Spicy White Bean & Kale Soup Is Just What the Doctor Ordered

I’m not sure if I’ve had a lingering cold for the last month or if allergy season is upon us — all I know is that I’ve got a bad case of the sniffles. If you, like me, are on the hunt for a bowl of something brothy, warm, and comforting, look no further than this spicy white bean and kale soup. It’s just what the doctor ordered.

What I love most about this soup is how versatile it is. The author notes that if you want the soup to be a little heartier, you can use two cans of beans instead of one. If you don’t have ground pork but have ground chicken on hand, go ahead and sub in the chicken. The recipe calls for three chiles de arbol, but you can turn up the heat and add five instead if you like your soup really spicy. The recipe also calls for fresh roma tomatoes, but since we don’t all have access to good-quality tomatoes right now, canned whole peeled tomatoes should work just fine.

Another cool feature? This soup has a whole head of garlic in it. Yes, a whole head! You peel the cloves and sauté them whole with onions and carrots in some olive oil. Then, once you add all the other soup ingredients — tomatoes, ground pork, chicken stock, tomato paste, dried chiles, and water — the garlic continues to cook down until it’s meltingly tender.

Once you have your soup base, you add in a can of white beans (drained and rinsed) and some thinly sliced lacinato kale and simmer that for about 15 minutes until the kale is soft.

When served in a big bowl (or mug!) with some freshly grated Parmesan on top, this soup is so supremely satisfying.

→ Get the Recipe: Spicy White Bean Garlic & Kale Soup from Honestly Yum