This nourishing soup is packed with colorful vegetables — carrots, onion, squash, kale, tomatoes — and has tasty bites of poultry sausage in every spoonful. The way its savory and sweet elements play off of each other, plus the bright, piney essence of fresh sage, makes for a deeply flavorful, comforting bowl.
Active time: 40 mins; Total time: 1 hour 15 mins
Storage Notes: Refrigerate for up to 3 days.
Servings: 6 When you scale a recipe, keep in mind that cooking times and temperatures, pan sizes and seasonings may be affected, so adjust accordingly. Also, amounts listed in the directions will not reflect the changes made to ingredient amounts.
When you scale a recipe, keep in mind that cooking times and temperatures, pan sizes and seasonings may be affected, so adjust accordingly. Also, amounts listed in the directions will not reflect the changes made to ingredient amounts.
Tested size: 6 servings; makes about 8 cups
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 12 ounces Italian-style chicken or turkey sausage (if raw, casings removed and crumbled; or if cooked, diced)
- 1 large yellow onion (12 ounces), diced
- 2 medium carrots, scrubbed and diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced or finely grated
- 2 teaspoons chopped fresh sage
- 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 cups cubed butternut squash (1/2-inch cubes)
- 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- One (14.5-ounce) can no-salt-added diced tomatoes, with their juices
- 2 cups chopped kale leaves
Directions
In a large pot over medium-high heat, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil until shimmering. Cook the sausage, stirring occasionally, until browned — 3 minutes for the precooked diced sausage and 5 minutes for uncooked sausage crumbles, breaking the crumbles up with the spoon as they cook. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the sausage to a plate.
Reduce the heat to medium, add the remaining tablespoon of oil to the pot, and then add the onion and carrots and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion has softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, sage, salt and pepper and cook, stirring frequently, until aromatic, about 30 seconds. Stir in the butternut squash, return the sausage to the pot, along with any accumulated juices, and add the broth and tomatoes. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and simmer until the squash is very tender but still retains its shape, about 15 minutes. Stir in the kale and cook for 5 to 10 minutes more, depending on how tender you prefer the kale.
Ladle into bowls and serve hot.
Recipe Source
From cookbook author and registered dietitian nutritionist Ellie Krieger.
Tested by Olga Massov.
Email questions to the Food Section at food@washpost.com.
