Tuscan Bean & Sausage Soup

• Italian Sausage(400 g)
• Olive oil(1 tbsp)
• Onion(1)
• Carrot(2)
• Celery(2)
• Garlic(4 cloves)
• Tomato paste(2 tbsp)
• Canned tomatoes(400 g)
• Cannellini Beans(800 g)
• Chicken Broth(750 ml)
• Dried Oregano(1 tsp)
• Thyme(1 tsp)
• Chili flakes(½ tsp)optional
• Bay leaf(1)
• Kale(150 g)
• Parmesan(40 g)
• Bread(4 slices)
• Salt(1 tsp)
• Black pepper(½ tsp)

Method

1. 1

   Dice the {Onion}, {Carrot}, and {Celery}. Finely chop the {Garlic}. Strip any tough stems from the {Kale} and roughly shred the leaves. Drain and rinse the {Cannellini Beans}.

   ~12 min

2. 2

   Heat the {Olive oil} in a large pot over medium heat. Add the {Italian Sausage}, breaking it into irregular bite-size pieces, and cook until browned and starting to crisp at the edges. Stir in the {Onion}, {Carrot}, and {Celery} and cook until softened. Add the {Garlic}, {Oregano}, {Thyme}, {Chili flakes}, {Salt}, and {Black pepper} and cook for 1 minute.

   ~10 min

3. 3

   Stir in the {Tomato paste} and cook for 1 minute. Add the {Canned tomatoes}, {Chicken Stock}, {Cannellini Beans}, and {Bay leaf}. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer until the vegetables are tender and the broth has thickened slightly.

   ~15 min

4. 4

   Lightly mash some of the beans against the side of the pot to thicken the soup, then stir in the {Kale}. Simmer until the {Kale} is tender and bright green. Meanwhile, toast the {Bread} until golden.

   ~3 min

5. 5

   Ladle the soup into bowls and top with the {Parmesan}. Serve with the toasted {Bread} alongside.