Hello, Flower! I hope you're feeling better. I had that cold last week. I made a white bean dish with ham and sour cream. But your spicy soup would be much more soothing for a cold. A former neighbor, who was born in Italy but grew up in France, taught me about using kale, spinach or argula in bean dishes which are soups or stews. I remember peering into her large cooking pot one day, and asking her what in the world was floating around in her beans. She said, kale, and she offered me a bowl. It was the first time I ate kale. I was sold! Another French person moved in next door. He was a shy person, but he took to dropping in for visits. One day I was cooking beans, country style pork ribs and kale--a hearty soup. He walked in the door, took a whiff of the cooking scent, and excitedly hurried over to the stove to have a peek. He lifted the lid of the pot, and backed away with tears in his eyes. I was flummoxed. I inquired as to why he was crying. He said, it is cooking just like my mother make (sic). I offered him a bowl. He sat down to eat, tasted the food, and began to tear up again. He told me it tasted just like his mother's cooking. Years later I offered the same dish to another new neighbor, a Ukrainian woman. She declared that it was food just like from back home! She demanded to know how I knew how to cook Russian food?! When I began working with the Ohlone Community Garden I took to growing kale and other greens. One of the other gardeners, of Italian descent, told me to try stir frying kale with chopped garlic. She said not to add a couple of tablespoons of liquid until the edges of the kale were beginning to crisp. She told me to serve the kale alongside, or on top of, pasta. I tried her recipe and liked that, too. Lorna

A note about the bitterness of kale: I'm more sensitive to it than many people I know. The trick, for me, for an ordinary chicken soup, rather than something highly flavored, is to put the kale in just a few minutes before serving, so it's well wilted but hasn't started dissolving into the soup. I don't like it when the chicken broth tastes like kale, but it's good with the kale swimming in it with the other vegetables (definitely better with carrot and/or potato chunks to be sweet against the bitterness of the kale).

I agree about adding chicken, and if you have a can (or two) of chicken breast meat, add it along with the liquid in the can. It has more flavor than cooked chicken. Another add-in I'd grab from the cabinet is McCormick White Chicken Chili seasoning mix. It only takes a little (definitely NOT the whole packet) to add flavor. Canned chicken and the seasoning mix are included in my "emergency" foods. ;-) -Grainlady

Cran, you're welcome. I hope you find a few recipes you like. LisaB: you are so incredibly thoughtful to pull up this thread from last year. Thank you! Here's some new ones. The pancake and Red pesto Sauce I've been making pretty much every weekend lately. Healthful, easy and super delicious. ALMOND MEAL PANCAKES Serves 2 Ingredients: 1 cup almond meal 1/4 cup cooked quinoa 1/2 cup Egg Beaters or 2 eggs 1/4 cup water 2 tablespoons walnut, olive, avocado or canola oil, your choice 1 tablespoon sweetener ( I usually use blue agave syrup) blueberries, if you choose Directions: Mix all ingredients, except blueberries if using them, together in a bowl. Gently fold in blueberries (if using). Cook on hot oiled griddle as you would regular pancakes. * The cooked quinoa keeps the pancakes moist and fluffy. I've tried it without, but prefer them with it. LEMON BLUEBERRY YOGURT MUFFINS Makes about 2 1/2 dozen Ingredients: 1 1/2 cups Bob's Red Mill Low Carb Baking Mix (don't accidentally get his Low Carb Bread Mix like I did last month! I buy mine from Amazon Prime or from Bob's Red Mill directly) 2 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 cup plain Greek yogurt (I prefer Fage 0%) 1 cup sugar (I know, it seems like a lot, but comes out to less than 2 teaspoons per muffin. You can try an artificial sweetener, if you like. I'm very allergic to them myself, though) 3/4 cup Egg Beaters or 3 extra large eggs 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest (from approx. 1 lemon) 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce 1 1/2 cups blueberries) 1 tablespoon of the baking mix, or regular flour Directions: Preheat oven to 350-degrees. Add muffin liner papers to muffin cups and spray the inside of each with olive oil spray (or Pam, if you prefer). This is very important because without the spray, the finished muffins will stick to the papers badly. Or, you can use the Caphalon Silicone cupcake liners. You do not need to spray them. Mix together the baking mix, baking powder and salt in one bowl. In a second bowl, whisk together the yogurt, sugar, Egg Beaters, lemon zest, vanilla and applesauce. Slowly mix the dry ingredients into the yogurt mixture. In a third bowl, sprinkle the blueberries with the 1 tablespoon of baking mix or flour. Toss until covered. Gently fold blueberries into batter. Fill muffin cups about 3/4 full with batter. This recipe should make about 2 1/2 dozen. If using large muffin papers, you may get just 2 dozen. Bake about 40 minutes, or until done. I say "about 40 minutes" because I live at an altitude of 6,000 feet above sea level and baked goods can take a bit longer up here. * These muffins are very moist. They also freeze well. RED PESTO SAUCE FOR SALMON, ETC. Serves 2-3 We eat fresh salmon a couple of times a week. I've been making this heart healthy sauce for it lately, and we love it. You'll need a food processor or blender for this recipe. Ingredients: 8 blanched almonds 1/2 clove garlic, minced 1 tablespoon tomato paste 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil 1/3 cup chopped, bottled roasted red bell peppers, drained Directions: Blanch your almonds by dropping them in a 1/2 cup of boiling water (off the stove) for 8-10 minutes. Drain, and pinch each almond to slide off skin. Pat dry and cool a few minutes on counter. In a food processor, pulse almonds until you have a powder. Add rest of ingredients, pulse to blend. Taste and add salt if you prefer. Serve at room temp or slightly warmed.