Gluten-free Sweet Potato Kale Soup

Today is the first day that actually feels like fall is coming. I'm so happy. 

It's cool enough outside to wear a sweater, and it started pouring this afternoon on my way back from Walmart. I didn't have an umbrella, so I just strolled down the sidewalk back to my apartment while getting soaked. Sometimes you get to the point where it doesn't matter if you get wet or not, and it's kind of fun when that happens. 

A big bowl of gluten-free sweet potato and kale soup was the perfect warm-me-up on this September day. I was inspired by this recipe, and just adapted it slightly to my own preferences, though I mostly made it up as I went. 

Ingredients:
(Serves 2, if you eat big bowls of this deliciousness!)
- 1 large sweet potato, cubed
- 2 cups of kale, chopped
- 3 cups of vegetable broth (I used Czech vegetable bouillon cubes!)
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1/2 red onion, chopped
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning or thyme
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2/3 cups cooked rice (white or brown)
- Pepper, to taste
- Optional (and recommended!): grilled or pan-seared chicken, sliced

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350F (180C). Spread sweet potato cubes on a baking sheet and lightly drizzle with a little bit of olive oil. Bake until lightly browned and fragrant (this will just add more flavor to your soup!).
2. Heat olive oil in a skillet and add chopped onion and garlic, until onion is translucent.
3. Add kale, and sauté until kale starts to glisten.
4. Add sweet baked potatoes, vegetable broth and seasoning, and bring to a boil. Stir in rice and simmer for 15 minutes. If using chicken, you can add this at the end of the 15 minutes, just to make sure it's all the way warmed through.
5. Serve in a wide bowl, because it just makes everything feel more fancy.

I hope you get a lovely fall day soon! I don't think we'll have many of those in the next week, but the cold Chicago weather will be coming, I know that! I'm sure this is the first of many soups to come from my tiny kitchen.