Easy Minestrone
You can make this in a soup pot or slow cooker. Directions below are for a soup pot. To make in a slow cooker, simply do steps 1 and 2 of the directions, then put everything in the slow cooker and cook 6—8 hours.
Vegetables:
- 1 cup onion: large dice (about ½ large or one medium)
- 2 cloves garlic (finely chopped (about 1 Tablespoon))
- 1 stalk celery, diced (about ½ cup)
- 2 carrots sliced (about 1 cup)
- 1 cup summer squash (zucchini or yellow: large dice)
- 1 medium potato, peeled (large dice (about 1 cup))
Seasoning:
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 2 teaspoons dried basil
- ½ teaspoon granulated or powered onion
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional: use more if you like spicy)
Additional Ingredients:
- 1 quart vegetable broth
- 1 cup shredded cabbage
- ¼ cup finely chopped parsley (optional)
- 1 cup frozen string beans
- 8-oz can garbanzo beans (about 1 cup with liquid)
- 8-oz can red kidney beans (about 1 cup with liquid)
- 1 cup canned chopped tomatos
- ½ cup per person cooked pasta (your choice)
- Grated parmesan or Romano cheese
On medium heat, sauté in 4 quart soup pot for 10 minutes:
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2 Tablespoons olive oil
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Onion, garlic, celery, carrots, zucchini and potato
Add seasoning mix and sauté for 2 minutes.
Add:
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Vegetable broth
-
Frozen string beans
-
Shredded cabbage
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Tomatoes
-
Garbanzo and kidney beans
-
Parsley
Bring to boil and simmer on low for about 12 minutes, or until potatoes and zucchini are tender when pierced with a fork.
While soup is simmering, cook pasta in boiling water until desired doneness.
To Serve
- Put ½ cup pasta in soup bowl.
- Ladle soup over top.
- Sprinkle with parmesan or Romano cheese.
To make this soup a full meal, you can add open-faced cheese-topped bread (put a slice of your favorite cheese on a slice of bread and put under the broiler for about 1 – 2 minutes (just until the cheese melts).
- Measurements for vegetables are approximate—it really doesn’t matter if you use a little over or under the amount given.
- I always put the pasta in the soup bowls when serving—otherwise it will soak up too much broth.
Time-Saving Tips
- Refrigerated, peeled garlic
- Pre-cut onion and celery
- Frozen sliced carrots
- Bagged shredded cabbage
- Instead of cutting vegetables separately, use a package of frozen Italian vegetables (then you’ll only have to cut the potato).
