White beans, Zuppa Toscana style

I cooked a two pound bag of white beans yesterday (I think they were navy beans) and was trying to figure out what to do with them for dinner. Then I remembered that when Mom and I went to Olive Garden and had the Zuppa Toscana I mentioned how I would like to try it with beans instead of potatoes. David was getting ready to go to the store so I gave him a list and this is what I came up with.

I set aside 4 cups of the beans for another meal and added about 4 cups of water and some chicken "Better than Bullion" to the beans in the pot.

In a little bacon grease in a skillet I sauteed a diced onion and 3 cloves of minced garlic and then added that to the beans. Salt, pepper and little garlic powder and I let that simmer for about 20 minutes.

I took three Italian sausage links and cut them up into chunks and browned them in the skillet. While they were cooking I added several handfuls of kale to the bean pot and then added the sausage when it was done. We just had bread and butter on the side.

The kids loved it which is usually how I gauge things since David and I like just about anything!

Today I am making polenta and chilling it then I will cut it into squares and heat them in a skillet to go with the leftover soup.