Yummy Minestrone Soup
This dish is a great way to use up any extras that you may have hanging around after you have made other recipes or if you need to use up some veggies before they go bad.
Ingredients
- 3 t extra virgin olive oil, divided
- 2-3 cloves garlic finely minced
- 1/2 medium yellow onion finely chopped
- 3 medium carrots finely chopped
- 3 large stalks celery finely chopped
- 1 28 oz petite diced tomatoes undrained
- 1 15.5 oz can cannellini beans drained and rinsed
- 4 cups organic vegetable broth
- 2 whole bay leaves
- 1 tbsp fresh rosemary leaves finely chopped (or 1 t. dried)
- 1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves (or 1 t. dried)
- 1 tbsp fresh oregano leaves (or 1 t. dried)
- 1/2 tbsp crushed red pepper flakes
- Sea salt and black pepper, to taste
- 2 cups Fusilli pasta
- 2 cups fresh green beans cut into ½” pieces
- 2 cups fresh arugula
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley leaves chopped
- Freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil and garlic in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Sauté garlic, stirring occasionally, for 2-3 minutes or just until the garlic starts to turn golden brown.
- Add chopped onion, carrot, and celery and cook for another 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until vegetables are soft and tender.
- Add diced tomatoes, cannellini beans, 4 cups vegetable broth, bay leaves, rosemary, thyme, oregano, and red pepper flakes to the pot and stir to combine. Add Parmesan cheese rind, if desired, and season with salt and black pepper, to taste. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer for 20-25 minutes.
- While the soup is simmering, cook pasta according to package directions until al dente. Reserve 1 cup of the cooking liquid before draining pasta. Rinse pasta and transfer to a medium bowl and toss with remaining olive oil. Cover and set aside.
- Remove cover from a pot or Dutch oven and add green beans and the reserved pasta cooking liquid. Stir to combine and continue cooking, uncovered, another 20-25 minutes or until green beans are crisp-tender.
- dd arugula and additional vegetable broth, if needed, and stir to combine. Season with additional salt and pepper, to taste. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until arugula begins to wilt.
- To serve, divide cooked pasta among individual serving bowls and top with hot soup. Top with chopped parsley and freshly grated Parmesan cheese, if desired. Serve with crusty bread and/or a crisp, green side salad for a hearty meal. Enjoy!
Notes
Tip: For best results, cook the pasta separately, rather than in the same pot with the rest of the ingredients. This prevents the noodles from becoming too soft and mushy, which means they will taste better as leftovers the next day and you can freeze it for future use.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!