Minestrone Soup: The Healthy Answer to Cold Autumn Nights

Mid November in DC, and the nights are getting longer and colder. This week we have frost almost every night, and the slippery slope of eating more filling food to keep warm and feel good is smoother than ever. What can we eat on a cold night without feeling guilty about the pre-holidays diet? One simple tasty solution is minestrone soup: warm, filling and scrumptious. This is a great cold night dinner. Including suitable “good carbs”, it will make it a meal that will not leave us hungry half an hour later.

Minestrone is a classic Italian vegetable soup. According to the ingredients, you can figure out what Italian region it is from. The southern version is heavy on tomatoes, garlic and pasta; central Italy minestrone always contains beans; the northern version uses rice; and the Italian Riviera version is big on herbs. The result is a thick, hearty soup that blends perfectly the flavor of all ingredients. Minestrone soup only improves with time, so make sure you make enough to last you for several servings. Just heat the portion you want to eat, and keep the rest refrigerated up to a week. If preparing minestrone for company, make it a day or two in advance.

Hardy Minestrone Soup

This hardy minestrone soup is a great cold night dinner that can serve as a lunch as well. It is packed with fiber and nutrients, keeping you satiated so no "snacking post soup" is needed. This is our classic version; read notes below to see how to personalize it to your liking!

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Course Appetizer, Side Dish, Soup

Cuisine Italian, Mediterranean

Servings 6

Ingredients

  

• ¼ cup olive oil
• 1 Tbsp butter optional
• 2 onions finely chopped
• 2 carrots large, cubed
• 2 parsnips cubed
• 6 celery stalks diced
• 2 potatoes peeled and finely diced
• 2 zucchini non peeled, washed and finely chopped
• 1 cup green peas
• 1 cup red beans or chickpeas washed and pre-boiled (from a can is fine)
• 6 cups clear broth vegetarian or chicken
• 1 can diced tomatoes with liquid about 14oz / 400gr
• 1/2 tsp dry thyme
• Salt, black pepper to taste
• Parmesan cheese dry rind optional

Instructions

 

• In a large heavy pot over medium high heat cook butter, oil and onions till onions are soft and lightly golden in color, 8 to 10 minutes.
• Add carrots to pot. Cook and stir occasionally for 2-3 minutes.
• Repeat the process with parsnips, celery, zucchini, potatoes, peas and beans.
• Mix well every vegetable and allow it to slightly cook down and even char before adding the next vegetable. This enhances the flavor, so it is not "boiled vegetable" flavor.
• Add the broth, diced tomatoes, cheese rind and a little salt. Bring to a boil.
• Take care with salt quantities as the cheese rind will release salt into soup while cooking.
• Cover the pot, lower to minimum flame/heat, and simmer for about 3 hours. You can stop cooking at any given moment and continue from whence you stopped.
• The soup should have a thick liquid consistency. If it is too thick add up to a cup of boiling water.
• Serve with freshly ground black pepper, bread croutons, toasts, and/or grated Parmesan cheese

Notes

• There is no need to chop all vegetables in advance since each vegetable needs 2-3 minutes to cook in the pot. You have enough time to prepare the next vegetable while cooking the previous one.
• Chopping the vegetables in different shapes and forms adds character and interest to the soup. Just make sure the pieces are small enough to blend in a spoonful.
• You can mix-and-match with any vegetable you have at home: small diced white cabbage, green beans, parsley root, celery root, yams, parsley, oregano are all welcome additions, just make sure you add enough liquids to keep the right consistency.
• This version is garlic free. If garlic is life for you, simply add a few a few sliced cloves (not minced!) right before adding the tomatoes. It will add flavor, but will not take over.
• Good minestrone blends all flavors perfectly, so avoid dominant flavors like asparagus, cauliflower or broccoli. If you choose to use these vegetable make sure the amount you introduce to the soup will not be overwhelming on the flavor.
• Good broth is hard to come by, and this is an important ingredient of any soup. If you do not have homemade broth, chicken or other, use a good readymade brand like Swanson or prepare it from powder such as Knorr bouillon. Taste the soup while cooking and check to see if you need to add more salt or even a bouquet garni to enhance the broth’s flavor.
• For a fully vegetarian version use vegetable broth and no animal fat.
• For chicken lovers, to enhance the chicken flavor even more, use chicken fat instead of butter or oil. I keep chicken fat leftovers (from cleaning chicken for roast or casserole dishes) in the freezer and use it in soups and other chicken dishes

Keyword cold, fall, hardy, Minestrone, soup, vegan, vegetable, vegetarian, winter