A Restorative Soup for the Ailing and for Their Caregivers

Well, my ridiculous roommate has gone and done it this time! After the end of a tiring week on Thursday night, I was looking forward to coming home, chilling out, and fondling the remote control for awhile. But when I arrived, poor Cyd was writhing in pain on the couch, and then running to the bathroom to be sick off and on for about two hours before we decided that it wasn't getting any better, and she needed to go to the ER. I was there with her all night, until they finally admitted her at about 6:00am for further testing. And she's been there ever since. They have run almost every test imaginable, but they still haven't been able to conclude what's causing her such severe abdominal pain. It's very frustrating, and it's hard to watch her suffer. :-(

Meanwhile, I'm doing my best to finish teaching my summer class, hold down the fort at home, attend my musical rehearsals in the evenings, and be at the hospital with Cyd as much as I can, all at the same time. It has been exhausting, to say the least. And, of course, I've been eating a lot of crappy food along the way.

So I decided, if I didn't get some nutritious food in me, that I was gonna have to join Cyd in the hospital soon! So before I left for the hospital today, I started a crock pot full of a Portuguese sausage, white bean, and kale soup. Then I just added canned beans and kale when I finally got home, and had a quick but very nutritious dinner. I actually bought the ingredients to make this awhile ago, because I have two other friends who have been battling illnesses, and I wanted to take something healing and nourishing to them. But now I'm hoping it will sustain me while I play nursemaid to my poor roomie. And--God willing--they'll discharge her soon, and I can help make her well with the leftovers.

Portuguese Sausage, White Bean, and Kale Soup

1 lb. linguica (but mild Italian sausage will do)
1 large onion, diced
2 large stalks celery, diced
1 large red pepper, seeded and diced (or a couple of roasted/jarred peppers)
4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon granulated garlic
2 bay leaves
1/4 teaspoon red chile flakes, to taste
2 teaspoons seasoned salt
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1 tablespoon paprika (you could do 1/2 smoked, if you like)
2 cans diced tomatoes, with juice (I like at least one of them to be fire-roasted)
1 quart chicken stock, preferably homemade
2 large carrots, peeled and diced
2 cans cannellini and/or Great Northern beans, drained
Small bunch of kale, de-stemmed and finely chopped

Sauté the sausage, onions, celery, pepper and garlic until the meat is browned and the veggies are tender. Deglaze the pan with the wine.

Scrape everything into a crock pot and stir in the rest of the ingredients, except the beans and kale.

Cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 3-4. Fish out the bay leaves and add the drained beans and chopped kale. Cook for another fifteen minutes or so until the beans are warmed through and the kale has wilted.