Linguica Kale Potato Soup

Another NYT recipe makeover. I’ve made this a couple of times and found the secret to perfection. The first time I substituted yams for the russets. My cupboard was bare. To remove the sweetness I roasted the yams first. It actually was pretty good. Next round I followed the recipe pretty closely but the ingredients seem to grow with my soup making. I found the soup really good but the bitterness of the kale was a bit off-putting. To perfect the soup I added a slice, or two if small, of rustic bread like ciabatta before ladling each serving. The bread was the secret. This is a great soup for those coolish evenings.

1 Pound of linguica-cut into 1/2 inch slices
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 Yellow onion-diced
1 Clove garlic-minced
4 Medium russets-peeled and 1/2 inch rubbed
6 Cups loosely packed chopped (bite size) kale
1 Quart chicken broth-low sodium (sub water in a pinch)
1 Tablespoon vinegar, balsamic, red wine, or white
1 Teaspoon salt or salt to taste
The NYT recipe tomatoes were added-4 Roma’s chopped-remove pulp and seeds (optional)
Pepper to taste-fresh ground if available
Rustic sliced bread for each serving

In a large dutch oven cook the linguica over medium heat to render the fat.

Remove the linguica (set aside) and drain the fat from the pan. Leave stuck on drippings.

Add the oil to the drippings. Add the onion and cook over medium low heat until tender. Loosen the drippings as you go. Add the garlic at the last minute and stir around a bit.

Add the potatoes turning up the heat a bit if needed. Stir around and add back linguica. Let all these ingredients meld together for about 2 minutes.

Add the kale and stir into the ingredients for about 2 minutes.

Stir in the broth or water. Bring to just boiling then turn down.

Add the vinegar and stir. Turn heat to low simmer. Taste for salt need.

Cover and cook for an hour.

Serve over a slice or two of rustic bread for an individual serving.

Serves 6.