Wednesday, October 23, 2013
Minestrone Soup
It was snowing yesterday in Iowa -- on October 22nd~! Thankfully it wasn't actually cold enough for any accumulation; but it was still plenty cold with an overnight low of 28 degrees. So I thought a warm, hearty soup would be the perfect dinner.
I found this recipe online from our grocery store Hy-Vee. They called it "Speedy"; but I actually took my time with it. As you can see, this dinner was brought to you by Hy-Vee:
And since I had some fresh celery and carrots in the house, I decided to add them to the recipe too.
The recipe didn't call for any celery at all. But I have seen other Minestrone recipes that use a variety of vegetables. And I thought it would be a nice addition. You may notice that I used the celery leaves as well. I thought that would be another level of seasoning and add some more depth to the soup.
Combine green beans, corn, carrots, diced tomatoes, and in my recipe celery, together in a Dutch oven. I have said before that frozen vegetables are actually really good for you because they are flash-frozen to lock in all the good nutrients. You will not get the same benefits from canned veggies. Saute it all together with some Italian seasoning for flavor.
Then add a can of kidney beans, drained & rinsed, 32 oz of low-sodium chicken stock, and 3 cups of water.
You can see the celery leaves on top here. Also add salt & pepper to taste. That is key. Taste this a few times to be sure you know how much to add. But be careful not to burn your tongue. Bring it up to a boil, and then reduce to a simmer. The recipe says it will be ready in 12-15 minutes. But I put the lid on and let it go for about an hour and a half.
I was giving it plenty of time for all the flavors to get to know each other and bubble around. Notice that I hadn't added the noodles yet, though. I didn't want them to get soggy. I also added a decent amount of fresh cherry tomatoes toward the end. About 15 minutes before you're ready to serve, add the shell pasta and remove the lid.
Look at that great steam! This soup is chalk full of vegetables so I can feel good about myself after all the vacation dining I have been doing this month. Top it with some Parmesan cheese (and maybe some crackers or crushed tortilla chips) and you're all set.
This was a perfect dinner for a cold & dreary day. The tomato & chicken broth were really flavorful, and even though there wasn't any actual meat in this soup (aside from the broth), the beans and tons of vegetables made it a very hearty dish.
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