It's not a recipe. Just what I have on hand. But I've made this many
times before and thanks to koko for leading me down the lentil soup path
years ago. I've changed things a bit

Cook a half a pound of bacon until just crisp. Set the bacon aside and
try not to eat more than 2 slices while you're doing the other prep. LOL

In the bacon drippings, saute a small diced yellow onion, a rib of
celery (also diced) and a carrot (I prefer shredded carrots; they sort
of meld into the soup without being obvious.) Add a couple of cloves of
minced garlic and saute until the vegetables are tender. Place in a
deep pot. Season with salt & pepper. Add the rinsed lentils and cover
well with chicken broth or stock. Cook the lentils per the package
directions, about 25 minutes or until tender. Add the chopped bacon
back to the pot with the lentils. Add water if needed. It's soup but
you don't want it to be too thick.

At this point I stir in some thawed (from frozen) leaf spinach. (I use
fresh spinach, loosely chopped, when fresh is available.) You may use
any greens you like. I believe koko is fond of kale. I'll stick with
spinach. Stir into the bubbling soup and heat through until the
greens are cooked. This is a very nice hearty soup and wonderful served
with nicely toasted bread or rolls. It also freezes well.

Jill

On Wed, 16 Jan 2013 21:27:54 -0500, jmcquown >
wrote:

> I'll stick with spinach.

Me too. That's what I do when I see kale listed. I know there are
ways that I like kale, but soup isn't one of them.


--
Food is an important part of a balanced diet.

On 1/17/2013 2:43 AM, sf wrote:
> On Wed, 16 Jan 2013 21:27:54 -0500, jmcquown >
> wrote:
>
>> I'll stick with spinach.
>
> Me too. That's what I do when I see kale listed. I know there are
> ways that I like kale, but soup isn't one of them.
>
>
My lovebird, Peaches, liked to snack on freshly washed kale leaves. I
can't seem to get past that mental image when I think about cooking
kale. LOL

Jill

On Thu, 17 Jan 2013 10:02:30 -0500, jmcquown >
wrote:

> On 1/17/2013 2:43 AM, sf wrote:
> > On Wed, 16 Jan 2013 21:27:54 -0500, jmcquown >
> > wrote:
> >
> >> I'll stick with spinach.
> >
> > Me too. That's what I do when I see kale listed. I know there are
> > ways that I like kale, but soup isn't one of them.
> >
> >
> My lovebird, Peaches, liked to snack on freshly washed kale leaves. I
> can't seem to get past that mental image when I think about cooking
> kale. LOL
>
Experience the zen of kale, make kale chips and become one with the
bird!

--
Food is an important part of a balanced diet.

On 1/17/2013 11:33 AM, sf wrote:
> On Thu, 17 Jan 2013 10:02:30 -0500, jmcquown >
> wrote:
>
>> On 1/17/2013 2:43 AM, sf wrote:
>>> On Wed, 16 Jan 2013 21:27:54 -0500, jmcquown >
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>>> I'll stick with spinach.
>>>
>>> Me too. That's what I do when I see kale listed. I know there are
>>> ways that I like kale, but soup isn't one of them.
>>>
>>>
>> My lovebird, Peaches, liked to snack on freshly washed kale leaves. I
>> can't seem to get past that mental image when I think about cooking
>> kale. LOL
>>
> Experience the zen of kale, make kale chips and become one with the
> bird!
>
Couldn't I just burn some incense and chant "Om" for a few minutes? I'd
rather just use spinach.

Jill

sf wrote:
>jmcquown wrote:
>
>> I'll stick with spinach.
>
>Me too. That's what I do when I see kale listed. I know there are
>ways that I like kale, but soup isn't one of them.

I like bok choy leaves in soups... more mildly flavored than kale and
has a more substantial texture than spinach (spinach tends to
sliminess in soups). Bok choy is also a cleaner easier to prep
vegetable and all is usable... the white part is excellent for stir
frys. I rarely bother with fresh spinach, I much prefer frozen...
fresh spinach is typically not very fresh at the produce market, needs
too much picking over for rotted parts and is sandy. I prefer bok
choy for salads too. Before I'd use fresh spinach in soups I'd rather
canned spinach, just open the can and dump it all in, juice too.

