Lentil Soup with Kale and Chorizo Sausage
This came out quite delicious. Its not my MIL's recipe (couldn't find it) but I improvised:
1 ball garlic (that's ball, baby, not clove!)
3 or 4 yellow onions chopped
olive oil
4 carrots sliced into rounds
3 ribs celery plus some leaves if you have them, chopped
about a pound of chorizo, or spicy Italian sausage
(I used Mary Pratt's Lamb Chorizo, which was marvelous)
10 cups stock (I used 6 cups canned and 4 cups water, because I find the
canned stock too salty and tinny tasting if used straight)
1 cup tomato sauce (I had it laying around)
1 can tomato paste
1 T Penzey's Italian Herb blend
(this stuff is awesome -- how in hell did I cook this long without Penzey's???)
one large bunch kale, washed and leaves chopped into chiffonade
one pound dried lentils
In a large soup pot, saute chopped garlic in olive oil until brown but not burnt, add onions, carrots and celery. Sweat over medium heat for 20 minutes. While veggies are sweating, in a separate pan, fry sausages until completely cooked. Drain fat, and slice into thin rings. Add chopped kale to the sweating veggies. Cover and cook some more until kale is wilted, about 7 minutes. Add stock, sauce, tomato paste (stir it in to blend), and the Penzey's seasoning. Add lentils and sausage. Cook until lentils are soft, about 1 hour, medium heat. Correct for salt and pepper.
On Penzey's spices: I have never tasted an Italian herb blend quite like this. In fact, I generally do not buy the generic "Italian seasonings" in the grocery store. If you don't have the Penzey's, I'd go for a mix of thyme, rosemary, a bit of oregano and basil. But the quality and freshness of these spices is amazing. My chili is the best I've ever made, and I rubbed the Chicago Steak Seasoning blend all over the pork before I threw it in the slow cooker, (at the beginning of cooking, prior to shredding) and it came out awesome.
Carolyn