Minestrone Soup

With green beans, kidney beans, kale and pasta, this vegetarian minestrone soup and its wonderfully herby tomato broth, is full of hearty ingredients.

Always on my Sunday to-do list during the fall and winter months is to make a giant batch of soup that will last through the week

Then I am set with lunch and/or dinner no matter how hectic things inevitably get.

Why not start the week with leftovers?

Once the weather starts to turn warmer and more fruits and veggies are in season those cozy comforting bowls of soup will morph into hearty salads.

They require assembly first thing in the morning, so those salads taste  fresh for work lunches at my desk.

What I love about big salads and what I miss about soup is texture.

So often soup is just veggie puree in a bowl, which I do love, but there are days when I want variety.

 I am looking for more bite and lots of different flavors and vegetables.

Minestrone soup is kind of everything I like about salad, but in soup form.

There are so many veggie elements in a single bowl. 

How To Make Minestrone Soup

First, I sauce sauté chopped onions in a big pot and then add diced carrots and celery.

Once they start to turn soft, I add minced garlic followed by canned crushed tomatoes, vegetable broth and dried rosemary and oregano. 

As the soup simmers, it has the most wonderful smell.

In a separate pot I cook the pasta. This sets me up for leftovers because I can add the noodles to the soup as I serve each bowl. Then I avoid soggy pasta.

I like small to medium pasta shapes. Anything like shells are great because they scoop up the vegetables and herby tomato broth.

Tomato-based soups are one of the big reasons why I keep a spot in my pantry just for canned tomatoes.

From crushed to diced to whole, they are perfect to use for soups like:

Tuscan Ribolitta Soup

Roasted Tomato Soup

Three-Bean Chili

Minestrone Soup

• Author: Paige Adams
• Prep Time: 5 minutes
• Cook Time: 25 minutes
• Total Time: 30 minutes
• Yield: Serves 4 1x

With green beans, kidney beans, kale and pasta, this vegetarian minestrone soup and its wonderfully herby tomato broth, is full of hearty ingredients.

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 small onion, roughly chopped

2 medium carrots, peeled and roughly chopped

1 celery stalk, roughly chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1–28 ounce can crushed tomatoes

4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth

1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1–15 ounce can kidney beans

1 cup trimmed green beans, cut 1/2-inch long

1 cup chopped kale

3 ounces dried small to medium pasta (shells or orrechiette)

Fresh chives for serving

Shaved Parmesan and chopped parsley for serving

Instructions

In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Sauté the onions, carrots and celery until they start to soften, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and continue cooking until the garlic is fragrant, about 1 minute.

Add the tomatoes, vegetable broth, rosemary, oregano, salt and pepper. Bring the soup to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes until the soup thickens slightly. Add the green beans and continue cooking for 5 minutes. Stir in the kale letting it wilt. 

In a separate small sauce pan, cook the pasta according to package instructions until al dente.

Divide the soup into bowls, adding pasta and garnishing Parmesan and chopped parsley.