when weekday nights get a bit hectic or to have on hand for quick lunches the whole week through. The first is a revision of a potato leek soup recipe G was handed down from his Gramma Z and the second is a sausage, kale, mung bean soup recipe I developed in the hopes mixing sausage with other goodness would entice that picky boy of mine to try something new. We'll see!

Potato, Leek and Bacon Soup

1/2 package of bacon

3 leeks

6 potatoes

1 onion

3 cloves of garlic

1 tsp curry

1/2 tsp paprika

6 C of soup stock

Slice up the bacon and fry up in a large soup pot. Remove bacon, leaving behind the bacon grease. Add onion, leek and garlic of pot and fry up until translucent. Add potatoes and spices, fry up for a few minuted before adding stock. Simmer until potatoes are soft. Puree soup and serve with a sprinkle of bacon on top.

Sausage, Kale and Mung Bean Soup

3 sausages with casing removed

1 onion

3 cloves of garlic

1/3 C of dried mung beans soaked overnight

1/4 C spelt grains soaked overnight (optional)

6 C soup stock

1 tsp dried fennel seed

10 large leaves of kale sliced

Remove sausage from casing and fry up in large soup pot. Add onion and garlic and continue cooking until translucent. Add beans, grains and fennel, cooking a few minuted more before adding stock. Simmer until beans and grains are thoroughly cooked. Add kale before serving.