Sausage Making and Sausage, Kale and Bean Soup

Today I helped one of our friends make sausage. He had already ground the pork and spices together, and I helped him with the stuffing process. He made a delicious Italian sausage and the best part was we knew every ingredient in it and there was nothing Tommy was allergic to. He gave us some sausage to take home and that inspired our dinner tonight. The sausage making process is labor intensive, but doesn't seem too difficult. I'm excited to start making our own sausage too. 

I met with a dietitian yesterday to talk about Tommy's diet. I make a conscious effort to provide a balanced diet for him, but with all of his food allergies I was worried that there was some sort of hole in his nutrition. She gave me some resources including a handout on how many servings of each food group kids need in a day. And reassured me that Tommy's diet looked great and well balanced. She did say that if she had to pick one super food, it would be beans. She recommended cooking any veggie Tommy can eat with the beans as an easy all in one meal. 

So, tonight we had Sausage, Kale and Bean Soup. Ben and I loved it. Tommy wasn't as thrilled. He's not a big fan of tomatoes or kale. But it was a good exercise in fine motor skills as he meticulously picked out things from his bowl. And Lily seemed to like the soup a lot as she ate it off the floor.

In other news, who decided it would be a good idea to give a toddler chocolate pudding? Oh right, that was me...

Sausage, Kale and Bean Soup

3 links Italian sausage
4 carrots, peeled and diced
2 celery ribs, diced
1/2 large onion, diced
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can Great Northern Beans, rinsed and drained
1 can chicken broth
2 cups water

1. Remove sausage from casings. Brown in a non-stick dutch oven pot over medium heat.
2. Remove sausage from pot and leave the grease in the pot. Add the carrots, onion, celery, salt and pepper. Cook veggies over medium heat for several minutes until the onions are translucent. 
3. Add the tomatoes, beans, broth and water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until the carrots are softened. 
4. Add the kale and sausage. Cook until the kale wilts.