Maggie Monday: Minestrone Soup

There is nothing like coming in from the cold to a bowl of piping hot soup to warm you up. Luckily for us, Maggie has made us all a bowl. Take a look…

We had a cold snap recently that begged for soup. I hadn’t been to the market in awhile, so had to be creative with what I had on hand. Almost everyone has the ingredients for Minestrone around at any given time.  I didn’t have zucchini or spinach, so I just left it out. You can do that. It’s your dinner. You’re the boss.

Anyhow, back to task. Soup is not supposed to be hard. If the recipe is too hard, then you might as well cook something else. Soup is simple. Keep it that way.

This recipe is for the slow cooker, but you can make it on the stovetop more quickly if you wish. It is great either way.  Stay warm!

Minestrone Soup

What you need:

3 cups vegetable, beef, or chicken broth

1 28 oz can diced tomatoes

1 15 oz can cannellini beans, drained

2 carrots, peeled and chopped

2 celery stalks, chopped

1 medium onion, diced

1 t dried thyme

½ t sage

2 bay leaves

salt

pepper

2 cups cooked pasta

1 medium zucchini, chopped

2 cups fresh spinach, chopped (can use frozen- thawed and drained well)

4 T grated parmesan cheese

What you do:

In a slow cooker, combine broth, tomatoes, beans, carrots, celery, onion, thyme, bay leaves, and ½ tsp each salt and pepper. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours.

Thirty minutes before soup is done, add pasta, zucchini, and spinach. Cover and cook 30 more minutes. Remove bay leaves and season to taste with additional salt and pepper if needed. Ladle soup into bowls and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.