Sunday, February 16, 2020

Ellie Krieger's Family Favorite Minestrone for Souper (Soup, Salad, & Sammie) Sundays

Sometimes a simple classic is in order for the soup bowl and this week I was craving minestrone, the perfect mix of pasta, vegetables and beans. I found Ellie Krieger's Family Favorite Minestrone through the healthy food pages of the Washington Post.


Ellie says, "This Italian-style soup, chock-full of vegetables, beans and pasta in a tomato-y broth, is sure to become a staple in your home. It has a crowd-pleasing appeal, is easy to whip up, and makes for a convenient, filling, flavorful meal that is packed with nutrition. Feel free to change the vegetables and herbs to use up those you happen to have on hand."


Family Favorite Minestrone
Slightly Adapted from Ellie Krieger via TheWashingtonPost.com
(Makes About 6 Servings)

2 Tbsp olive oil
1 large onion
2 ribs celery, diced (1/2 cup)
1 large carrot, scrubbed well, then diced
1 medium red bell pepper, seeded & diced
1 medium zucchini (about 8 oz), diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp kosher salt, or to taste
1/2 tsp black pepper
28 oz canned, no-salt-added crushed tomatoes (I used diced, fire-roasted tomatoes)
48 oz (6 cups) no-salt-added vegetable or chicken broth
15 oz canned no-salt-added small red beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup dried, whole-grain elbow pasta
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, for garnish

Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Once the oil shimmers, add the onion, celery, carrot, and bell pepper; cook for about 6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until they begin to soften.

Add the zucchini, garlic, oregano, basil, salt and pepper; cook, stirring for 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and broth; bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low. Partially cover and cook for 10 minutes, stirring once or twice, then add the beans and pasta. 

Uncover, increase the heat to medium-high just long enough to return the soup to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and cook uncovered for 10 to 15 minutes, until the pasta and vegetables are tender. 

Divide among individual bowls; garnish each portion with the cheese.



Notes/Results: Simple, satisfying and good, it hit the spot--especially when served with garlicky bread for lunch. With the pasta (I admit I added more than called for) and beans, it's a thick soup, so if you want it more brothy, use the right amount of beans and/or add extra broth. I would happily make it again.



Linking up to I Heart Cooking Clubs where it's our February Monthly Food Trends Challenge, Grandparent Food! with classic dishes from back in the day.

Let's see what is going on in the Souper Sundays kitchen:


Tina of Squirrel Head Manor brought a "recovery meal" for all the health stuff her family is having, saying, "Bacon, Corn Potato Chowder - a recipe from Curtis Stone. It's filling and served with fresh baguette it makes a decent lunch. Plus it's easy and fun to make."

Thank you Tina for joining me this week!

(If you aren't familiar with Souper Sundays, you can read about of the origins of it here.
If you would like to join in Souper (Soup, Salad, and Sammie) Sundays, I would love to have you! Here's how...

To join in this week's Souper Sunday's linkup with your soup, salad or sandwich:

  • Link up your soup (stew, chili, soupy curries, etc. are fine), salad, or sandwich dish, (preferably one from the current week or month--but we'll take older posts too) on the picture link below and leave a comment on this post so I am sure not to miss you. Also please see below for what to do on your blog post that you link up to Souper Sundays in order to be included in the weekly round-up.
and 

On your entry post (on your blog):
  • Mention Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammies) Sundays at Kahakai Kitchen and add a link back to this post. (Not to be a pain but it's polite and only fair to link back to events you link up at--so if you link a post up here without linking back to this post or my blog on your post, it will be removed.)
  • You are welcome to add the Souper Sundays logo to your post and/or blog (completely optional).
You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!
Click here to enter
Have a happy, healthy week!

2 comments:

  1. Minestrone is a total winner! Definitely need to check out Ellie’s books at the kibrary. Come to think of that, why do t I own any?!

    ReplyDelete

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