Some recipes beg to be followed with precision. Many baked goods, for instance. Forget to add the baking powder to a pound cake, and once it’s in the oven, there’s no fixing it. You’ll wind up with a dense, grainy doorstop. But soups and pasta sauces, for instance, are more forgiving. The recipe can serve as a guide. Love garlic add extra. Like things spicy, add some hot pepper. Or maybe you have a bumper crop of garden kale to use up.

This recipe is endlessly adaptable. Almost any vegetable will do. Prefer spinach or chard to kale? No problem. No Italian sausage in the fridge? Substitute bacon or pancetta. Get creative!

The two proteins, lentils and Italian sausage, pair beautifully together. The seasonings in the sausage flavor the soup, and you can kick it up a notch by adding extra garlic or pepper if that’s your thing. While any lentils will work, our favorite for this is Umbrian lentils. The lentils are famous for their outstanding color, texture and flavor. They hold their shape yet become meltingly tender and creamy when cooked. This time of year, we favor tender Tuscan kale (Lacinato), mushrooms, carrots, celery, and chanterelle mushrooms. Canned San Marzano tomatoes, broken into chunks, add a bright flavor a summer with their tomatoey sweetness and just the right amount of acid.

The whole dish comes together in less than an hour. Serve it with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and sliced crusty bread, and you’ve got a meal that will brighten any rainy day.

Ingredients:

1 lb. Italian Sausage, removed from casings

½ yellow onion, diced

2 large carrots, chopped into ¼-inch pieces (about 1 cup)

3 celery stalks, chopped into ¼-inch pieces (about 1 cup)

1 cup sliced mushrooms (chanterelles are best, but pick your favorite)

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup Bartolini Umbrian lentils 

6 cups chicken stock 

1 cup whole San Marzano tomatoes, broken into bite sized chunks

2 cups Tuscan kale (aka Lacinato), washed & cut into ribbons

Salt & pepper to taste

Extra virgin olive oil (for drizzling over soup)

Crusty loaf of bread (for serving) 

Instructions:

Set a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and cook, breaking the sausage into small pieces and stirring occasionally, until it is browned, about 5 minutes.

Add the onion, celery, carrots, mushrooms and garlic and stir to combine. Cook until just starting to tenderize, about 5 minutes.

Add the lentils, stock and tomatoes. Let the soup come to a boil, then decrease the heat to maintain a low simmer. Cover the pot and cook until the lentils are tender, about 25 minutes. Add the kale and simmer until wilted. Salt and pepper to taste.

Ladle the soup into bowls and finish each with a healthy drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Serve with slices of crusty bread and a medium-bodied red wine.

To drink: Cotes du Rhone 

Serves 4