Vegetable Soup with Toasted Farro and Turkey

Since we are in the midst of an insane winter I decided it was the perfect time to make some soup!  I have been trying to come up with some new recipes lately so I experimented a little with this one and it came out sooooooo goooooood!  It’s a perfect hearty vegetable soup – and it’s totally guilt free, which is my favorite part since I am really trying to watch what I eat.

The Parmesan rind is really the secret here! It adds a buttery, salty flavor you won’t get from anything else.  That, along with some spicy turkey sausage (or just ground turkey meat – NOT EXTRA LEAN because it lacks in flavor) and some serrano pepper give this soup so much extra flavor!  I love to freeze my Parmesan rinds when I’m done grating the cheese because they add so much extra flavor to soup stock.

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 2 sweet or spicy turkey sausage links, or 6 oz. ground turkey
• 1 cup Farro (or any other whole grain – barley, brown rice, etc.)
• 7-8 cups low sodium chicken broth (or vegetable broth if you prefer)
• 1 serrano pepper
• 1 bell pepper
• 3 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 3 celery stalks, chopped
• 2 baby zucchini, peeled and chopped
• 2 large shallots, diced
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes in Italian seasoning
• 1 Parmesan cheese rind
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 bunch of kale (any kind, whatever you like best)
• salt and pepper, to taste
• red pepper flakes, to taste
• 1 tsp. or so herbes de Provence
• 1/2 cup freshly grated mozzarella
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan

• In a large pot, heat up about 2 tbsp. olive oil and throw in 6 oz. ground turkey meat and serrano pepper (or spicy turkey sausage).  Once the turkey begins to brown scoop it out and set aside.  In the same pot, pour the grain in, in this case I used farro, and toast for about 3-4 minutes.  Then toss in the carrots, zucchini, celery, shallots, garlic, bell pepper, bay leaf, and can of diced tomatoes -and saute an additional 3-4 minutes.
• Now, pour 7-8 cups of chicken broth into the pot, along with the Parmesan rind and season with salt, pepper, herbes de Provence, and red pepper flakes.  Bring the soup to a boil, then simmer for about 25-30 minutes, until the vegetables are just about done.  About 5 minutes before the soup is finished, add the kale, browned turkey meat, and 1/2 cup of fresh mozzarella.
• Before you serve, be sure to shred some fresh Parmesan on top and enjoy!