Scotch Broth with Kale

I feel a little sheepish reviewing this recipe and giving it such a low score, as I did make a few omissions. However I also think the recipe is a bit problematic.

My first concern was that the ingredients were simply thrown into water - no browning to develop the flavors. I forgot to buy the leek, and so used a regular onion, but I don't think the leek could have saved the recipe. I also discovered that my kale had frozen in our current cold temperatures, and so omitted that. But as my kids point out, the kale perhaps would only have made the soup worse.

We kept adding more salt, a bit of acid, more thyme, but it was insipid.