Lentil, Kale & Butternut Squash Chicken Soup

At dinnertime my three-year old sometimes pretends she is a baby and I am the mommy who feeds her. I am happy to oblige because it means she actually eats a hearty meal when she might otherwise have just picked at it. Am I worried she'll never eat on her own? No.



Tonight was one of those nights and I took great pleasure in spoon feeding her bite after bite of this incredibly healthy soup, while simultaneously feeding myself and the baby (little bites of squash pulled directly from my bowl).

Am I some sort of super-mom? No. Martyr? Maybe a little. Isn't getting pleasure from feeding others, especially ones own children, an intrinsic part of being human (or being someone's Jewish/Italian/German/insert ethnicity of choice here Grandmother).

Before my first baby was even born I imagined how we would eat as a family. I envisioned bowls of lovingly, homemade baby food being slurped off the spoon with abandon, cozy family dinners where everyone ate each and every dish I had prepared.



Are you laughing at me yet? I have thrown away countless portions of rejected baby food and spent many meals wondering why I ever lift a finger. But I still do it. Every day. I set the table and offer the food.

And ever day, amid the crying, fighting, throwing, spitting, and complaining there are lulls. Moments where everyone is eating, we laugh or share a story. And it is these moments strung together that make it all worthwhile. That, and I just really like eating so I'd do it all no matter what.


Lentil, Kale & Butternut Squash Chicken Soup
Serves 4-6

I realize the title is a mouthful but how could I leave anything out? In fact, I did leave something out because it has sausage too!

For this soup I used fully-cooked, packaged sausage (the butcher's line was too long today) and some left over cooked chicken. This soup would certainly work without the meat, just add extra lentils.

2 Tbsps. olive oil
1 large onion chopped
2 bay leaves
2 sweet Italian sausages sliced into bite size pieces
3 cups cubed butternut squash
1 cup french lentils
4 cups chicken stock
2 cups water
1 bunch of kale (I used Lacinato) chopped

Warm the oil in your favorite soup pot. Add the onion and bay leaves and cook until the onions smell so good you don't think you'll make it until dinner without a snack.

Add the sausage and cook on a high enough heat to brown them a bit. Add the squash and stir it all around. I don't know why I like to do this, cook the squash directly over the heat of the pan first, but I do. Add the lentils, stock and water.

Simmer for about 15 minutes then add the kale and cooked chicken. Continue to simmer until the lentils are soft. The squash should also be tender enough to feed a baby and if you have one then, by all means, feed some to him or her! It's delicious.

Set the table, pour some good wine, cut the bread, ladle the soup into your favorite bowls, sprinkle each with Parmesan cheese, take a breath, give thanks for all you have and eat.

Eat this NOW!

Seriously. This was so good. Like apple pie but better and healthier so there was no guilt or sugar hangover. Just a lot of plate licking. Yes, plates were actually licked.



I had been experimenting with my Cottage Cheese Pancake recipe using ricotta cheese instead of cottage. Wow...so good on it's own. Then I was inspired by a friend who mentioned baking apples and putting them on yogurt. A fine idea in itself but since I was making the pancakes...

So while frying up the pancakes for my hungry brood I popped some apples in the oven. I don't have any brilliant process for the apples. I just sprinkled them with a pinch of brown sugar and cinnamon, another pinch of flour (about a teaspoon to two apples) and a dab or two of butter. Ten minutes in a 350 degree oven got a nice enough result.

Since I will be making this everyday I may try to refine the apple baking (suggestions welcome as usual) but I honestly don't think this can be screwed up or even dramatically improved upon. They're apples! They do just fine without a lot of fuss.

P.S. The baby also really liked the little bits of cooked apples I gave him. Bonus! No baby food needed.

Broccoli Soup

These days I take great pleasure in eating all by myself in complete and utter silence. Today's solitary dining experience and this blog post are made possible by Marshall's nap. Enjoy.



This is one of my most favorite soup recipes. It is rich and satisfying without the floury, gloppiness of the Broccoli Cheddar my girls enjoy from fine establishments such as Panera or Au Bon Pain.

Since I don't have time to perfect my cream-soup making skills (something about butter and flour and, of course, all that cream which I rarely have on hand)...there's potato, which works well enough but doesn't offer much substance, what's a busy mama to do? It's so simple I can't believe I didn't figure it out sooner.

I think the original inspiration for using white beans to thicken the soup comes from Eating Well. If I recall correctly, their recipe doesn't call for onion and that is just weird! I never trust a recipe that doesn't call for an onion. Would you? So I call for three cups. That oughta do it.



Broccoli Soup
Serves 4-6

2 Tbsp. butter
1 Tbsp. olive oil
3 cups chopped onion
1/4 cups Tamari
3 cups water or stock
6-8 cups chopped broccoli (crowns and thinly sliced stalks)
1 can white beans with liquid
1 cup grated cheese (e.g., cheddar, soft gouda)

Warm the butter and olive oil in your favorite soup pot. Add the onion and let them cook until they smell really good and start turning a bit brown.

Add the water, tamari and broccoli. Bring to a boil and add the beans. Simmer until the broccoli is very soft. About 20 minutes. Let everything cool a bit.

Puree with a stick blender (or in batches using a regular blender but I really recommend getting a stick blender ASAP). Add a little water or stock to get the consistency you like.

Add the cheese and stir until it melts. Eat some right away because it's really good!

Sometimes I reserve some chopped broccoli to steam and then stir into the pureed soup.