Monday, December 26, 2011

It's a Tie!

Can you believe it? Our Christmas Cookie Contest resulted in a tie between Raspberry Rollups and Spicy Ginger Cookies!  Please help us select the winner in a run-off between them.  We realize that a lot of people are on vacation, traveling, and well, not reading their regular blogs right now, so we're giving you until January 5th to vote!

I thought today might be a good time to share my new cover.  The Diva Digs Up the Dirt won't be released until June 5th, but the cover is here!  Oddly enough, I wrote about a calico cat in the story.  Little did I know at the time that a calico kitten would join my household! 



After all those holiday feasts, we're ready for something a little bit lighter around here.  Not too light, after all, we're still in festive mode.  But this soup was exactly what we needed.  It's a perfect busy day recipe.  Serve with some freshly baked bread and it's a snuggle by the fire on a cold night meal.

The key here is the sausage.  It doesn't cook long so the flavor depends a lot on the sausage.  Make sure it's one that you like!  I used spicy turkey sausage, but it would be great with chicken or pork sausage, or even your favorite wieners!


Sausage and Kale Soup

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 onion
2 cloves garlic
1 package sausage
1 small package mushrooms (cremini, white, or shitaki)
2 1/2 - 3 cups chicken broth
1-14.5 ounce can minced tomatoes
1 bunch fresh kale
1-15 ounce can beans (navy, kidney, or pinto)


Slice sausage into bite-sized pieces and kale into two-inch (roughly) pieces (discard any tough kale stems).  Dice the onion and the garlic.  Heat olive oil and onions and cook until translucent.  Add sausage and garlic and cook for 3-4 minutes.  Pour in the chicken broth and tomatoes, and add the kale.  Bring to a gentle boil and simmer 25 minutes.  Add the beans and simmer another five minutes.



ENJOY!

18 comments:

  1. How do we vote? Post here or via email

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  2. Hi Shawn! You can vote right here. There's a spot on the right sidebar that says Vote for the Winner! : )

    ~ Krista

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  3. Krista, what is your new Calico cat's name??? Congratulations and I love the new cover. It's beautiful!!! And the title is so much fun. Love it!

    ~Avery

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  4. Is the sauage precooked? This will be perfect for tonight! Thank you! Calico cats are so cute!

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  5. How exciting to be part of the tie! My eldest cat, Seneca, is a calico. I look forward to good reading and good eating from all of you!

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  6. I've made something similar and LOVE LOVE this soup! So warming when it's cold out.

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  7. Krista - The new Diva cover is wonderful. Great title, too! Thank you for sharing both with us -- along with today's soup recipe. It looks so hearty, healthy, and delicious; we'll definitely be making it. (Shout-out to your new kitten, too!)

    And, finally, congrats to the two cookie finalists! (Everyone, be sure to vote for your favorite! As Krista noted, the voting is in the upper right column of this site.)

    ~ Cleo

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  8. Avery, when the kitten came home with me, she was called Chloe, but within a couple of weeks, we started calling her Little Miss Sunshine. So now she's our little Sunny!

    ~ Krista

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  9. Helena, I used frozen pre-cooked sausage. It made it so quick and easy. I hope you enjoy it!

    ~ Krista

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  10. Katreader, I hope you and Seneca will enjoy the book. It's just a little bit spooky to me that a calico came along at this particular time as though I was expecting her to arrive.

    ~ Krista

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  11. Peg, how does your soup differ? I think this might turn out to be one of my go-to dinners for busy days.

    ~ Krista

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  12. Thanks, Erika! Teresa Fasolino always does such a fabulous job painting my covers.

    ~ Krista

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  13. Thanks, Cleo. The soup is healthy -- very low fat, but filling and delicious. Sunny sends purrs to you and your kitties!

    ~ Krista

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  14. My husband won't eat onions at all! I use onion flakes instead - would that be ok for this soup? He also won't eat mushrooms. If you added potatoes, it sounds like the Toscano soup from Olive Garden. I want to try this soup, regardless of what my hubby says!

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  15. I think I might have all the ingredients for this soup most of the time! This is a keeper, Krista--thanks! And...I love your new cover!

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  16. Anonymous, I'm sure it would be just as good without the mushrooms. The onion flakes should add some flavor so that would probably work. Does the Toscano soup have potatoes and beans, or only potatoes?

    ~ Krista

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  17. Thanks, Elizabeth. I think most of us have the ingredients for this soup much of the time. Maybe spinach instead of kale -- it would change the flavor but be just as good.

    ~ Krista

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