Caldo Verde with Salt Cod

Today is our wedding anniversary. When we first set out to make the menu for the week, we really didn't set aside anything special for our anniversary. This, we realized, was absolutely ludicrous and, really, an affront to our marriage. So the ho-hum soup (which was good, mind you) that we had originally scheduled for dinner, got bumped up to lunch.

This soup is traditionally made with chourico, a luscious, spicy pork sausage found in a lot of Portuguese cooking. This variation uses salt cod instead, another staple of Portuguese food.

This was a good soup but need a little hit of lemon at the end and/or some kind of herb to wake it up (such as parsley). We'll be trying that next time.

1 lb. salt cod
2 tablespoons olive oil
6 large garlic cloves, finely minced
1 ½ lbs. potatoes, peeled
1 quart non-salty chicken stock
2 cups water
6 ounces kale without thick stems
Portuguese olive oil for drizzling
Soak the salt cod in a bowl of water in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 days. Change the water several times a day.

When ready to make soup, drain and dry off the salt cod. Place the 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large, heavy saucepan over moderately high heat. Add the garlic and half of the salt cod. Saute until the garlic starts to brown, about 5 minutes. Immediately add the potatoes, chicken stock, and water. Simmer gently for 30 minutes, or until the potatoes are soft.

With a potato masher, mash the potatoes and the cooked salt cod right in the pan. (They will end up in little chunks.) Boil for 5 minutes.

While the potatoes and cod are boiling, shred the kale. Gather some leaves together, roll them up the long way, and then cut the rolls into fine shreds.

Add the kale to the soup, along with the remaining salt cod cut into 1/2-inch pieces. Simmer for 5 minutes, or until the kale is just tender. Taste the soup for seasoning before serving in soup bowls. Drizzle each bowl with a little Portuguese olive oil.