Homemade Minestrone Soup

Yikes! Cold and flu season has been a drag this year! My kids have both missed days and days of school this winter. Nothing is worse than a sick kid with a fever and a snotty nose. Not to mention a sick husband. I take back original comment. There is something worse than sick kids. Needless to say the whole house has had the funk this month, including yours truly. I like chicken noodle soup when I’m down but my daughter loves this homemade minestrone soup recipe that I’ve been making for years since I came across this article by Mark Bittman. I keep a 3 ring binder with favorite, “keeper” recipes I find from various places – old family copies of recipes, magazine recipes, or recipes I print.

It takes a little bit of prep work but it’s totally worth it, especially if it makes my little girl feel better when she’s got a bad cold! Plus I love any meal with this many veggies that she’ll eat without a fight! I made 2 major adjustments to the original recipe. I used a can of diced fire roasted tomatoes because it’s hard to find good fresh tomatoes mid-winter. I also used 3 cups of low sodium chicken stock plus 3 cups of water instead of the original 6 cups of water in the recipe. Otherwise, I stuck pretty close to Bittman’s directions, even his optional choice of simmering a parmesan rind in the soup. I selected Ancient Harvest gluten free elbow pasta but you can use any kind of pasta you want!

 

Homemade Minestrone Soup

¼ cup olive oil

1 medium carrot, chopped

1 medium celery stalk, chopped

Salt and black pepper

2 large potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks

3 cups chicken stock

4 cups water

1 – parmesan rind (optional, and to be removed from pot before serving)

1 cup chopped fresh tomatoes (or 1 can fire roasted diced tomatoes)

1 bunch kale chopped

1 cup pasta (I used GF quinoa pasta elbows by Ancient Harvest )

1 cup canned cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

½ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

1. In a large pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion, carrot, and celery. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook 10-15 minutes, stirring often, until vegetables soften and get a little color around the edges.
2. Add potatoes, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook 5-10 minutes, until all vegetables are nicely browned. Add 3 cups of chicken stock and 3 cups water, stirring bottom of pot to loosen any brown bits. If using a parmesan rind, add it to the pot now.
3. Add tomatoes, bring to a boil, then lower heat to a simmer. Cook for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. Add pasta, 1 cup of water, and kale and cook until very tender, 10-15 minutes.
5. Add cannellini beans and cook 3-4 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.
6. To serve, top each bowl with some freshly grated Parmesan and a drizzle of olive oil if you like!

Mark Bittman is an award winning chef and author. He has written several best-selling cookbooks. His “How to Cook Everything” will definitely go down as one of the classics. If you’re looking for one book to put on your kitchen bookshelf or to give as a gift, this is it!