This is my go-to soup during the chilly winter season. According to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), garlic and kale are classified as warm-natured foods that help to generate heat within your body. It's important to note that kale significantly reduces in size when cooked - for instance, 3 cups of fresh greens will yield approximately 1 cup once cooked. For best results, add the kale towards the final stages of preparing your soup to retain its freshness and nutrients.

Kale, a member of the cabbage family, boasts an impressive nutritional profile, providing a rich source of beta carotene, iron, calcium, vitamin C, and E. Typically cooked to unlock its health benefits, kale should be prepared quickly to retain its nutrients. Garlic, known for its antiviral and antibacterial properties, is also linked to lowering high blood pressure and cholesterol. Ongoing studies suggest that garlic may possess anticancer properties. As a child, whenever I caught a cold, my remedy would be homemade bread topped with butter and freshly minced garlic, a natural decongestant that aids in clearing sinuses and boosting the immune system. To mask the pungent garlic breath, my mother always sprinkled fresh parsley generously on my sandwich.

Yield: 5 litres

Ingredients:

• 2 celery stalks with green tops, finely chopped

• 4 medium sized yukon gold potatoes, peeled and diced

• 1/2 leek (green and white parts), finely chopped

• 1 medium carrot, diced

• 1 medium parsnip

• 1 medium onion, finely chopped

• 1 cup fresh garlic, minced

• 2 tablespoons butter

• 4 cups kale, cut into shreds - consider to puree tough stems for creamier texture ( kale to be added at very end of soup production)

• 3 litres vegetable broth

• bouquet garni ( 2 fresh bay leaves, lovage, parsley stems, black and white peppercorns)

• 1/2 cup fresh cream

• salt and pepper to taste

• croutons for garnish (optional)

Instructions:

1. Wash and chop all vegetables.

2. Set aside kale. Puree tough stems for cremier texture.

3. Sweat all vegetables (except for kale) in melted butter for 5 minutes under cover. Sweating vegetables is a technique that uses a gentle heat to soften vegetables and gently draw out their flavors.

4. Add vegetable broth and bouquet garni. Bring soup to boil and bring down the temperature just to simmer. Cook for 45 minutes until vegetables are cooked.

5. Add kale and pureed kale stems. Bring soup to boil.Bring down to simmer for additional 5-10 minutes until kale is tender (time depends on how young is the kale)

6. Remove the soup from the heat and discard the bouquet garni.

7. Puree 50% of ingredients in the soup with help of immersion blender.

8. This process will release great flavor. Partial blending makes the nutrients in a vegetable soup (especially the fibers) easier for your body to digest, because it breaks down the cell walls of the plants for you.

9. Tempering: In the glass bowl combine fresh cream with 1/2 soup that has been slightly cooled off. Use whisk or fork.

10. Stir cream mixture into the soup and then REMOVE from the heat. Do Not Boil!

11. Garnish soup with croutons or serve as it is.

    I salute to your health and your wellness!

    BON APPETIT!

    SMACZNEGO!

My garden flourishes every summer in kale and garlic. 😊