Family Favourite Minestrone Soup

Minestrone Soup is such a classic, and is the perfect veggie-filled nourishing meal to fill the family up quickly and easily. You can add whatever veggies you like or have on hand, but the classic, carrot, potato, zucchini and celery is always a good start.

If you aren’t a fan of chopping up vegetables, get yourself one of these handy Multipurpose Dicer chopping contraptions. I must admit I was skeptical when I saw it, and would probably have never bought it, but after using it once, I’m hooked.

It makes super quick work of dicing up all the veggies and once you work out the right sized pieces to pop in the top, it works really well. I think it’s great for kids to use too.

I was on a such roll with the chopping that I cut up extra veggies and bagged them up to freeze for later. I always do this when I have a little extra time on my hands to save on meal prep at a later date.

It took practically no extra time at all and because this contraption is a bit of a pain to clean (that’s the downside), it’s worth using it for bulk chopping when you have it out.

Now I have pre-diced veggies to add into soup or casseroles when I’m running short on time, feeling lazy, or haven’t been shopping in a while.

Anyway, back to the Minestrone Soup. You’ll need a pretty big pot, because this recipe makes a ton of soup. I always like to make a big batch so we can enjoy leftovers the next day.

You can use any type of stock you prefer. Homemade is great if you have it, but a really good liquid or powdered stock is just as good. I’ve used liquid chicken stock this time, but usually I use vegetable stock cubes because they take up less space in the pantry.

Beans and pasta make this a really filling dish. If you are on a gluten-free diet, substitute the pasta for rice instead.

Top with grated Parmesan cheese and enjoy!

What’s the verdict? Delicious of course!

Here are some more soup recipes to try:

• Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup
• Asian Style Chicken & Corn Soup
• Traditional French Onion Soup

Winter Warming Minestrone Soup

Yield: 8

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes

Total Time: 55 minutes

This hearty minestrone soup will become a family favourite. Make a big pot and enjoy the leftovers in a thermos for lunch the next day. Suitable for vegetarians if using vegetable stock, and a great way to use up what's left in the bottom of the fridge at the end of the week.

Print

Ingredients

• 2 small onions
• 2 leek (optional)
• 2 large carrots
• 2 large or 4 small potatoes
• 2-3 zucchinis
• 3 celery stalks
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 400g tin diced tomato
• 2 tbsp tomato paste (optional)
• 1 425gram tin of cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• 2L chicken or vegetable stock
• 2 handfuls of baby spinach leaves
• 1 cup spiral pasta (or pasta of choice)
• olive oil
• salt and pepper to adjust seasoning
• extra boiling water if required
• grated Parmesan cheese to serve

Instructions

1. Peel and dice all the vegetables. You can leave the skin on the carrot and potato if you can't be bothered peeling those.
2. In a large pot, warm up a drizzle of olive oil and gently sauté the onions, leek and garlic until soft.
3. Add the rest of the vegetables, tinned tomato, and stock.
4. If you like your minestrone quite tomatoey, add a few tablespoons of tomato paste.
5. The liquid should cover all the vegetables, if it doesn't, top up with a little bit of boiling water.
6. Simmer for 15-20 minutes or until veggies are just tender.
7. Add cannellini beans and pasta, continue to cook on a medium heat until pasta is tender.
8. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper if required.
9. Turn off heat and stir through baby spinach.
10. Serve with grated parmesan and crusty bread.

Notes

Leftovers freeze well. Cooked pasta can be added at end of cooking instead of cooking pasta in soup.

Recommended Products

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  Gallon Size Reusable Silicone Food Storage Bag - Freezer Bags (2pack)
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Nutrition Information:

Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 571Total Fat: 22gSaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 14gCholesterol: 135mgSodium: 489mgCarbohydrates: 49gFiber: 8gSugar: 7gProtein: 46g

This nutrition calculation is approximate only and depends on the products used and size of ingredients.

This post was originally published in June 2018 and was a paid collaboration with ALDI – Updated and republished in June 2019