Savory Sausage, Kale & Mushroom Soup with Pumpkin Broth

Happy October, friends! To start the month off right, I bring you soup #2 of the season. And yes, there's some pumpkin in it. 

 

Savory Sausage, Kale & Mushroom Soup with Pumpkin Broth 

 

Ingredients:

One medium onion, quartered and sliced thin

4 cloves garlic, diced

4 Italian sausage links

2 cups sliced baby portabella mushrooms

4 cups low-sodium veggie stock (sausage is salty & low-sodium stock offers a great, light flavor to this dish)

5-6 cups Tuscan kale

A can of pumpkin purée 

Sprinkle of dried rosemary

1/2 tsp nutmeg 

Salt & pepper

Block of fresh Pecorino Romano or Parmesan cheese, and make sure it has a rind! (I'll explain later)

2-3 tbs olive oil

Fusilli noodles (cooked) 

 

Preparation: Brown sausage in a pan over medium-high heat (I removed the casing in order to "crumble" the meat). In a separate soup pot, sauté garlic, onions,  mushrooms, and kale in olive oil over medium heat until tender. Add nutmeg and rosemary and a dash of salt & pepper. Once the veggies are tender, add the browned sausage to the soup pot and toss together. Confession: For flavor purposes, I did not drain the fat off my sausage using a paper towel. But I did use a slotted spoon so... don't judge me. 

 

Add veggie stock to soup pot and bring soup to a boil. Drop in pumpkin purée by the tablespoonful (I did 6 scoops) and stir  to combine. 

Now here is the mother of all soup tips, given to me by my brilliant mother: cut the rind of your block of Italian cheese off, while leaving some cheese on it, and drop it in the soup. Let soup simmer with the rind for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. It'll make the broth opaque and really boost the flavor. Amazing. 

In the meantime, cook up some fusilli noodles according to the package's instructions. Add some to each bowl you serve and top with shaved parm or Pecorino Romano... and enjoy!

My next post will most likely not be a soup... but I can't make any promises. :)

Love,

Amy