Cauldo Laranja e Verde
June 14, 2007 by top8free
This satisfying stew is a riff on the classic Portuguese “Green Soup.” Instead of potatoes, it features the sweet creaminess of butternut squash – therefore the name “Orange and Green Soup.” Besides being great comfort food, this soup offers a nutritional double whammy — loads of beta-carotene from the squash, and highly absorbable calcium from the kale.
Choosing kale: Flat leaf kale cooks more quickly in this soup and is not bitter in the way some curly-leaf kale can be. Look for crisp deep blue-green leaves. Before cutting, remove stems and thick spine by folding leaf in half and tearing along the spine.
1 yellow onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried rubbed sage
½ teaspoon thyme
2 cans Great Northern beans or navy beans, drained and rinsed
1 medium butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1-inch chunks
1 quart container vegetable stock
1 small bunch flat kale, stemmed and cut into ¼ inch wide ribbons (about 2 cups)
Salt and freshly group black pepper to taste
In large saucepan over medium heat, saute onion until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, sage, and thyme and continue to cook another minute, stirring. Pour vegetable stock into pan, and add beans and butternut squash. Bring just to a boil then turn down heat to low and simmer for 30 – 45 minutes, until butternut squash is soft but retains it shape. Add kale to soup and simmer another 15 minutes until tender. Turn off heat. Using a large spoon, mash some of the squash and beans against the side of the pan to thicken the stock, while leaving some chunkiness for texture.
© 2007 Jeanette Bradley
