Classic Minestrone Soup
An Italian vegetable soup. Minestrone, in the Italian language, refers to a very substantial or large soup - from the Italian: minestra (soup) + -one (augmentative suffix) hence "the big soup", or the one with many ingredients. There is no set recipe for minestrone, since it is usually made out of whatever vegetables are in season, although it will be thick soup and will always be made with vegetables. It can be vegetarian, contain meat, or contain a meat-based broth (such as chicken stock). The soup is often eaten on Sunday night in Italy, after the big meal on Sunday afternoon; and in many small villages, it is still made with rainwater collected in barrels. Minestrone is one of the cornerstones of Italian cuisine, and is just about as common as pasta on Italian tables.
Common ingredients include onions, celery, carrots, potatoes, zucchini, and tomatoes, along with beans and a small sized pasta, such as the small shells or ditalini. Cannellini beans, which look like white kidney beans, are the beans traditionally used in Minestrone soup, but the red kidney beans add more color. A woman posted on the Internet that in northern Italy borlotti beans (an Italian variety of cranberry bean) are generally used, and that cannellini beans are used in Tuscany.
Whatever vegetables you use, be sure to add pasta and some sort of dried/canned (or frozen limas) beans to make the soup more substantial. Both make the soup more filling and the beans add protein. Frozen lima beans take at least a half hour to cook, maybe more.
For those of you who are wondering, someone from northern Italy posted on the Internet that "the main difference between pasta e fagioli and minestrone is that minestrone has lots of different vegetables in it, pasta e fagioli has beans -- with onion and/or garlic for flavour, usually rosemary, and sometimes tomato -- but no other veg."
Classic Minestrone Soup
from Ciao Italia, modified
This recipe calls for dried beans, but you can substitute canned beans for quicker preparation.
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 onions, diced
2 carrots, chopped
2 leeks, whites only chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 potatoes, diced
1 cup dry kidney or cannellini beans, soaked overnight and cooked but still hard (about 2 1/2 cups cooked)
2 cups hot beef broth (or vegetable broth)
4 cups boiling water
Salt and pepper
2 tomatoes, diced (or use canned tomatoes)
1 1/2 cups cabbage, diced
1 1/2 cups spinach, chopped (adds color)
1 1/2 cups zucchini, diced
2 Tbsp. parsley
1 tsp. thyme
3/4 cup
Ditali
or
Ditalini pasta, or small pasta shells
3 heaping tablespoons Pesto
Parmesan or Romano cheese, for serving
Saute onions, leeks, carrots, celery, and potatoes in olive oil until the onions and celery are soft.
Add the kidney beans, beef broth, water, salt, pepper, tomatoes and cook for about 1 hour covered until the potatoes and beans are cooked through.
Add cabbage, zucchini, parsley and thyme and cook about 10 minutes until the cabbage and zucchini are cooked but still crisp. If too thick add more beef broth or water.
Cook the pasta until al dente. Do not add to the soup; add to the bowls when ready to eat. This will keep the pasta from getting overdone.
Add the spinach and pesto to the soup.
To serve, place some pasta in a bowl and ladle the soup over. Serve with Parmesan cheese on the side for sprinkling on top and a good crusty bread or garlic bread.
*Minestrone Soup
from https://www.loveandlemons.com/
This recipe is simpler than the Classic Minestrone Soup recipe to the left.
"This minestrone soup recipe is satisfying, but still light and fresh. Onions, carrots, and celery add depth of flavor to its herb-flecked tomato broth, and starchy beans and pasta make it nice and thick. Toss in green beans for texture, and, as a final finishing touch, top it off with fresh parsley and a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese. It’s super easy and flavorful, and all you need is crusty bread to make it a meal."
FMM: I followed this recipe, but added diced zucchini, used lima beans instead of the other beans, no green beans, and used beef bouillon (no added salt). It was very good.
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, diced [about 1 cup]
2 medium carrots, diced [about 1 cup]
2 celery ribs, thinly sliced [about 1 cup]
[zucchini, diced - about same amount as carrots]
1 teaspoon sea salt, plus more to taste
Freshly ground black pepper
3 garlic cloves, grated
1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 1/2 cups cooked white beans or kidney beans, drained and rinsed [or lima beans]
1 cup chopped green beans [corn?]
4 cups vegetable broth [or beef broth]
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried thyme [use less]
3/4 cup small pasta, elbows, shells, orecchiette (1/2 cup)
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
Red pepper flakes
Grated Parmesan cheese, optional, for serving
Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, celery, [zucchini], salt, and several grinds of black pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 8 minutes, until the vegetables begin to soften.
Add the garlic, tomatoes, beans, green beans, broth, bay leaves, oregano, and thyme. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
Stir in the pasta and cook, uncovered, for 10 more minutes, until the pasta is cooked through.
Season to taste and serve with parsley, red pepper flakes, and parmesan, if desired.
Serves 4 to 6
