Smoky Sausage, Kale and Quinoa Soup

Smoky Sausage, Kale and Quinoa Soup is the perfect hearty, nutritious soup that is full of flavor and spice that your family will love!

This is a sponsored post and as always, all opinions are my own.

Smoky Sausage, Kale and Quinoa Soup is the perfect hearty, nutritious soup that is full of flavor and spice that your family will love! www.nutritionistreviews.com

It is not too often that I make a dish over and over again. I love to experiment with different ingredients and use whatever foods that I have on hand for cooking. I pretty much never follow a recipe and love to throw in a little bit of this and a little of that when making meals for my family. This recipe is one that I actually do make time and time again in my household. In fact, my mom just told me that she was craving some of this soup recently!

I have served it to my entire family and my sister can eat it who does not eat beef or pork, my dad who likes a lot of flavor enjoys it and my mom is a big fan too. Of course Troy and Adalyn enjoy it as well. I switch up the ingredients a tiny bit depending on what I have on hand. This time, I used Bob's Red Mill quinoa for the recipe but other times, I have used Bob's Red Mill wheat berries. Both are awesome!

This soup is smoky from using smoked paprika and sausage. It is loaded with flavor and is a complete dish all in one bowl- if you want to pair it with some crusty bread like I did, that works well too. It is healthy and a perfect soup for the New Year when you want to eat healthy yet want something warm and hearty. You can make this soup ahead of time and enjoy all week. It packs up well for lunches at work or reheats well for dinner. You can even freeze it for later which is what I am doing to have for meals once the baby is born.

After a lot of indulgent foods pretty much all of December, I am ready for some nutritious meals that pack in the veggies and high fiber foods such as whole-grains, beans and vegetables since they help me to feel my best. A huge salad doesn't sound the best on a freezing day so a hot bowl of soup it is!

Smoky Sausage, Kale and Quinoa Soup

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 40 minutes
Servings: About 10 servings

Ingredients

2 cups cooked Bob's Red Mill White Quinoa
1-14 ounce package smoked turkey sausage, cut into coins
1 onion, diced
2 large carrots, diced
1 cup water
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 bell pepper, diced
5 cups kale, chopped
2-14.5 ounce cans no-salt added diced tomatoes
32 ounce container low-sodium chicken broth
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional
1 teaspoon black pepper

Instructions

1. Cook quinoa according to directions.

2. In a large pot, sauté turkey sausage for 3 minutes until slightly browned. Add in onions and carrots and sauté until cooked through. Add in water.

3. Add in bell pepper, garlic, kale and canned tomatoes. Mix in chicken broth, quinoa and spices.

4. Cook for about 10 minutes or until kale is softened and soup is hot.

As shocking as this may be, I am new to enjoying quinoa. Until I made my Quinoa Bell Pepper Pilaf, I didn't really enjoy quinoa. I have learned that I really do enjoy it sautéed or in a soup which is how I used it here. I used the white quinoa from Bob's Red Mill. They also sell a tricolor version. Quinoa is a nutritious whole grain that is rich in protein and fiber. It is a complete protein making it a great choice for those who follow plant-based diets. It is gluten-free, cooks in only 15 minutes and requires no rinsing like some other brands do.

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