Hearty Kale, Squash and Bean Soup Recipe (2024)

Vanbrigggle, as a nutritionist that specializes in digestive health, I can tell you that the soaking liquid from the beans is drained because beans have anti-nutrients that hinder digestion and the absorption of nutrients. This is why beans have traditionally been prepared this way. You may not notice any difference in the taste, but this is not a step that should be skipped for health reasons.

I’d replace it with any one of the vegetarian or vegan sausages on sale in most grocery stores. Easiest and hits all groups. Trader Joe’s makes a vegan chorizo that crumbles so it isn’t good for some things but would be fine for this, and I’d bet any store where you live would have some sort of equivalent.

Wondering if Swiss Chard could be substituted successfully for all of us non-kale lovers?

Quick q—the ingredient list says to blanch the green leaves and then cut… but as they boil w the soup for 10min after adding, perhaps no difference to simply cut the uncooked greens into ribbons and then add?

Peel and cut the squash,then bake it? Way too much trouble. Would bake it, then peel and cut.

AGREED! Why the heck would one boil away the nutrients then drain rather than put the raw greens into the soup & simmer. Gain ALL the flavor & nutrients & lose one senseless step in the prep!

I love this soup and make a lot of it. Consider some fennel seeds and opening the sausage and chopping the meat so that it is more of a condiment than an element. A little balsamic sweetens a little and serving with grated Parmesan is nice too,

My preferred plant-based Italian sausage is Beyond Meat's, but for smoky / savory sausages I'd go with something from Field Roast, like their smoked apple or Mexican chipotle. I think the smoked apple would be great in this.

Adding cumin and smoked paprika gives this soup a bit more flavor, but it is very good as the recipe is written.

Canned beans tend to have a LOT of sodium in the liquid they're canned in, so rinsing them and discarding the canning liquid is a standard step. The canning liquid is not the same thing as the "bean broth" referred to in the instructions. If you cook your own beans from dry, you need to discard the soaking liquid (see Melissa's note above), but you can certainly retain the broth from cooking the beans and use it for the soup. I do this all the time.

This recipe is absolutely bursting with flavor! I leave the squash in the oven for longer until fully toasted and soft on the inside. It melts into the soup and makes for an even more flavorful meal! Will definitely make it into our rotation.

Came out divine. Cannellini from dry beans make this really special. Cook the beans separate first with garlic and bay leaf. Mustard greens and honey nut squash adds great density to this potage.

To save some time and strength in cutting butternut squash, I halved it and microwaved it for 7 minutes first before cutting them into cubes.

It says "3 cups cooked cannellini beans, from 1 pound dry or use 2 (15-ounce) cans, rinsed and drained." This makes no sense...1 lb dried beans is about 2 1/4 cup of dried beans. And 1 cup of dried beans makes about 3 cups of cooked.

Any ideas on what do replace the sausage with if I want to make this for my vegetarian, vegan and kosher friends? Instead of just leaving it out, I'd like to replace the oomph of the sausage.

My teenage son and I loved this dish. To save time, I used a frozen root vegetable mix and cooked at 450 to caramelize as others have suggested. Also added a splash of balsamic. For the chorizo, I recommend Palacios chorizo from Spain: lots of paprika already in it and it was very flavorful.

My reading of the squash part was to buy it cubed already. I ended up adding A LOT of it because I got 2 pounds already cubed. I would modify the ingredient list and instructions to clearly state that the squash needed to be whole (ingredients) and then peeled and cubed (instructions)

I was looking for a squash and white bean soup, so I chose this recipe. I did not "wow" me and the family. We found it a bit bland. A dash of balsamic, grated parmesan and extra black pepper helped. Still, I agree with the 4* rating.

Just made this and it's terrific! A few modifications:* Had a pound of dried Domingo Rojo Beans (Rancho Gordo), so I simmered them separately until tender and used in the soup* 6 cups chicken bone broth , 2 cups bean broth (from the above)^^* Used Koginut Squash roasted in quarters until tender, peeled and diced after roasting* added 2 tsp cumin, 1 tsp smoked paprika in step 3 with the garlic* No pre-blanching of the Kale, straight into the soup pot in ribbons to simmer in step 4.

I was grateful to find this recipe when I had some cannellini beans that I cooked the day before. I considered going to the grocery store for ingredients I didn’t have but then decided I’d make do with substitutions. I had no squash, sausage or leeks so I put in cooked chicken thighs, roasted red pepper, upped the amount of onion, and added a bit of tomato paste, fennel (which another reviewer helpfully suggested), and lemon zest. I used Parmesan. It was delicious!

I followed the ingredient list (not the quantities exactly) and made some changes: pureed everything then added broccolli (didn't have kale) and the beans and because I didn't like the taste of squash as much as I was expecting, I added also a ton of cooking cream. Soooo tasty!

I am not sure if you can say I totally followed the recipe when I switched out the sausage for quinoa for protein (in addition to the beans), added a ton of basil, and sundried tomatoes - BUT! It was a hit with the family, so much so they asked for the recipe.

I made this last night but omitted the sausage as I didn't have it. To compensate I used chicken broth and added turmeric and smoked paprika. The soup is outstanding.

I love this recipe! It’s great w/andouille or Italian sausage; when I use the latter, I add Penzey’s Tuscan Sunset spices but any Italian blend would work.

My wife is sensitive to onions and garlic, so I was nervous to leave them out, but it turned out delicious! I did add about half a teaspoon of cinnamon to kick up the flavor and it worked well. I also used vegetable broth and bean broth instead of water, so no doubt that helped. If you use broth, I’d suggest low or no sodium broth because mine is a touch too salty. You can always add salt, but you can’t remove it.

Added cumin to this recipe and LOVED it. Made it with a mix of homemade chicken broth and vegetable bouillon because that’s what I had laying around. Delicious and even better the next day!

Add a splash of balsamic and parm. Yummmm

This was delicious but the cooking time is definitely more than specified—closer to 2 hrs with the prep.

At first I thought this was a very bland soup, but then I realized I forgot to put the squash in! The subtle sweetness of the caramelized squash after it blended into the soup made a beautifully clean, uplifting soup with a spicy kick. I used andouille (had no chorizo) and half water, half chicken bone broth, added extra kale and more beans, but otherwise followed the recipe.

Found this to be just good, not great. Used some smoked chicken sausage I had laying around. I browned it as well which I recommend. Added a Parmesan rind, 3/4 tsp smoked paprika (my sausage was boring), a bay leaf, and a sprig of rosemary, as I found the broth quite bland without the additions. Skip blanching the greens; it’s a waste of water, heat, and a pot. Next time: no sausage substitutions, more herbs, and try roasting the squash at 450F for more caramelization/texture.