When we feature food centric posts here our goal is to share with you beautiful food that is simple + healthy and most of all easy to make. Seattle has started to get that gorgeous crispness to the air, chilly enough to layer and get cozy but not so cool that your teethe are chattering. During these cooler months I am always on the look out for easy and satisfying soups to make. I followed this recipe but made a few tweaks. I have included my tweaks below. I hope I made it easy enough to follow. The end result is a hearty soup that is even better the next day!
1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
1 (15 ounce) can cannellini beans, drained
1 large onion, chopped*
2 ribs celery, diced*
2 large carrots, diced*
1 cup green beans
1 small zucchini
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup elbow macaroni (optional)
4 cups chopped fresh spinach
1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese, or more to taste
Shorcuts:
*The Mirepoix-(Diced carrots, celery and onion), such a fancy word for such a humble set of vegetables, it’s the base for most soups and stews. I don’t have time for dicing, luckily my local market sells Mirepoix pre-cut for a couple dollars, it’s worth it to me.
Use canned green beans if you don’t feel like cutting fresh ones
You can sub garlic powder for the fresh versions without much change in taste!
//DIRECTIONS//
- Combine chicken broth, tomatoes, cannellini beans, onion, celery, carrots (or your pre-cut mirepoix), green beans, zucchini, garlic, parsley, oregano, salt, thyme, and black pepper in a 6-quart slow cooker.
- Cook on Low for 7 to 9 hours.
- (optional) Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook elbow macaroni in the boiling water, stirring occasionally until cooked through but firm to the bite, 8 minutes; drain.
- Stir spinach into minestrone; cook another 15 minutes.
- Add pasta to your bowl before adding your soup (this will keep the pasta from getting too soft).
- Top with Parmesan cheese.
photo by tristan b.
Any questions? Have a better/easier version let us know! Have a great weekend friends!
This looks so yummy! I will have to pin it, for when I’m in the mood of trying something soothing! Thanks for sharing! hope you have a lovely weekend! :)
Thank you Carmen for your visit! It’s a good one when you aren’t feeling like cooking, throw ingredients into the crock pot in the morning come home from work and it’s done!
Made this today. We loved it!! I substituted kale for the spinach and let it cook the entire time. Nice and hearty. So easy. Thanks for the recipe. And, your sweet baby girl is beautiful. Just beautiful.
Kale! Why didn’t I think of that? That was probably perfect in this soup. Thank you for the feedback + tip and of course the sweet compliment;) Miss E. is pretty special, I feel very lucky (but still oh, so tired, lol!)
This looks delicious!! :)
Thank you! I hope you try it:)