Simply Filling Vegetarian Minestrone, points+

One of my favorite soups to have at any restaurant is Vegetarian Minestrone.  There is something so tasty about that rich herby, tomato broth and it’s packed with all this veggie goodness, creamy beans and nutty pasta.  This soup is the perfect thing to make at the end of the week when you have a bunch of veggies in your fridge that you’d like to clear out to make room for the next week’s stash.  Feel free to mix and match using any vegetables you have on hand.

Serve it up with these tasty Parmesan Almond Crisp for a tasty vegetarian meal or some hot, crunchy sour dough bread for a completely vegan meal on a cold winter day.

VEGETARIAN MINESTRONE (print it!)

INSTRUCTIONS

• 2 tsp. olive oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 celery stalks, diced
• 2 carrots, sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 15 oz. can kidney beans, red or white, drained and rinsed
• 15 oz. can fire roasted diced tomatoes with roasted garlic
• 32 oz. vegetable broth
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp. Italian seasoning
• pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 zucchini, diced
• 1/4 cup sweet mini peppers, sliced, optional
• 2 cups kale, roughly chopped
• 1 oz. Barilla Multi-Grain Elbow pasta
• sea salt and black pepper to taste

INGREDIENTS

1. In a large soup pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat.  Add the onion, celery, carrot and garlic, cooking until softened, about 5 minutes. 

2.  Add the beans, tomatoes, broth, Italian seasoning and crushed red pepper flakes.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer until the vegetables soften, about 8-10 minutes.

3.  Add the zucchini, peppers, kale, pasta and continue cooking for 8 minutes. Remove the bay leaf.  Scoop up and enjoy!

Makes 6 heaping 1 cup servings, 100% Simply Filling or 2 points+ each

Nutritional information per serving calculated at caloriecount.com

STEP – BY – STEP

Heat the oil in a large soup pan, then, add onion, celery, carrots and garlic cooking until softened.

The fire roasted tomatoes really do add another level of flavor so be sure to spend the extra money on them if you can find them.

Add the beans, tomatoes, broth…..

Plus your bay leaf, Italian Seasoning and crushed red peppers.  If I have any fresh herbs left in the fridge from another recipe, like the thyme you see here, I always toss them in my soups.  It is a great way to use them before they go bad and they add great flavor.

Bring the soup to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer until the veggies soften, about 8-10 minutes.

Meanwhile, prep the remaining veggies you wish to add to your soup. I had kale, mini peppers, and zucchini on hand so this is what went into the pot.

Cook for an additional 6-8 minutes until the pasta is cooked through.  Remove the bay leaf and serve.

This Vegetarian Minestrone is so healthy and hearty you won’t be left wondering where’s the beef. Sorry, I couldn’t resist saying that

We are off today to get in 10,000+ steps walking through the Alameda Antique Fair and then, possibly have a tasty Vegetarian meal in The City. 

I will catch up with you all later with my Meatless March Week 1 Menu.