Sausage, Kale and White Bean Soup

Soup Saturday was back with a vengeance at the weekend. I actually had a few sausages leftover (uncooked) so I started with them. Thinking vaguely Italian.. I added a few other ingredients. Kale is becoming so popular now that I think I might have a go at growing some this year. Partially as I love it, but it also contains a plethora of vitamins and dietary minerals. So you can feel good about yourself!

Its still quite cold in April, so a good, chunky soup is a must. This one is lovely. Cannellini beans are best for this. I used black eye beans as they were all I had in the cupboard! They worked well but cannellini would be better.

Ingredients:

3 pork sausages, skin removed
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 onion, chopped finely
1 carrot, chopped finely
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 large potato, peeled and chopped 1cm pieces
2 tbsp. flour
1 tsp. oregano
1.2 litres  chicken stock (cube is fine) 
400g tin white beans
100g kale, shredded

Method

In a large pan, add the oil and the onions and cook on a medium heat. As they are cooking, crumble in the sausage meat and cook until the sausage is no longer pink. Add the carrots, potatoes and garlic and cook for 5 minutes or so. Add the flour, with some salt, pepper and the oregano. Stir and let cook for a couple of minutes to cook out the flour.

Then add a little of the stock. Incorporate and then add the rest of the stock. Turn up the heat to boil and then leave to simmer for about 20 minutes.

Add the beans and kale and cook for a further 3 minutes. Taste to check for seasoning and add black pepper and salt as you like it.

Serve (if liked) with cheesy croutons on top. Delicious!

Sausage & Spinach Stuffed Pork Wellington

Well, its a bit like Pork Wellington, but instead of having the stuffing around the meat - its inside the meat. A very simple but impressive dish and so tasty! Just a few vegetables and some gravy and you have a delicious Sunday dinner!

Ingredients:          (Serves 4)

1 pork fillet (about 550g)
3 pork sausages (casing removed)
100g fresh spinach
handful pine nuts
1/4 tsp. black pepper
pack of ready rolled puff pastry
1 egg
10g butter
little oil


Method:

Put the spinach into a pan and put on a low heat with the lid on, stirring occasionally until wilted. Drain in a sieve and press out the water. Then chop and put into a bowl. Let cool. Add the sausage meat, pine nuts and pepper and mix well with a fork.

Set the oven to 170 C. Pat the pork fillet dry with kitchen paper and using a sharp knife, butterfly the fillet. To do this, you need to cut the fillet lengthways - but not all the way through. Open it like a book and do the same again to the thick pieces. So the pork is opened up. (If you feel like its not big enough, you can put between 2 pieces of cling film and gently hit with a rolling pin to flatten and spread out a little more).

Put the stuffing in the centre of the pork (lengthwise) and roll up. Tie with string to secure. Heat 10g butter and 1 tbsp. oil in a flameproof roasting tin and pop on the hob. Add the pork and fry each side to brown and then put in the preheated oven for 1 hour. Remove from the oven, cut off the string and leave to cool.

Open the pastry and lay the pork in the centre. Wrap the pastry around it and seal with a little beaten egg. Make leaf shapes from excess pastry and lay over the top. Brush with egg and cook at 200 C for 30 minutes.

Serve with gravy and veg of your choice. A delicious weekend treat!