Main Dish Minestrone Recipes

Steps:

• In 4-quart nonstick saucepan or Dutch oven, heat water to boiling over medium-high heat. Add onions; cook 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add potatoes, carrot, celery, bell pepper and garlic; cook 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add remaining ingredients. Heat to boiling.
• Reduce heat; simmer about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until potatoes and pasta are tender.

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook according to package directions until al dente. Drain and transfer the pasta to a baking sheet. Toss the pasta with a little olive oil to prevent sticking.
• In a large saucepan over medium heat, warm the chicken stock.
• In another large saucepan over high heat, heat 1/4 cup oil. When the oil is hot but not smoking, add the pancetta and cook until it begins to brown, 3 to 4 minutes, turning occasionally. Add the garlic and cook until it begins to brown, about 1 minute, stirring occasionally. Lower the heat to medium and add the onions, celery, and carrots.
• Cook until the vegetables are soft, 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent browning. Add the chopped herbs. Raise the heat to high. Add the beans, tomatoes, zucchini, and potatoes. Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Then bring it down to a simmer and cook until the potatoes are tender, 12 to 15 minutes, skimming any foam off the top of the soup. Season generously with pepper. Add salt, to taste. Just a few minutes before serving, add the cooked tubetti pasta. Serve warm with Parmesan and olive oil passed at the table.
• Cooking notes: Add the cooked pasta just before serving. If it sits in the soup too long, it develops a flabby texture. Tubetti (little hollow tubes) are the classic pasta for minestrone, but you could substitute another small shape of pasta.

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a medium pot over medium-high heat. Add the corn and cook, stirring occasionally, until it starts to brown slightly, about 3 minutes. Add the tomato paste, rosemary and oregano and cook, stirring constantly, until the tomato paste begins to darken in color, about 1 minute. Slowly whisk in the chicken broth until the paste is smooth and incorporated into the liquid.
• Add the whole can of diced tomatoes (including the liquid), and bring the mixture to a boil. Stir in the pasta, the white beans and reserved liquid and the soy sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until the pasta is al dente, 7 to 8 minutes, stirring in the green beans during the last 2 minutes of cooking. Serve in individual bowls with a little oil drizzled on top.

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a Dutch oven or large heavy pot over medium-high heat. Add the pancetta and cook, stirring occasionally, until the fat has rendered and the meat is golden brown on all sides, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer the pancetta with a slotted spoon to a large bowl, leaving the fat in the pot.
• Reduce the heat to medium. Add the carrots, celery, onions, garlic, bay leaves, red pepper flakes, 4 teaspoons salt and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender but not browned, 6 to 8 minutes. Add the potatoes and zucchini and cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly softened, about 5 minutes. Return the pancetta to the pot, stir in the tomatoes and 8 cups water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are just tender, about 20 minutes.
• Add the kale, beans and their liquid and pasta and continue to cook until the pasta is cooked through and the kale is tender, about 10 minutes. Discard the bay leaves and season with more salt and pepper if necessary. Serve with grated Parmesan.

Steps:

• In a stockpot, saute the onions, celery and parsley in oil until tender. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Stir in the broth, tomatoes, tomato sauce, cabbage, carrots, basil, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 1 hour. , In a large skillet, cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Stir into soup along with the zucchini, beans and pasta. Cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes or until vegetables and pasta are tender. Top each serving with cheese.

Steps:

• Heat olive oil in a large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Cook onion, carrot, celery, garlic and rosemary until vegetables begin to soften, about 5 minutes.
• Stir in tomato sauce, beans and 2 1/2 cups water. Add broth, zucchini, pasta and pepper; bring to a simmer. Cook, uncovered, 10 minutes or until pasta is tender, stirring occasionally. Stir in parsley. Serve topped with Parmesan cheese and additional parsley, if desired.

Steps:

• Heat olive oil in a large saucepan, over medium heat. Add leek, carrots, zucchini, green beans and celery. Cover, and reduce heat to low. Cook for 15 minutes, shaking the pan occasionally.
• Stir in the stock, tomatoes and thyme. Bring to a boil, then replace the lid, and reduce heat to low; simmer gently for 30 minutes.
• Stir in the cannellini beans with liquid and pasta. Simmer for an additional 10 minutes, or until pasta is al dente. Season with salt and pepper to taste before serving.

