White Bean and Kale Soup

I'm always looking for ways to incorporate kale and other healthy greens into dishes at home so I thought I'd try this soup.  It seemed pretty simple, with very few ingredients, and so when I tasted the final result I was pleasantly surprised. It's quite tasty!  

I started out with dry beans because they were $1.69 for the pound I used in the recipe and along with $1.99 for a brunch of kale this is an inexpensive pot of soup to make, and that makes me really happy. This will make 4 entree portions.  

You can use canned beans if you don't want to go through the soaking process. Just reduce the cooking time. 

When it comes to the herbs I like to use a whole large sprig to get the flavor into the soup, then remove it at the end prior to serving. 

Ingredients: 
1 pound of dried Great Northern beans 
2 applewood smoked bacon slices, cut into small dice
1 large white onion, cut into small dice  
6 garlic cloves. minced  
6 cups low sodium chicken stock 
2 cups water
1 large sprig fresh thyme
1 6 inch sprig fresh rosemary
1 Parmesan cheese rind
1 tsp salt  
1 bunch kale, stems removed and chopped 

Rinse and pick through the beans, then put them into a soup pot and cover with water. Soak overnight.

In the morning, drain and rinse the beans.  

In the soup pot, saute the bacon until brown.  Then add the onion and saute until soft, approximately 6 minutes.  Add the garlic and saute a couple minutes.   Add the beans, the stock, water, herbs, cheese rind, and salt.  Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a low simmer and cook for one hour.  Add the kale and cook an additional 15 minutes.    

Remove the herb sprigs and cheese rind to serve. 

Serve with some crusty toasted bread.