Come on a fresh and tasty adventure with me!

My daughter is 13; I knew when I had a daughter, I needed to make sure I made her as comfortable as possible while guiding and leading her through the tough life. I am so glad I did that because now she will talk to me about anything, especially if we are cooking tasty meals and playing cards while we wait for the food to finish.

My daughter and I have been cooking together since she was young. Teaching and guiding her through her palate, showing her flavor combinations that are super tasty together. She has thrived and is a skilled cook. Cooking with her allows her to talk with me and joke around with something comfortable for her.

This recipe is one that my daughter picked out, but with a little bit of modification. We found that we really liked the soups at Olive Garden and wanted to try to make them at home. While making this tasty recipe tonight, my daughter and I played cards together and chatted a bit. She is such a joyful young lady. She also loves to cook and asks many questions. She is the only one to have two bowls of this Tasty spicy-sweet delight. So let’s get right into it!

The Ingredients:

2 lbs of mild Italian sausage (you can use hot Italian sausage if you would prefer, I don’t care for overly spicy foods)

Four good-sized red potatoes

Three carrots

One small sweet yellow onion

Two tablespoons minced garlic

1.5 tablespoons Italian seasoning

2 cups whole milk

1 cup half and half

2- 32 oz boxes low salt chicken broth

1 tsp black pepper

Directions:

Start by cutting the carrots into coins, mincing the onion, and cleaning the kale of all stems. (cleaning the kale keeps its tender leaves without the stiff, bitter stems). Next, chop up the kale into bite-size pieces, place in a bowl, and set aside the onion and carrot. Next, place the kale in its own bowl. Next, wash and slice the potatoes into quarter-inch thick slices and place in salted water for 5 mins.

While the potatoes are soaking, start a 12-quart stock pot with 2 tbsp of olive oil on medium heat and place the sausage, onion, garlic, and carrot into the warming pot stirring once every 2-3 mins until the sausage is cooked through (about 8-10 mins). Next, add the potatoes, chicken broth, Italian seasoning, and black pepper to the pot and give it a good stir making sure everything is combined. Cook for 3 mins, then add the whole milk, half and half, and kale to the pot. Cover and cook on low heat for 14 mins or until the potatoes are tender.

Serve this Tasty soup with a side of Italian bread!

About the author:

I grew up in the suburbs of Minneapolis, Minnesota. I attended Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Minneapolis/St. Paul. I went for four years, two years for french techniques and another two years for pastry. I excelled from there, becoming a cook at multiple restaurants within the twin cities.

My inspiration to start cooking came from all the years in the kitchen with my mother and learning her family recipes and moving on to have a family of my own and being able to pass those down to my daughters and sons, who both love to cook alongside me when they have the chance. I love mostly comfort foods and sweets, but I have been able to make anything and everything that I have tried; even if it is with multiple tries, I don’t give up.

I look forward to starting this new chapter in my culinary career and getting good at writing and photographing my tasty creations for all of you to see and try. I hope you enjoyed reading this, and I look forward to any responses or suggestions I might receive.

Stay tuned for more recipes and insights @Foodcoma_101