Tuscan-Style Potato Soup

Tuscan-Style Potato Soup (Adapted from CL)

For the soup

2 heads garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil, divided
1 1/2 cups finely chopped onion
fresh ground black pepper
salt
2 1/4 pounds Yukon gold potato, peeled and cubed
4 cups chicken broth
1 cup half-and-half
2 ounces (about 1/2 cup) fresh grated pecorino Romano cheese

For the toppings

1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons olive oil, divided
1 1/2 cups finely chopped onion
salt
8 ounces hot Italian turkey sausage, casings removed
1 ounce pancetta, finely chopped
1 cup chopped kale
1 ounce (about 1/4 cup) fresh grated pecorino Romano cheese
1/4 cup fresh sage leaves
2 1/2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted
1 ounce pecorino Romano cheese, shaved into strips

To prepare the soup

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Peel away any of the excess papery skins from the garlic cloves, leaving the skins on the cloves intact. Slice off about 1/4" to 1/2" of the pointed end of the garlic bulb to reveal the cloves. Set both heads onto a large piece of foil and drizzle 1 teaspoon over the exposed cloves, then wrap the foil around, crimping the edges, to enclose the garlic. Place into the oven and bake until the garlic is soft, about 40 to 45 minutes. Remove and let cool for 10 minutes. Squeeze cloves to remove the garlic pulp and set aside.

In a large Dutch oven, heat 2 teaspoon oil over medium-high. Stir in onion - cook until softened, about 4 to 6 minutes. Season with fresh ground black pepper and salt. Stir in cubed potato and cook for 2 minutes. Pour in broth and bring mixture to a boil - reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are very tender, about 18 to 20 minutes.

Remove from the heat and stir in garlic pulp. Using an immersion blender, puree soup smooth. Alternatively, puree soup in batches using a blender. Stir half-and-half and grated cheese. Place the pot back over medium heat and cook, stirring often, until thoroughly heated through, about 5 minutes.

To prepare the toppings

Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat 2 teaspoons oil over medium. Stir in onion and season lightly with salt - cook until softened, about 4 to 6 minutes. Add sausage and pancetta - cook, stirring to crumble, until the meat has browned and cooked through, about 8 to 10 minutes.

In a medium pot of boiling water, add kale and cook for 4 minutes. Reserve 1/4 cup of the cooking liquid, then drain kale. In a food processor, add drained kale, reserved cooking liquid, grated cheese, sage and nuts - process until finely ground. Leaving the processor on, gradually drizzle in the remaining 1 tablespoon oil and process to combine.

To serve, portion soup into bowls, then drizzle kale "pesto" evenly over each serving. Top each with a mound of the sausage mixture and shaved cheese.

Makes 6 servings.

Just found the recipe? Click here to see where we talked about it!