MINESTRONE – Vegetable Soup
Ingredients
½ cup canned white beans, kidney or cannellini beans (rinsed and drained)
½ cup frozen peas, rinsed and drained
1 cup diced unpeeled, scrubbed zucchini
1 cup diced carrots
1 cup diced potatoes
1 cup green beans, cut into 1 inch pieces
¼ cup thinly sliced celery
¼ cup finely chopped onions
1 cup canned chopped tomatoes
2 quarts chicken broth, bring to boil in a saucepan or
2 quarts water, bring to boil in a kettle to speed up process + 1 chicken bouillon
1 bay leaf
2 flat Italian type parsley sprigs
1 tsp chopped flat Italian type parsley
1 tsp salt
freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
½ pound of ditalini pasta made of durum wheat semolina
4 tablespoons freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
Prepare all your vegetables. Dice the zucchini, carrots and potatoes to approximately ¼ – ½ inch cubes. The vegetables will cook sooner if diced smaller. Cut the green beans. Slice the celery. Chop the onions. Rinse the peas and the white beans.
Heat the oil over medium heat in a large soup pot (6-8 quart size). Add chopped onions, peas, carrots, potatoes, green beans and celery. Saute for 2 minutes, tossing the vegetables constantly, then add the zucchini and continue to saute and toss for another 2 minutes.
Stir in chopped tomatoes and saute for 1 minute.
Add the 2 quarts chicken broth, (which has been brought to boil in a saucepan) or 2 quarts of boiled water and chicken bouillon and stir. Add the parsley sprigs and bay leaf. Bring the soup to a boil over high heat, reduce the heat, add the white beans and simmer partially covered for 30 minutes.
Optional Step: Take 1 cup of the mixed vegetables along with some of the broth and put in the blender (puree) for about 30 seconds and then return to the soup. This will add an aromatic non-starchy thickening to the soup.
Bring water to boil in a medium sized saucepan. Add ditalini pasta and cook for another 8 minutes, or until the pasta is cooked al dente. (Test it by tasting; it should be soft but al dente which means slightly resistant to the bite.)
Mix the cooked pasta to the minestrone soup, add the chopped parsley and serve, sprinkled with fresh ground black pepper and freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese.
Serves 6
Preparation and Cooking Time: 55 minutes
about the author: Rosemary Gullo
Rosemary is the author of Healthy Italian Cooking.
Healthy Italian Cooking is packed with dozens of tasty recipes and is Easy to Use. Each section takes you step by step through a new meal for your family. It is full of tips, tricks and secrets that will not only show you how to cook healthy Italian food, but will also cut down on cooking time and make dinner preparation simple.
Please leave your comments below … I would love to hear your feedbback:
Review this Recipe. Share your own Recipe.
Comments