I love Minestrone soup. It's healthy. It's chock full of vegetables (and you can play with how many of each as well as which ones you use). It's filling and it can be served as a lunch or a dinner with rolls on the side.Over the years I've come up with my own personal Minestrone recipe.
Sometimes I make it in a pot on the stove (takes about 45 minutes of cook time). Other times I throw it all in my slow cooker and put it on LOW for 6 hours. That makes my house smell amazing as it cooks all day! If I'm in a hurry I toss it in my Instant Pot, where it takes 8 minutes.
So let's get right down to it! Here's what you need:
Ingredients
1 Litre of Chicken Stock14 oz can of tomatoes
small can of kidney (aka Cannellini) beans, white
small can of kidney beans, red
2 slices of bacon, diced and slightly cooked
2 cloves of garlic, can be mashed or sliced
1/2 c. frozen diced onions (can be fresh, diced)
1/2 c. frozen hash browns (you can peel and dice potatoes if you prefer)
1 large carrot, diced
1 large celery stalk, diced
1/2 c. zuchinni, chopped
1/2 c. diced leeks (white part only)
1/2 tsp. Italiano spice
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp Oregano
1/2 tsp Basil
1 bay leaf
1 TBSP. tomato paste
Optional: 1/4 small cabbage, shredded. I am allergic to cabbage so I often substitute 1 c. Brussels sprouts, chopped fine
You will also need 1 c. of uncooked Rotini Pasta and grated Parmesan cheese
Method:
Lightly cook the diced bacon. Set aside on a paper towel.
Peel, wash and prep the carrot, celery, zucchini, leeks, and garlic. The red containers in the photo above are 1/2 cup size. I used frozen hash browns (top left) and frozen diced onions (beside the hash browns) so didn't have any prep for them. Dump them all in your cooking pot
Drain the kidney beans. Rinse under running water and put in your cooking pot. Add your pre-cooked bacon, your can of tomatoes, the tomato paste and all spices.
If you are adding cabbage or Brussels sprouts add them too. Pour the chicken stock over everything in the pot. Stir, cover and cook.
Slow Cooker: Cover and set to LOW for 6 hours
Stove Top: Bring to boil, then simmer for about 45 minutes or until carrots and potatoes are soft.
Instant Pot: Set to sealing. Choose Manual Pressure Cook and set time to 8 minutes. When done, use natural (slow) release.
When the soup is ready, make rotini pasta. Bring water to a boil, put rotini in for 8 minutes, drain and add to individual servings. The pasta freezes well if you keep it separate from the soup. The soup also freezes well. Top with grated Parmesan cheese. We serve biscuits on the side.
This recipe needs a 6 qt pot and it will make 6 large servings (dinner size).
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