Creamy Red Pepper and Andouille Sausage Soup with Kale Chips and Croutons

This Creamy Red Pepper and Andouille Sausage Soup is decadently spicy, rich, and creamy. Packed with veggies, Havarti cheese, and topped with kale chips and croutons, this is a “calories don’t count” comfort food soup. Jump to Recipe

Croutons

Good leftover bread equals good croutons. My local grocery store sells a sesame seed baguette that I love. There are always leftovers too and it makes excellent croutons.

I just added a little extra virgin olive oil, garlic salt, pepper, and some nutritional yeast. Who else is addicted to nutritional yeast? I’ve started sprinkling it on lots of foods now.

Hiding in my cupboard was some Penzeys dried red and green chili flakes that I decided to crush and us as well. Good substitutes would be paprika, smoked paprika for some kick, or ancho chili powder.

Kale Chips

Why stop at croutons? What about chips too? I’ve missed kale, which is extremely hard to digest without a colon. That stuff is hearty. No matter how much you chew, it refuses to be ground down. I thought maybe if I roasted them until they were chips I could possibly enjoy it. And I was right!

I used the same seasoning in the kale chips as the croutons and cooked them on a really low temp to get them perfectly crispy.

The key to good kale chips is using just enough olive oil to barely cover the kale. Some parts of the leaves will be perfectly dry. You also need to space the leaves out to prevent steaming. With the low heat (225 degrees Fahrenheit) they come out perfectly crisp but not burnt.

They’re so perfect you can have them the next day. I stored them in an airtight container and they maintained their crunch.

Creamy Red Pepper and Andouille Sausage Soup

Thank a lazy weekend for this soup. My sister surprised me, dropping by on a week when I was alone in the house. Halloween movies were on. And I in no way wanted to put on actual clothes and go to the grocery store.

All I had to work with were:

• A wilted red pepper
• Three steamed broccolini
• A massive zucchini that I’ve been slowing carving away at
• Moldy AF Havarti cheese (I cut all the moldy parts off)
• A little bit of homemade chicken broth
• Two Andouille sausage links

I decided to blacken the red pepper in a large skillet and then add diced sausage in to build flavor. To help soak up more of that fatty richness, I tossed the broccolini and zucchini in for a quick sauté.

I picked the sausage out and poured everything else into my Vitamix along with the broth, some whole milk, and cheese, blending until it was completely smooth and creamy.

But I’m tired of completely smooth soups. I do those a lot. So back into the skillet it went. When I tossed the sausage back into the velvety soup, it looked a little lonely and unimpressive. So I emptied a can of black beans into it, which completed it perfectly.

Sometimes I write recipes down while I go but I didn’t this time. I was fairly certain I could replicate it, and I did. The second time around more people got to try it too and based on reactions, it’s the new favorite.

And it’s finally the right weather for a decadent and guilty pleasure-soup. I blinked and now it’s in the 40/50’s in the mornings and evenings. So now I can enjoy swaddling myself in blankets, sitting by a fire, and eating this.

5 from 2 votes

Creamy Red Pepper and Andouille Sausage Soup with Kale Chips and Croutons

This Creamy Red Pepper and Andouille Sausage Soup is decadently spicy, rich, and creamy. Packed with veggies, Havarti cheese, and topped with kale chips and croutons, this is a “calories don’t count” comfort food soup. 

Servings 2 to 3

Prep Time 25 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr 15 minutes mins

Total Time 2 hours hrs 5 minutes mins

Ingredients

Croutons

• 4 cups sesame seed baguette, cubed*
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon dried red and green bell pepper flakes* I used Penzeys Spices
• 1/2 tablespoon nutritional yeast
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon garlic salt
• Morton Kosher Salt, to taste

Kale Chips

• 1 bundle kale, large stems removed and torn into bite sized pieces
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon dried red and green bell pepper flakes
• 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
• 1/4 teaspoon Morton Kosher Salt + more, to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Creamy Red Pepper and Andouille Sausage Soup

• 1 red bell pepper, de-seeded and cut into strips
• 2 links Andouille pork sausage I used Fra'Mani Handcrafted Foods
• 3 broccolini (about 1/2 a bunch), roughly chopped*
• 1 cup zucchini, cubed
• 1/2 + 1/4 cup chicken or beef broth, separated
• 1/2 cup milk, 2% or whole
• 1 cup Havarti cheese, grated
• 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained

Instructions

Croutons (5 minutes prep + 25 minutes cook time, can be made 2 days before)

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. 
• Crush the dried red and green bell pepper flakes in a mortar and pestle until it becomes a coarse powder. This may not be necessary depending on what brand you use.
• Mix together all the ingredients until the bread is well coated. Spread the bread out on a baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes. 
• Give the bread a stir and bake for another 5 to 10 minutes, until golden brown. 
• Taste and sprinkle with some Morton Kosher Salt, if desired. Let the croutons cool to room temperature on the baking sheet. Use immediately or transfer to an airtight container for storage. 

Kale Chips (10 minutes prep + 25 minutes cook, can be made the day before)

• Preheat oven to 225 degrees Fahrenheit. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper. 
• Crush the dried red and green bell pepper flakes in a mortar and pestle until it becomes a coarse powder.  
• Toss kale, olive oil, and seasonings in a bowl until the leaves are coated evenly. 
• Spread the kale out on the baking sheet, making sure to leave space between the leaves. Sprinkle some more Morton Kosher Salt on top of the kale. You probably won’t be able to do the whole bunch of kale in one batch.   
• Bake for 15 minutes. Stir the kale once and bake for another 10 minutes until the kale is crispy. 
• Remove the chips from the oven and let them cool on the baking sheets. Keep going until you’ve baked all the kale. 
• Eat immediately or store in an airtight container at room temperature.  

Creamy Red Pepper and Andouille Sausage Soup (10 minutes prep + 25 minutes cook)

• Heat a large skillet over high heat. Once it’s hot, add the pepper strips, skin side down, onto the skillet. Cook for 5 to 6 minutes, until the pepper skins are blackened. Flip and cook about 3 minutes. 
• Reduce heat to medium and add the Andouille pork sausage and cook for 2 minutes. 
• Toss in the broccolini, zucchini, and 1/2 cup broth and cook until the sausage is done and the vegetables are slightly tender about 3 to 5 minutes. 
• Take out the sausage and set aside. 
• In a high-speed blender add the milk and cooked vegetables. Add the cheese. Mix on high speed for 2 to 3 minutes until the soup is steaming hot. 
• Pour the separated 1/4 cup broth into the skillet over medium heat. De-glaze the pan. Add the soup back in and stir. 
• Add the sausage back in and stir in the drained black beans. Heat until the soup is steaming and the black beans are warmed through. Turn off the heat and serve immediately. Top the soup with kale chips and croutons.  

Notes

Croutons

*sesame seed baguette: this was the bread I had on hand but any type of bread should do. If you don't have or can't find a sesame seed baguette but like sesame seeds, add some to the seasoning mix if you want.

*dried red and green bell pepper flakes: good substitutes would be any kind of chili powder or pepper flakes.

Depending on what kind of bread you use, the cooking times will be different. Make sure to keep an eye on your croutons.

Kale Chips

A bundle of kale is a lot. I had to do my chips in two batches. Don't be tempted to crowd the baking sheet with kale. Then you'll just get steamed kale, not chips.

Creamy Red Pepper and Andouille Sausage Soup

Use three full broccolini if you want a more broccoli heavy soup. For a more red pepper heavy soup, measure out 1 cup of chopped broccolini. 

 

Author: Megan Wells

Course: Soups