Italian Sausage, Ceci and Cavolo Nero Soup

What do you do when you have cooked 2 pounds of garbanzo beans, and ended up with 10 or more cups of beans? You get the prize if you guessed “make soup”.

Ingredients:

5C cooked ceci beans 8C water 1 lg bunch dinosaur kale (cavolo nero) 1 lg yellow onion 4 fat cloves garlic 1T dried thyme 3 bouillon cubes (I used chicken) 5 sweet Italian sausages extra virgin olive oil

Directions:

First thing is to put enough olive oil to cover the bottom of  the pot. For a 6 quart pot it’s about 3-4T. Chop the onions and saute until translucent, then mince the garlic and saute them for about a minute, adding the dried thyme.

Add 3 cups of the beans, the water, bouillon cubes and simmer for half an hour. Next use an immersion blender to make a creamy consistency.

Cut the sausage into small slices and roll them into small balls, then add them to the soup. Add the last 2 cups of ceci and finely slice the kale, adding it to the pot also.

Cover and simmer for an additional half hour. Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper and you’re done.