Minestrone with Italian Sausage and Red Kale

Like most soups, minestrone can include whatever the cook throws into the pot. But traditional recipes undoubtedly have pasta on the list of ingredients, and many include beans. Wide variations in recipes occur simply because minestrone is historically a dish made with seasonal vegetables—time of year dictates what’s in your bowl.

You’re most likely to find minestrone recipes without meat, since the pasta, beans, and other vegetables—without much broth—add up to a hearty, thick soup on their own. I included Italian sausage in this recipe solely for the flavor it brings to the dish. For a delicious and satisfying vegetarian version, just omit the sausage and proceed with the recipe.

I cooked great northern beans from scratch for the soup, but choose a good-quality canned variety if you prefer. (Rinse thoroughly and drain before using.) And if you can find cannellini beans, go for those instead. (An easy recipe for cooking dry beans is below.)

Great Northern Beans

Kale is one of the most nutritious foods you can bring to your kitchen, and red kale is one of the prettiest. Its rich savor and earthy undertones are a standout in this minestrone. Fresh spinach and chard are also good in the soup, but they don’t pack as much savory punch as kale.

Red Kale

Two words about the pasta: Go small. You know how much pasta puffs up when cooked, so any larger varieties, such as rigatoni or regular-sized penne or rotini, can overwhelm the soup in a hurry. There are varieties of “mini” pastas on the market that work very well in minestrone. I chose mini penne for this dish, but mini ziti, ditalini, or good ol’ elbow macaroni are fine too.

Mini Penne

Serves 5-6

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 3/4 lb hot or sweet Italian sausage (2 large or 3 small links)
• 1 medium leek, thinly sliced (white and light green parts only)
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2 celery ribs, thinly sliced
• 1 small zucchini, cut into small chunks
• 1 14.5-oz can diced tomatoes, with juice
• 4 cups coarsely chopped or torn red kale
• 3 cups vegetable broth
• sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup dry mini penne or other small, short pasta
• 1 cup cooked great northern or cannellini beans (for dry beans, see recipe below)

Vegetables Ready to Cook

Preparation

1. Heat a large pot over medium heat and add the olive oil. Add the sausage, leek, and garlic and cook 5 minutes, crumbling the sausage as it cooks.

Sausage, Leeks, and Garlic Beginning to Cook

Sausage after 5 Minutes

1. Add the celery and zucchini and cook until the sausage is cooked through and the vegetables are tender, about 4 minutes.
2. Add the tomatoes, kale, and vegetable broth and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer, reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook slowly 30 minutes.

Sausage with Tomatoes and Kale Added

Cooked Sausage Mixture after 30 Minutes

1. Increase the heat to medium and bring to a simmer again. Add the penne and cooked beans and simmer until the pasta is tender, about 8 minutes.

Cooked Minestrone

1. Divide the minestrone among shallow bowls, about 1 1/2-cups per servings.

To Cook the Dry Beans

Place 1/2 cup dry great northern beans in a small pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and boil for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat, cover, and let stand 30 minutes. Drain and rinse the beans. Return them to the pot and add 1 1/2 cups vegetable broth and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer, then reduce heat to low, cover, and cook slowly 45 minutes, or until tender. Remove with a slotted spoon to a bowl until ready to use. (May also be covered and refrigerated overnight.)

Cooked Great Northern Beans

Pizza with Prosciutto, Red Onion, and Fresh Tomatoes

Homemade pizza is one of the best dishes to come out of your own kitchen. It’s more flavorful and healthful, fresher, and more satisfying than any pie from your local pizza shop. Need more reasons? It’s fun and creative too.

About the dough: Make it yourself. Like any great thing you build, start with a good foundation. Same for pizza. Making your own dough is easy—it just needs time, and a tender touch. You can create wonderfully chewy, tasty crust with only four ingredients: flour, yeast, salt, and water. 

I use Italian “00” (double-zero) flour to make pizza dough because it is very finely ground and as soft and silky as powder. (In Italy, grinds are measured as “1,” “0,” and “00,” with the latter being the finest.) If you can’t find double-zero, regular all-purpose flour will work just fine.

Italian "00" Flour

This dough recipe makes enough for three 12-inch pizzas, but you can divide it to suit your needs. Form any leftover dough into balls and place in individual freezer bags. They keep in the freezer for many months.

About the ingredients: The fewer the better. Real pizza isn’t crammed edge to edge with a dozen toppings. Instead, it features a few complementary fresh ingredients that don’t all blend into one when you taste it. For this recipe, I topped the pie with garlic, fresh tomatoes, red onion, thin slices of salty prosciutto, and a little shredded provolone. Chopped fresh herbs scattered on after baking give it a savory finish.

Thinly Sliced Prosciutto

Toppings for the Pizza

Ingredients Ready for Topping

About the baking: If you want to make your own pizzas on a regular basis (and you will after the first one), invest in a pizza stone. No other surface can create the same great, crunchy, chewy crust as a stone. But heat matters too. Place the stone in the oven as the temperature rises to 500° F and leave it an additional 30 minutes before using. If you don’t have a stone, cast-iron pizza pans or griddles are also good for pizza making.