On 1/17/2013 12:36 PM, Brooklyn1 wrote:
> sf wrote:
>> jmcquown wrote:
>>
>>> I'll stick with spinach.
>>
>> Me too. That's what I do when I see kale listed. I know there are
>> ways that I like kale, but soup isn't one of them.
>
> I like bok choy leaves in soups... more mildly flavored than kale and
> has a more substantial texture than spinach (spinach tends to
> sliminess in soups). Bok choy is also a cleaner easier to prep
(snip)
> Before I'd use fresh spinach in soups I'd rather
> canned spinach, just open the can and dump it all in, juice too.
>
Now *that* would be slimy! No thanks. I didn't have fresh spinach. I
used frozen leaf spinach, thawed and thrown in at the end to heat
through. I've never had it get slimy, not even upon reheating. Bok
choy might be very good but it's not something I keep around the house.
I *always* have frozen spinach on hand.

Jill

On Fri, 18 Jan 2013 08:38:04 -0500, jmcquown >
wrote:

> On 1/17/2013 12:36 PM, Brooklyn1 wrote:
> > sf wrote:
> >> jmcquown wrote:
> >>
> >>> I'll stick with spinach.
> >>
> >> Me too. That's what I do when I see kale listed. I know there are
> >> ways that I like kale, but soup isn't one of them.
> >
> > I like bok choy leaves in soups... more mildly flavored than kale and
> > has a more substantial texture than spinach (spinach tends to
> > sliminess in soups). Bok choy is also a cleaner easier to prep
> (snip)
> > Before I'd use fresh spinach in soups I'd rather
> > canned spinach, just open the can and dump it all in, juice too.
> >
> Now *that* would be slimy! No thanks. I didn't have fresh spinach. I
> used frozen leaf spinach, thawed and thrown in at the end to heat
> through. I've never had it get slimy, not even upon reheating. Bok
> choy might be very good but it's not something I keep around the house.
> I *always* have frozen spinach on hand.
>
Ditto. There's absolutely nothing wrong with frozen spinach. It also
comes in chopped or whole leaf, so you can vary what the spinach looks
like according to your mood. For variety, I'll use chard, but that's
as far afield as I go. I just don't like the tougher greens. I
bought a bag of Trader Joe's mixed soup greens which had mustard
greens, kale and something else... it was another tough one that
southerners tend to use. Collard, I think, anyway - I hated it. That
was one batch of soup I was glad to see gone.


--
Food is an important part of a balanced diet.

On 1/18/2013 10:40 AM, sf wrote:
>>> Before I'd use fresh spinach in soups I'd rather
>>> > >canned spinach, just open the can and dump it all in, juice too.
>>> > >
>> >Now*that* would be slimy! No thanks. I didn't have fresh spinach. I
>> >used frozen leaf spinach, thawed and thrown in at the end to heat
>> >through. I've never had it get slimy, not even upon reheating. Bok
>> >choy might be very good but it's not something I keep around the house.
>> > I*always* have frozen spinach on hand.
>> >
> Ditto. There's absolutely nothing wrong with frozen spinach. It also
> comes in chopped or whole leaf,

I usually just buy the whole leaf, a couple of bags at a time.

so you can vary what the spinach looks
> like according to your mood. For variety, I'll use chard, but that's
> as far afield as I go. I just don't like the tougher greens. I
> bought a bag of Trader Joe's mixed soup greens which had mustard
> greens, kale and something else... it was another tough one that
> southerners tend to use. Collard, I think, anyway - I hated it. That
> was one batch of soup I was glad to see gone.

I'm not a fan of collards, myself. As you say, too "tough". I've never
tasted mustard greens.

Turnip greens are one of the few greens where I'll buy the canned
version. Yes, I've cooked them from scratch, canned are easier. I
haven't looked for frozen turnip greens. I'm sure someone has them, I
just don't eat them enough to look for them. I can always find
something to do with frozen leaf spinach

Jill