This is a delicious comforting dish – perfect for a cold autumn or winter’s day. Accompanied with crusty bread it a very nutritious and healthy meal. Can be prepared the day before.

Ingredients Serves 2-4

• 300 grams Curly Kale
• 1 tin Bortolli beans or Canenolli beans – drain the water and rinse
• 2 celery stalks
• 1 medium size onion – chopped
• 2 carrots – chopped
• 1 tin chopped tomatoes
• 1 Tbs tomato puree
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• Fresh thyme
• 3 Tbs olive oil
• 1 garlic crushed
• Salt and pepper
• Extra virgin oil or Truffle oil (Optional)
• 100 gms pancetta (optional, opt out if doing vegetarian version)

Method

1. Heat the oil in a large pan add the chopped celery, onion. Leave to fry on gentle heat. (If using pancetta put in a dry pan and leave to fry slowly until crispy) Add the carrots, stir, add the cumin, cinnamon, garlic and season with salt.
2. Add the tomato puree, chopped tomato and thyme, stir and leave to gently cook away until reduced to half.
3. While this is happening, place the curly kale in a bowl of salted hot water and leave to blanch for at least 3-4 minutes. Drain and set aside
4. Add the beans in the tomato sauce, cook for another 10 minutes until all the ingredients have merged into the sauce.
5. Add the blanched curly kale to the mixture. Taste for seasoning and leave to cook for another 5 minutes until the green have softened.
6. Serve with crusty bread drizzled with extra virgin olive oil or truffle oil.

Brinda’s Note: This makes a perfect vegetarian meal, but for a non-vegetarian version you can add pancetta or bacon to the soup.