A Well-Used Pizza Stone

For 1 medium pizza

Ingredients

For the Dough

(makes enough for 3 medium or 2 large pizzas)

• 2 packages active dry yeast
• 2 tbsp plus 4 cups Italian 00 flour (or all-purpose), plus more as needed
• 2 cups warm water, divided
• 2 tsp salt

For the Pizza

• flour, for dusting
• 1/3 dough recipe (for a 12-inch pizza)
• cornmeal, for dusting
• olive oil, for brushing and drizzling
• 2 cluster (stem) tomatoes, thinly sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1/4 medium red onion, cut into thin vertical strips
• 3 oz prosciutto, thinly sliced
• 2/3 cup shredded provolone cheese
• freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh herbs

Preparation

For the Dough

1. Gently whisk the yeast, 2 tablespoons of flour, and 1/2 cup warm water in a small bowl. Let stand until the mixture foams, about 10 minutes. (If it doesn’t foam, start over with new yeast.)
2. Mix the salt and 3 cups of flour in a large bowl. Add yeast mixture and remaining 1 1/2 cups of water and stir until smooth. Stir in 1 cup more flour. (Dough will be sticky and wet, so keep your hands floured.)
3. Lightly flour a work surface and knead the dough gently until it is soft and elastic, about 10 minutes.
4. Form the dough into a large ball and place in a large floured bowl.
5. Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place until it doubles in bulk (usually a couple of hours, but it can stand overnight if you want to make it a day ahead).
6. When the dough has risen, punch it down and divide into 3 balls. (Place leftover balls in individual freezer bags and freeze for up to 6-7 months.)

Rested Pizza Dough

For the Pizza

1. Place a pizza stone in the oven and preheat to 500° F. Leave the stone in the oven for an additional 30 minutes before proceeding.
2. On a floured work surface, roll out the dough to about a 12-X-11-inch rectangle. (Don’t worry about perfect lines. An uneven shape is the hallmark of homemade pizza.)
3. Dust a pizza peel with a good coating of cornmeal and transfer the dough to it. Push the dough out again and pinch a small lip around the edges. Brush with olive oil.

Pizza Peel Dusted with Cornmeal

Dough Brushed with Olive Oil

1. Lay the tomatoes in a single layer on the dough. Scatter the garlic over the tomatoes. (Tip: Gently shake the peel after applying each topping to keep the dough loose on the cornmeal. This will make it easier to slide onto the stone.)

Dough Topped with Tomatoes and Garlic

1. Top with red onion and prosciutto. Scatter the cheese on top. (Don't cover completely. This pizza is about fresh ingredients, not cheese.)

Dough Topped with Prosciutto and Cheese 

Dough Topped with Cheese

1. Carefully slide the pizza onto the hot stone and bake for 13-15 minutes, depending on the thickness of the dough. It’s done when the crust is crisp and brown and the top is bubbly.

Pizza on the Stone, Ready to Bake

1. Remove from the oven and transfer the pizza to a cutting board. Scatter the fresh herbs on top and drizzle with more olive oil. Cut into 8 slices and serve.

(For an easy pizza idea with store-bought crust, check out Pancetta Pizza with Olives, Dates, and Leek.)

Baked Pizza

Pizza with Fresh Herbs

Vegetarian Pasta with Asparagus, Mushrooms, and Fresh Tomato Puree

Three vegetables, some pasta, and a bit of seasoning. That’s all it takes to create a fresh, delicious, and wholesome dinner—on the light side. As I’ve mentioned a few hundred times, going fresh is always important, but especially when a recipe has very few ingredients and each one needs to bring its best flavor to the dish.

I chose asparagus for this recipe because it’s now spring and this is asparagus’s time to shine. Seasonal vegetables are ideal for bringing the freshest meals to your dinner table. Peas, baby spinach, spring onions, artichoke, fennel—all would make tasty additions to this springtime dish. Mushrooms are easy to find year-round and provide a little meatiness, as well as deep, earthy flavor. 

Vegetables and Garlic for the Sauce

Fresh tomatoes, of course, are available at your market year-round too, and while they will never measure up to that taste of sinking your teeth into one straight off the vine in summertime, store-bought tomatoes still make a great fresh sauce for pasta or any other tomato-based dish you’re preparing.

I chose to use a few different types of tomatoes for this recipe simply because that's what I had on hand. You can use only one kind or choose a mix of your favorites.

Assorted Tomatoes for the Sauce

One more thing: I wanted a chunky puree for the pasta, so I gave the coarsely chopped tomatoes a few spins in the food processor—not long enough to emulsify them, just enough to make them “saucy” with some bite still in the tomatoes. For a very chunky sauce, skip the processor and chop the tomatoes yourself.

