Minestrone Soup
WARNING: bathroom talk ahead:
My kids don’t get enough roughage. You know what I mean? I usually have to sneak it in. Sometimes I’ll add carrots to my tomato sauce and then blend it before toss it it with pasta. I’ll even try to sneak in some brown rice pasta now and again, but alas my Italian children can always tell when I try to pass off brown spaghetti. Usually kids don’t get enough veggies. Heck, sometimes we all need a little soup to get things moving. If fact when my husband used to travel for a job he had years ago, we would all go with him. The kids were tiny and we used to have to eat out breakfast, lunch and dinner. After a while all that restaurant food tastes the same. When we would be home for a few days, I would always make this. It has been dubbed the “cleanout soup.” Yep. It won’t send you running to the commode or anything (at least I hope not), but sometimes we all get the sluggish tummy feeling and this is a lifesaver!
My kids have seen me make this a million times. They know everything that goes in it. As long as I puree everything and mix it with soup pasta (the real stuff), they are good to go. My husband and I will either eat it this way too, or I will leave it as is-no pasta just to cut the carbs. It is pretty much up to you. I try to make this often enough so that we all stay on track.
By the way, this is a lot of soup. I always make a ton to freeze for a later date. My Mom always says, if your going to mess up our kitchen, do it once and have more than one meal to show for it. There is always a BIG pot of something cooking…
Minestrone Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 can cannelini beans sometimes I'll use 2
- 1 small to medium head of cabbage
- 3 carrots diced
- 3 celery stalks diced
- 3 medium potatoes diced
- 3 tomatoes seeded and chopped
- 1 onion diced
- 3 cloves garlic finely chopped
- 2 cartons chicken broth or stock vegetable stock or water is fine
- 2 cups water
- Parmesan cheese for topping
- Parmesan cheese rind optional
Instructions
- Wash and chop all you veggies and garlic except for the cabbage.
- In a large pot ( I use the biggest one I have) heat the olive oil over medium heat.
- Add the chopped veggies and saute until the vegetables become tender- about 10 minutes. Drop the heat if the potatoes start sticking. Add salt and pepper to get the veggies to start releasing their juices. Keep an eye on this and stir occasionally.
- While the veggies cook down a bit. Core the cabbage. I usually make a rectangle shape around the core with a sharp knife.
- Pop out the core.
- Dice up you cabbage into bite sized pieces.
- You veggies should be looking good. Now add the cabbage to the pot and give everything a mix. Add more salt and pepper. Let the cabbage cook down for about 10 minutes.
- Next add the chicken broth and water. Bring it to a rolling simmer and add the beans. Don't drain them just add the whole can.
- Add the Parmesan cheese rind if using. Let everything cook together at a high simmer for 30-45 minutes or until the cabbage and potatoes are tender. Season with salt and pepper. Top with Parmesan cheese and serve.
- Freeze any leftover soup.
Notes
