I have to say that I’m pretty proud of myself.  Scott and I had dinner with new friends last night (new friends!!!!!), and when we got home around 9:30, I sat on the couch.  No, that’s not what made me proud.

After I sat on the couch like a bump on a log for 20 minutes or so, I got up again and proceeded to cook.  True, we had already eaten a truly delicious and filling meal complete with homemade pasta dish, homemade salad, homemade veggie side, and homemade dessert.  Go new friends!  But we also had a pretty empty fridge with no real Tuesday lunch prospects. 

I really like taking my lunch to work, because it saves money and is usually much healthier than walking across the street to McDonalds.  Who doesn’t like saving money while simultaneously enjoying your homemade lunch and reading a good book (or writing on your blog… close enough)?!

So there was lunch to consider, but I was tired.  My bedtime happens at approximately 9:32 PM, with no regard to where I am at the time.  It’s inconvenient but true.  So there was the tired to consider along with the future hunger.  Enter sausage, kale, and white bean stew from Dinner: A Love Story (book and blog).

Mine didn’t look like the picture.  It was more golden, more brothy, and somehow very very different looking.  Probably because I sloshed in broth without measuring and browned the meat a little bit extra.

After eating lunch, I can say that I love this recipe.  It is similar to another favorite of mine, The Pioneer Woman’s Tuscan Bean Soup with Shrimp.  Both have kale, white beans, and tomato thrown in there with some meat and broth and such.  It’s a winning combination, in my opinion.  PW’s version has more depth of flavor, and this version has sausage and a quick cook time.  Both are awesome.  This version is quick enough that I finished it, cooled it, and got it into Tupperware before turning into a pumpkin (around 11 last night… the bedtime gods were merciful).  I think it took me 20 minutes to do the entire thing, and I only got one chopping board, one knife, one spoon, and one soup pot dirty.  And if that doesn’t make me happy enough, I just love recipes that include crumbled Italian sausage.  If the recipe is healthy outside of that one slightly less healthy ingredient, all the better.

Sixty percent of my lunch break went towards eating stew and writing about it, and the rest is about to go towards reading Super Bowl recipes and picking some for us.  It might just be the two of us celebrating and eating, but it’s going to be a tasty event.  It’s my first time making “football food,” and a whole new world of buffalo wings and blue cheese sauce and tasty, cheesy dips is opening before me.  I’m excited.  I wonder if I can use the Olympics as an excuse to eat that kind of food for two weeks straight.  Hmm.