Kale soup and fresh bread

After Sarah pointed me to her boyfriend's sister's blog I was inspired to add some fresh bread to tonight's kale soup.


I started the bread dough last night and put it up above the cupboards, on top of the cookbooks, so that it wouldn't accidentally get thrown out. (Jeff cleans the kitchen very nicely, but a bowl of oozy flour, yeast, and water probably wouldn't look worth saving.) It sat up there all night and day, so when I got home I had a nice spongey mass to form into 2 small loaves. I didn't have a large enough covered Pyrex dish to make just one large loaf, and besides, smaller loaves bake in less time.


I like my bread light, so it took about 30 minutes for my two loaves in a 450 degree oven. (The last ten minutes without the lid on the dish.) If I were to cook it for longer it would have a richer flavor, but I've never been one for well-cooked or well-toasted. I did leave the second loaf in a few minutes longer so it developed a more golden hue.


The soup was relatively simple. Instead of using plain water (as the recipe suggested) I used actual vegetable stock, my herbs were fresh (and a little different than the suggested ones), and no parmesan to garnish, thank you.

Jeff's not typically a big soup fan, but this recipe reminded me of a great riboletta (that's twice boiled) soup recipe I have buried in a folder around here that utilizes old bread and I wanted him to try it. I think he approved. Plus, I love dark greens like kale and Swiss chard, but am out of practice in using them. Soup is a great way to ease them back into my repetoire.