Description
A hearty and flavorful Sausage and White Bean Soup featuring savory ground sausage, creamy cannellini beans, kale, and a touch of parmesan cheese in a rich broth, perfect for a comforting meal any day.
Ingredients
Scale
Seasonings
- 0.5 teaspoon oregano
- 0.5 teaspoon basil
- 0.5 teaspoon parsley
- 1 pinch red pepper flakes
Soup
- 1 pound ground sausage (regular, hot, or mild)
- 0.5 cup dry white wine
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 2 ribs celery, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 6 cups chicken broth (low sodium recommended)
- 0.25 cup heavy cream (can substitute half and half)
- 2 (15.5 oz) cans Cannellini beans, drained but not rinsed
- 3 cups kale, roughly chopped
- 0.33 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1 to 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Instructions
- Prepare Seasonings: Combine oregano, basil, parsley, and red pepper flakes in a small bowl and set aside. Measure out remaining ingredients before starting the cooking process.
- Cook Sausage: Heat a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the ground sausage and cook, breaking it apart with a spoon. When sausage is about halfway cooked, reduce heat to medium-low and partially cover the pot to encourage drippings. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until fully cooked, about 10-12 minutes total.
- Reserve Drippings: Scoop out 1 tablespoon of sausage drippings and set aside along with the cooked sausage. If drippings are insufficient, use butter as a substitute.
- Deglaze Pot: Turn off heat, pour in the white wine, and turn heat back to medium. Use a silicone spatula to scrape the browned bits from the bottom and sides of the pot to enhance flavor.
- Sauté Vegetables: Add the reserved drippings, butter, diced onions, and celery to the pot. Stir to combine and cook until liquid reduces by half, about 4-5 minutes.
- Add Aromatics and Seasonings: Stir in minced garlic, Worcestershire sauce, Dijon mustard, and the combined seasonings. Cook for 1 minute, stirring frequently.
- Add Liquids and Simmer: Pour in chicken broth and heavy cream. Stir to combine and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.
- Simmer Sausage: Return cooked sausage to the pot. Simmer partially covered for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to meld flavors.
- Add Beans and Kale: Add the drained cannellini beans and simmer for 10 more minutes. Then add the chopped kale and cook until wilted, about 3-5 minutes.
- Finish Soup: Stir in grated parmesan cheese and fresh lemon juice. Remove from heat and serve immediately.
Notes
- Crock Pot Method: Omit wine. Melt butter in crock pot, add onions, celery, garlic, Worcestershire, Dijon, and seasonings; toss to coat. Add chicken broth. Brown sausage in skillet, drain grease, then add to crock pot (deglaze skillet with wine if desired, adding to crock pot). Cover and cook high 3-4 hours or low 6-7 hours. Add beans last 30 minutes, kale last 5-8 minutes, then turn off heat and stir in heavy cream, parmesan, and lemon juice.
- Sausage Tips: Jimmy Dean Regular Pork Sausage is recommended but any sausage variety (hot, mild, turkey) can be used. For drippings, move sausage to one side halfway through cooking, tilt pot, and scoop drippings with a spoon.
- Beans Variation: Great Northern beans or a mix with cannellini beans works well. Pinto beans are a tasty alternative.
- Salt Control: Sausage, beans, and parmesan add salt; consider low sodium broth to keep sodium in check.
- Add-Ins: Frozen corn, peas, green beans, canned tomatoes, zucchini, spinach, or cabbage are good additions.
- Meat Substitution: Ground beef, turkey, or chicken can replace sausage but will alter the flavor profile.
- Serving Suggestion: Pairs well with no-knead bread or olive oil bread dip to soak up the broth.
- Storage: Store in airtight container refrigerated up to 3 days or freeze up to 3 months. Soup freezes well and reheats nicely.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 320 kcal
- Sugar: 3 g
- Sodium: 700 mg
- Fat: 20 g
- Saturated Fat: 7 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 11 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 20 g
- Fiber: 5 g
- Protein: 18 g
- Cholesterol: 55 mg
