This hearty, super soup is chock full of garlicky kielbasa, beans, spinach, carrots, celery and onions. This will warm you straight through and keep you going! Instructions include how to maintain the flavour of the soup and reduce the amount of sausage to make it very budget friendly.
Ingredients
8ouncesto 2 pounds of Beef or Polska Kielbasa
1 to 2onionspeeled and diced into 1/4-inch pieces
1 to 2carrotspeeled and cut into 1/4-inch rounds
1 to 2ribs of celerywashed and cut into 1/4-inch pieces
3clovesgarlicpeeled and sliced or minced
1/4teaspooncrushed red pepper flakes
1quarthome canned whole tomatoes in juice or 128 ounce can whole tomatoes in juice
8cupschicken broth or stock
3cupsof cooked cannellini or Great Northern beans with their liquidor 2 cans, with liquid
1bay leaf
1teaspoondried thyme leaves
1poundof spinachyou can use chopped,frozen spinach or fresh baby spinach leaves
salt and pepper to taste
Optional for serving: grated Parmesan or Romano cheese and hot sauce
Instructions
Begin by cutting the kielbasa. If you are using a smaller amount, dice it into 1/4 to 1/2 inch pieces. If you're using the larger amount, slice into 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick rounds.
Place a large, heavy-bottomed stockpot over medium heat. Add the kielbasa pieces and cook, stirring frequently, until the kielbasa has rendered quite a bit of fat and taken on some brown colour. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the kielbasa to a rimmed plate or bowl. Drain all but 1 to 2 tablespoons of the kielbasa fat from the pan. Return the pan to the heat and add the onions, carrots and celery. Add a pinch of salt and stir to coat all of the vegetables. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until the onions are translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic and crushed red pepper flakes, stir well, and cook for another minute.
Use your hands to break up the whole tomatoes over the pan. They don't have to be perfect, but should at least be broken down to bite size. Add the juice from the can along with the chicken stock, beans and their liquid, bay leaf, and thyme leaves. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat to a simmer. Simmer the soup until the carrots and celery are tender, about 10 to 15 minutes. Return the kielbasa to the pan and add the frozen or fresh spinach to the pot. Cook just until heated through.
Serve hot. We like ours with a little grated Parmesan cheese and hot sauce.
Nutritional information is an estimate and provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.