Portuguese Kale Soup

Last year a co-worker gave me a recipe for Portuguese Kale Soup. Michele cooked it up and it turned out to be one of the best soups either of us have ever had.

Turns out that it’s a traditional Portuguese soup with many different variations. We’ve done some experimenting with different ingredients and I thought I would share my current favorite version.

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp olive oil
Several cloves of finely chopped garlic
1/2 cup diced onions
1 bunch kale, stemmed and rough chopped
1 lb chorizo or chourico
3 bay leaves
2 Tbsp parsley
2 Tbsp thyme
2 Tbsp chili powder
4 cups chicken stock
4 cups beef stock
1 (15-ounce) can of kidney beans
1 (15-ounce) can of sliced tomatoes
2 Tbsp of tomato paste
4 medium sized potatoes, diced

In a large stock pot, heat the oil over medium high heat. Add the onions and cook for three minutes. Next add the garlic and cook for another two minutes. Add the kale, chorizo, parsley, thyme and mix well. Add the beef and chicken stocks, beans, bay leaves, tomatoes, tomato paste and chili powder. Bring the soup to a boil and then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 30 – 40 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan bring salted water to a boil and add the diced potatoes. Cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain the potatoes and add them to the soup.

Serve with warm bread.

Enjoy.

Gizmondo’s Spectacular Crackup

Last year there was a story in the news of a spectacular car crash on the PCH in Southern California. An extremely rare Ferrari Enzo hit a telephone pole at around 200 mph and the driver walked away from the destroyed supercar with nothing but a few scratches.

Turns out, that’s only the tip of the story. The car crash was just a small part of a big, weird criminal enterprise. Check out the story here.

(link goes to Wired Magazine)