Kale and Bean Soup

Submitted to Recipe Goldmine by Gil Sequira whose website you can visit at: www.portuguese-recipes.com

This is a great vegetarian dish from my collection.

1 tablespoon olive or canola oil
6 to 8 cloves garlic, crushed or minced
1 large onion, chopped
4 cups kale, chopped if fresh (you can use 2 or 3 packages
    frozen or 2 to 3 cans)
4 cups chicken or veggie broth
2 (15 ounce) cans white beans, any kind
1 can stewed tomatoes or chopped fresh tomatoes
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon rosemary
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup chopped parsley

In a large pot, heat olive oil then add garlic and onion. Saut? until soft. Add kale and saut? until wilted. Add 3 cups of the broth, 2 cups of beans, tomatoes, herbs, salt and pepper. Simmer 5 to 10 minutes.

Use a blender, or what have you, to mix the remaining beans and broth until smooth. I bet you're asking why. It's to thicken the soup. Mix into soup. Simmer for 15 to 20 minutes.

Serve it up in bowls and dress with parsley.