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 8 oz spaghetti
• 1 1/2 lbs assorted tomatoes (such as roma, cluster, cherry, compari, or heirloom), coarsely chopped
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 8 oz crimini mushrooms, thickly sliced
• 6 oz asparagus, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh herb mixture, such as basil and oregano

Preparation

1. Cook the pasta in boiling, salted water 8-9 minutes. Drain.
2. Place the tomatoes in a food processor and chop until a chunky puree forms. Transfer to a bowl.

Tomatoes Ready to Puree

Chunky Pureed Tomatoes

1. Heat a large, deep skillet over medium heat and add the oil. Add the mushrooms, asparagus, and garlic and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until the vegetables have softened and most of the liquid is absorbed, about 5 minutes.

Asparagus, Mushrooms, and Garlic Beginning to Cook

Cooked Asparagus, Mushrooms, and Garlic

1. Add the pureed tomatoes and re-season with salt and pepper. Simmer slowly until the sauce is slightly thickened, 7-8 minutes.

Pureed Tomato Sauce Beginning to Cook

Cooked Sauce

1. Add the pasta and fresh herbs to the skillet and toss well to combine with the sauce. Divide among 4 bowls and serve right away.

Spicy Pork Tacos with Roasted-Chile Sauce

No doubt about it, the heat is on in my house. If you love hot chiles, the roasted-chile sauce in this dish will not disappoint.

If you’re not so keen on that much spice, you can turn down the heat by omitting the habanero chiles. To make it even milder, use only one jalapeno and one serrano and add an extra poblano. If you want it completely on the mild side, omit the habaneros, jalapenos, and serranos and use one large red bell pepper, one large green bell pepper, and two to three poblano chiles, depending on size. The robust, savory, and earthy flavor of roasted chiles will still be there, regardless of the heat.

Assorted Chiles for Roasting

There are two important steps in drawing out that great flavor: roasting the chiles at a high temperature to blister the skin and letting the roasted chiles “steam” a bit to make the blistered skin easy to peel away. Steaming simply means dropping all the chiles into a paper bag, closing tightly, and letting it rest for 15 minutes. The skin will puff up and can easily be removed with your fingers or by gently scraping it with a paring knife.

Believe it or not, these tacos are not heavy or full of fat. Thin slices of lean, boneless pork and fresh chiles and onions add up to a light, guilt-free dish despite the big flavor.

4-oz Boneless Pork Chops

Thinly Sliced Pork

For a tasty, fresh side dish to serve with the tacos, try Garlicky Refried Black Beans.

Makes 8-10 tacos

Ingredients

• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp chile powder
• 1/2 tsp cayenne powder
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 4 4-oz boneless pork chops, very thinly sliced across the grain
• 2 jalapeno chiles, stem ends removed
• 2 serrano chiles, stem ends removed
• 2 habanero chiles, stem ends removed
• 1 large poblano chile, cut in half lengthwise, stemmed and seeded
• 1 medium red bell pepper, cut in half lengthwise, stemmed and seeded
• 1 tsp plus 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 cup vegetable broth
• sea salt
• 1 small onion, cut into thin vertical strips
• sliced scallions, cilantro leaves, shredded sharp cheddar cheese, and lime wedges for serving
• 8-10 6-inch corn or flour tortillas, warmed

Preparation

1. Combine the first 4 ingredients in a small bowl. Toss the spices with the pork, cover, and marinate in the refrigerator at least 1 hour. (May also be refrigerated overnight.) Let sit at room temperature 30 minutes before using.

Pork with Spice Rub

1. Preheat the oven to 450° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Toss all chiles and bell pepper with 1 teaspoon of olive oil on the baking sheet. Roast 15 minutes, turn, and roast 10 minutes longer, until the skin is blistered and charred.

Chiles Ready to Roast

Roasted Chiles after 15 Minutes

Roasted Chiles with Blistered Skin

1. Using tongs, place the roasted chiles in a paper bag and close tightly. Let steam 15 minutes. Remove the chiles from the bag and peel the loose skin with your fingers, or use a paring knife to gently scrape it off. Coarsely chop the skinned chiles.

Chiles with Skin Removed

1. Add the chopped chiles and seeds to a food processor along with the vegetable broth and season with salt. Process until smooth and slightly thick (makes about 1 cup). Remove the sauce and set aside.

Chopped Chiles Ready to Process

Roasted Chile Sauce

1. Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Add the pork and onion and season with salt and pepper. Cook until the onion is soft and the pork is just cooked through, 5-6 minutes.

Onion Sliced into Thin, Vertical Strips

Pork and Onions Beginning to Cook

Cooked Pork and Onions

1. Add the roasted-chile sauce to the skillet and stir well to combine. Cook on low heat until the sauce is warm throughout, 3-4 minutes.

Cooked Pork and Sauce

Serve with sliced scallions, cilantro leaves, shredded sharp cheddar cheese, lime wedges, and warm tortillas and let your guests build their own tacos.

Garnishes for the Tacos