"I feel that good food should be a right, not a privilege, and it needs to be without pesticides and herbicides. And everybody deserves this food. And that's not elitist."
--Alice Waters
I recently checked out The Great Vegan Bean Book by Kathy Hester from the library. The author said Rancho Gordo (ranchogordo.com) her favorite online bean source. A couple of years ago, a good friend of mine gifted me a bag of beans from Rancho Gordo and I have been smitten, just like Kathy, ever since. This summer, when stopping for artisanal bread from Blue Dog Bakery and Café in Louisville, Kentucky, I noticed they now stock bags of Rancho Gordo beans for all their customers lined up outside the bakery. The health benefits of beans are HUGE. Eating beans daily is one of the key healthy habits noted by Dan Buettner in The Blue Zones, about regions of the world where people live the longest.
When doing research for another "Wellness Wednesdays" article, I
reviewed my favorite recipe files and made a list of my favorite soup recipes. One recipe stood out as a comfort food for
this time of the year – kale and white bean soup. Savory and hearty, my wish is that you and
your family will enjoy this favorite fall recipe as much as me and mine.
GROWING HEALTHY
KIDS: Our Recipe Collection
KALE AND WHITE BEAN SOUP
Ingredients:
- 6 cups vegetable broth
- 1 large Vidalia onion, chopped
- 3-4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 medium sweet potato, diced into 1/2 –inch cubes
- 4 cups chopped fresh kale
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 bay leaves
- 1-1/2 cups cooked cannellini beans, drained and rinsed (or 1 15.5 ounce
- BPA-free can)
- 1 teaspoon white miso paste
- 2 Tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 2 Tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
- 1 teaspoon fresh marjoram or oregano (or ½ teaspoon dried)
Directions:
Heat 1 cup of the broth in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and simmer for 5 minutes. Stir in sweet potato, kale, red pepper flakes, bay leaves and the remaining 5 cups of broth and bring to a boil over high heat. Lower heat to medium, add bean and cook until vegetables are tender, 20-30 minutes. Ladle about 1/3 cup of the broth into a small bowl. Add miso and stir to blend. Pour the miso mixture into the soup and stir in nutritional yeast, parsley, and marjoram. Serve hot.
With love and kindness,
Nancy Heinrich, MPH
Founder and Wellness Architect