Steps:

• For the soup: Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large heavy pot over medium-high heat. Cook the mushrooms, undisturbed, until browned underneath, about 2 minutes. Toss and continue to cook, tossing occasionally, until browned on both sides and tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and transfer to a medium bowl.
• Heat the butter and remaining 2 tablespoons oil in the same pot over medium-high heat. Add the onions, garlic, cabbage, squash, tomatoes, green beans, 1 tablespoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are softened but not browned, 6 to 8 minutes. Add the mushrooms and 8 cups water, bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook until the vegetables are tender, 5 to 10 minutes. Add the garbanzo beans and cook until warmed through, about 3 minutes. Season if necessary.
• Meanwhile, make the pistou: Pulse the garlic, parsley, basil, pecans and 2 tablespoons of the oil in a food processor until finely chopped. Transfer to a small bowl and stir in the Parmesan, grapefruit zest, crushed red pepper and remaining 2 tablespoons oil; season with salt.
• Divide the soup among bowls and top with the pistou.

Steps:

• In large heavy saucepan, heat oil and butter.
• Add sausage; brown lightly.
• Add onion, garlic, celery, carrot and green pepper; cook until softened but not browned.
• Stir in parsley, basil, thyme, bay leaf and a little salt& pepper.
• Stir in tomatoes and stock.
• Bring to a boil; reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 10 minutes.
• Add cabbage, beans and macaroni.
• Cover and simmer about 30 minutes.
• If too thick, dilute with water to desired consistency.
• Taste and adjust seasoning.
• A nice variation on this soup is to add ground beef instead of sausage, and beef stock instead of chicken stock.
• Add 3/4 cup dried lentils and 1/4 cup barley instead of macaroni and kidney beans.

Steps:

• In dutch oven, over med-hi heat, cook carrots, celery, onions , garlic and cabbage in olive oil until browned (20 min), stirring frequently.
• Add tomato with liquid, rice, Worcestershire sauce, oregano, pepper, potato, beef broth and zucchini.
• Heat to boiling, stirring occasionally.
• Reduce heat to low and simmer 30 minutes or until veggies and rice are cooked.
• Add beans and spinach.
• Cook over medium heat until spinach is cooked and beans are heated through.
• Soup becomes thick upon standing but once heated will return to original consistency.
• Serve with a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 250 degrees F (120 degrees C).
• In a 10x15 inch baking dish, combine the meat, minestrone soup, tomato soup, water and onion soup mix. Mix well.
• Bake at 250 degrees F (120 degrees C) for 8 hours. (Note: If needed, you can bake for less time at a higher temperature; just make sure that the meat is completely cooked through.)

Steps:

• Combine the first 13 ingredients in a 5- or 6-qt. slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours or until meat is tender. , Stir in pasta. Cover and cook on high for 30 minutes or until pasta is tender. If desired, top with fresh oregano and shredded Parmesan cheese.

Steps:

• Heat oil and butter in large pan, add onions, cook over medium heat until onions are pale golden brown. Add carrots, cook 2 to 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Repeat this procedure with the potatoes, then the celery, zucchini, beans and cabbage.
• Stir in water, crumbled stock cubes and undrained, mashed tomatoes. Bring to boil, reduce heat, cover, simmer 1 1/2 to 2 hours or until soup is thick.
• During last 15 minutes of cooking, stir in cannellini beans.
• Season with salt and pepper. If desired, grated parmesan cheese can be stirred into the soup before serving or served separately with the soup.

Steps:

• Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium-low heat. Cook and stir garlic in hot oil until fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes. Add onion; cook and stir until slightly softened, 4 to 5 minutes. Stir in carrots until heated through, 1 to 2 minutes.
• Pour chicken broth and diced tomatoes into onion mixture; bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Add red wine, reduce heat to low, and stir green beans, pinto beans, spinach, basil, oregano, salt, and black pepper into broth mixture. Bring to a simmer, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until vegetables are tender, about 40 minutes.
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook seashell pasta in the boiling water, stirring occasionally until cooked through but firm to the bite, about 8 minutes. Drain and stir pasta into soup. Ladle soup into bowls and top with Parmesan cheese.