Kale and Sausage Soup
Kana | Your Neighbourhood Doula
One-pot soup for the win!
What is the difference between the soup and stew? Is it the number of ingredients that makes a dish a stew? What if the vegetables are blended and that suddenly becomes soup? I still don't know.
Anyway, if you want to call this recipe a soup instead of stew (and vice versa), be my guest! What matters is that it's to easy to make, delicious and nourishes your body.
I don't love when a recipe doesn't show you the actual recipe until much later on the page so here it is! Enjoy :)
Ingredients:
- Olive Oil
- Salt
- Black pepper
- 2 teaspoons of Italian seasoning (It's a mix of basil, oregano, rosemary, thyme, mint, and marjoram as its base. I add sage to this.)
- 6 large cloves garlic, pressed through garlic press or cut small
- 1 pound/450g of Italian sausage, casing removed (This could be other preferred meat or no meat at all. I've used shredded chicken breast and it was still divine)
- 1 bag of Kale
- 4 large carrots
- 4 large celeries
- 2 diced tomatoes (can be can if you like the smooth texture of tomato)
- 1 can of navy beans, drained and rinsed
- 6 cups of chicken stock
Recipe:
- Prepping all of the ingredients above to have ready and organized for use
- Place a large soup pot or a pressure cooker and heat it up at medium to high temperature
- Drizzle in olive oil, add the celeries and carrots first (they take longer to cook)
- Add the sausages and use a spatula to break apart the big chunks. Add the garlic
- Season this with salt and black pepper
- Once the meat is cooked, add in the the diced tomatoes with juice and gently stir to incorporate. Add in the chicken stock, and a few more times. If you don't have enough chicken stock, don't worry, just add a cup of water and adjust the seasoning.
- Add the Italian seasoning.
- Let that come to a boil for 10 minutes and then reduce the heat to low or medium-low, cover the pot for 20-min.
- Add the Kale and beans and stir again.
- Let that cook for how long as you'd like. I like the kale leaves soft so I let it simmer overnight with a pressure cooker or 2 hours for a pot.
- Add some cheese if you'd like, and voila!
🥣 Postpartum-Friendly Comfort Bowl
An easy and nourishing postpartum meal with salmon, rice and mushroom.
This one’s perfect for those postpartum days when you want something cozy but don’t have the energy for a big cleanup . Everything cooks right in the rice cooker — the chicken, the rice, all that flavour. The lemon, garlic, and ginger make it super comforting but still light and refreshing. Plus, it’s packed with ingredients that help with digestion and give your body a little boost when you’re running on empty. Ingredients: Chicken Marinade: 300g chicken thighs 1 tbsp cooking sake (or cooking wine) 1 tbsp soy sauce 1 tsp grated ginger 1 tsp grated garlic Black pepper to taste Rice: 2 cups of uncooked rice Water (as per rice cooker instructions) Sauce: 2 tbsp lemon juice 2 tsp soy sauce 2 tsp oyster sauce 2 tsp sugar 2 tsp grated ginger 2 tsp grated garlic Black pepper to taste Topping: Chopped green onions Instructions In a bowl, mix chicken thighs with the marinade ingredients. Let it sit for at least 15–30 minutes (or longer if you have time). Add rice and water to your rice cooker as you normally would. Pour in any leftover marinade from the chicken and mix it into the rice. Place the marinated chicken directly on top of the rice, close the lid, and cook. While it’s cooking, mix all the sauce ingredients in a small bowl and set aside. Once the rice cooker finishes, fluff the rice, serve everything on a plate, and drizzle the sauce over top. Garnish with chopped green onions and enjoy! Why it’s great for postpartum: Packed with protein , iron , and choline from the chicken — all key for healing, energy, and milk production. Ginger and garlic help digestion and immunity , while lemon adds vitamin C to boost iron absorption . One-pot, cozy, and nutrient-rich — exactly what postpartum meals should be.
