Sweet Potato and Mushroom Soup with White Beans and Kale

The recent rainy afternoons have given me a hankerin' for soup. After looking at what I had on-hand, I searched the interweb for a recipe using baby portabella mushrooms, sweet potatoes, and kale. I landed on this recipe from Lisa's Kitchen and decided it would be easy enough to swap out my sweet potato for the butternut squash. Lisa's recipe calls for a jalapeno, which I think would give it a nice touch.

I picked up a French baguette from a nearby specialty grocer, and it paired perfectly. This soup isn't too hearty for a warm summer night. Plus, it's a nutritional powerhouse packed with Vitamin A, Vitamin B6, Vitamin C, Vitamin K, calcium, potassium, fiber, iron, antioxidants, and more.


Ingredients:

• 14 oz cannellini (white kidney) beans, drained & rinsed
• 4 cups chicken broth (vegetable broth would make this 100% vegetarian, and would've used if I'd had it on-hand)
• 4 small sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 16 oz baby portabella (cremini) mushrooms, trimmed and sliced
• 1 bunch kale, stemmed and torn into bite-sized pieces
• 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
• 1 large shallot, chopped
• 8 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon curry powder
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg 
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 bay leaf
• 1/2 teaspoon rubbed sage
• 4 cups water
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt, or to taste
• fresh ground black pepper

Instructions:

• Heat a large soup crock over medium-high heat. When hot, add 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, wait a few seconds, then swirl to coat the pan. Add the mushrooms and sauté for 8-10 minutes or until the mushrooms are a golden brown. Remove from the pan and set aside.
• Reduce to medium heat and add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil. Add the onion, shallots, and garlic and stir for 2-3 minutes or until the onions start to turn translucent. 
• Gently toss in the sweet potatoes, curry powder, nutmeg, and cayenne. Stir to coat the vegetables with the oil and seasonings. Pour in the water, add the bay leaf, and bring to a boil. 
• Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the reserved mushrooms, beans and the stock. Cover and simmer for 20-30 minutes or until the sweet potato pieces are tender.
• Discard the bay leaf and season the soup with salt and plenty of fresh ground black pepper. 
• Add the kale and continue to simmer for 4-5 minutes or until the kale is wilted but still bright green.
• Remove from heat and serve hot with crusty French baguette.

Serves 8
Prep: 15-20 minutes
Cooking: 50 minutes