Minestrone Soup

My take on a classic Minestrone soup was conceived at Heathrow Airport seven years ago, in a mediocre restaurant that likely no longer exists. Fresh off a seven hour flight and facing down an eight hour layover, my husband and I stopped in an Italian restaurant in Terminal 3 for an early (per local time) lunch. My sleep-deprived memories of that meal are blurry, but what I do remember is a risotto that tasted just like buttered popcorn and a Minestrone that was by far the highlight of the meal. Bright and full of vegetables, that soup almost resurrected me from the sleepless British Airways experience. After we returned from that trip, I created my own version of that soup, and over the years, it has become a staple recipe in our home.

I particularly love to make this Minestrone soup in the late summer when fresh, local vegetables are available at the farmers’ market, but I often turn to this recipe in the depths of soup season, as well. There is no reason why you couldn’t make it in the darkest days of winter with supermarket produce or even frozen veggies. I like to pack it full of vegetables and serve it alongside some good crusty bread.

This is the soup that I crave after travelling. This is the soup that redeems me after too many meals of greasy take-out or unbalanced fridge-clearing dinners. This is the soup that I want someone to make me when I’m feeling tired or unwell. If there is only one recipe that people think of when they think of me, let it be this Minestrone soup.

---

Recipe

Yield	Total Time	Pots Dirtied
6-8 servings	1 1/2 hours	1

This soup is a celebration of vegetables. Except for the use of chicken stock and an optional Parmesan rind, it is entirely plant-based and can easily be adapted to be vegan.

Most of your active time will be spent on prepping the vegetables. To maximize your efficiency, I would suggest slowly preheating your Dutch oven while you prepare your onion, carrot, celery, and garlic. Then, once the soup is simmering, you can use the time to prepare the vegetables that go in near the end.

The trickiest part of the process will be timing the addition of the pasta and vegetables so that they all finish cooking together. As every stove, pasta brand, and vegetable is different, you should treat the suggested timing as just that–a suggestion. The recipe assumes the use of fresh vegetables. If using frozen, your cooking time will likely be different. Even if things don’t come out perfectly, the end result will still be delicious and satisfying. Don’t worry about it.

Ingredients

• 1 medium yellow onion (200 g), finely chopped
• 1 medium carrot (135 g), finely diced
• 2 stalks celery (105 g), finely diced
• 3 medium cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 796 ml (28 fl oz) can whole tomatoes, roughly chopped¹
• 1 540 ml (19 fl oz) can kidney beans, drained
• 1 small zucchini or summer squash (165 g), cut into bite-size pieces
• 1-1 1/2 cups broccoli (120 g), cut into bite-size pieces
• 1-1 1/2 cups green beans or wax beans (170 g), cut into 1/2 inch pieces
• 4 cups kale (200 g), chopped (I prefer Lacinato kale but any kind will do)
• 8 cups chicken or vegetable stock (or water and stock concentrate²)
• 1 cup small pasta (135 g), such as ditali³
• 2-3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tbsp light soy sauce
• 1 tsp capers, drained and chopped
• 1 tsp basil (dried)
• 1/8 tsp thyme (dried)
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 Parmesan rind⁴ (optional)
• Fresh parsley for serving
• Kosher salt or table salt (but use less if using table salt)
• Black pepper (freshly ground)

Notes

1. I prefer to buy whole tomatoes in cans, as I find their texture to be better than diced tomatoes. To chop them, you can dump them in a bowl and either squish/tear them with your hands or cut them up with a clean pair of kitchen shears. You can, of course, just buy canned diced tomatoes. ↩︎
2. I normally buy the Better Than Bouillon stock concentrate (Costco has a good price on it). If you’re looking for a vegan alternative other than vegetable stock, water and soy sauce or water and miso are great options. ↩︎
3. We prefer to use ditali for this soup but have also used small shells in the past. Other options are macaroni and orecchiette. You just want pasta that will fit nicely on a spoon.  ↩︎
4. I almost never have a Parmesan rind lying around, but if you do, it adds a lot of flavour. ↩︎

Directions

1. Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven or stockpot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, and celery, along with a heavy pinch of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables soften, about 10-15 minutes.
2. When the vegetables are soft, add the garlic and capers, and cook until fragrant. Then, add the basil (1 tsp) and thyme (1/8 tsp), followed by the tomatoes, kidney beans, stock (8 cups), soy sauce (1 tbsp), and bay leaf. If using, add the Parmesan rind. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat down and simmer for about 15 minutes, covered.
3. Taste for seasoning and add more salt. Add the pasta (1 cup) and cook until it is just approaching its halfway point (for the Barilla ditali I used, this was around 6 minutes). You’ll want to look at the instructions on the package but know that it will take a little longer than the time on the box because of the acidity from the tomatoes in the soup.
4. Once the pasta has reached the halfway point, turn the heat up to high and add the green beans. Cook for about 1 minute, then add the broccoli. Cook for about 30 seconds, then add the zucchini and kale. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat again to maintain a simmer until the vegetables are tender, approximately 6-8 minutes.
5. Taste for seasoning and doneness. I like the pasta cooked until it is soft but not mushy and the vegetables tender but, again, not mushy. You will likely find that the soup needs salt, as the vegetables will have released a lot of water while cooking. Shut off the heat, and season to taste. Remove the Parmesan rind and bay leaf, or leave them in, and whoever finds them wins.
6. Finish with a handful of chopped parsley, freshly ground black pepper, and a drizzle of good quality olive oil if you’re feeling fancy. Serve with some fresh bread.

Serving Suggestions

Most of the time, I enjoy this Minestrone soup as is. I find it satisfying and hearty on its own or with some fresh crusty bread on the side. However, it does pair nicely with a BLT or simple chicken/turkey sandwich, as well.