Italian Minestrone Soup

Classic Minestrone Soup, an Italian Comfort Soup made with lots of veggies and your favourite small pasta in a simple tomato based broth. Perfectly spiced to make this your new go to soup that everyone will love.

Imagine this, a cold winter night, a big bowl of Italian Minestrone Soup, and a slice of crusty Italian bread . Nothing better than that.

I first ate a big bowl of Minestrone during my first visit to meet my new Italian family. A cold rainy November day and we sat down to a steaming bowl of fresh veggies and sprinkling of Parmesan Cheese.

This is probably one of the most well known Italian dishes. Full of all your favourite veggies. I think of this as more than just a soup, better than a stew and so comforting.

Recipe Ingredients

• Olive oil
• Garlic (minced)
• Peas (fresh or frozen) 
• Borlotti beans – dried or canned
• Broccoli
• Potato
• Carrot
• Celery
• Zucchini
• Baby spinach
• Basil
• Oregano
• Salt
• Hot pepper flakes or black pepper
• Tomato puree
• Water 
• Pasta – small pasta or even broken spaghetti
• Parmigiano – freshly grated

Substitions

Instead of borlotti beans you could use kidney beans, cannellini beans, northern beans or pinto beans. Instead of water you could use vegetable broth or even chicken broth. You could even use diced tomatoes, fresh basil or dry, thyme instead of oregano. Throw in a bay leaf for extra flavour, kale instead of spinach, cauliflower instead of broccoli.

How to make a Minestrone Soup recipe

Chop the vegetables into small chunks.

In a large pot add the olive oil, vegetables, spices, tomato puree and water and stir to combine.

Bring the mixture to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer until vegetables are almost tender but not mushy, stirring occasionally.

The last 5 minutes, boil 2-3 cups of water in a medium pot. To the large pot add the boiled water (1/2 the amount or all of it depending on how thick you like your soup, and be sure to taste for salt) and 1 cup of small uncooked pasta.

Cook on a low boil, uncovered, stirring often until the pasta is al dente. Top with freshly grated parmesan cheese if desired and serve immediately.

How to make homemade broth

In a large pot add a carrot and an onion peeled and cut in half, a celery stalk cut in two, a bay leaf, 2-3 pepper corns, 1/4-1/2 teaspoon of salt and 12 cups of water.

Bring it to a boil then lower the heat and simmer for about three hours. If you want to make a beef broth then add a couple of pieces of beef to the pot.

Stir occasionally and remove any foam that appears on the top of the broth. Pour the broth through a sieve, and let the liquid cool, or in this case use the broth hot.

Any unused broth can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for 4-5 days. It can also be frozen in freezer safe containers and will keep for up to 6 months.

How to soak dried beans

If you prefer you could always do the bean soak 8-10 hours. In a big bowl add 1/2 cup dried Borlotti beans, 5 cups of water, and let soak. So easy if you do it overnight, just remember to drain and rinse before using.

Or if you prefer just buy a bag of frozen beans and throw them in the pot, no need to thaw the beans.

The best vegetables for minestrone

My mother-in-law would always use fresh zucchini, broccoli, green beans, carrots, celery, potatoes and of course some frozen peas and beans, and some fresh and dried spices.

She would always keep the heal of the chunk of Parmesan cheese that she would purchase from the super market.

That piece would be added to the pot to add a delicious taste but also because her youngest son loved it and yes it was always just for him and him alone!

Everything would simmer together slowly for about 30 to 40 minutes and then just before serving a cup or so of a small pasta (usually broken up pieces of spaghetti) would be tossed in the pot with some additional water (boiling water).

Served in big soup bowls with a generous sprinkling of freshly grated Parmesan Cheese and lunch was served!

How to store the soup

Any leftover soup should be stored in the fridge in an airtight container. It will keep for up to four days.

If you plan on freezing the soup, then freeze it in a freezer-safe container. But be sure to freeze it without the addition of pasta. The pasta will get too mushy and it won’t be very tasty. It will keep for up to four months in the freezer.

Although I do find freshly made Minestrone much better. You can always half the recipe, although believe me it won’t take much to finish it.

The best pasta for the soup

I think the best pasta is a small pasta such as Ditalini or Ditaloni, small elbow macaroni, mini farfalle or shells. Or you can do as my mother-in-law used to do and break up spaghetti into small pieces.

More Italian Soups to try

So if you are looking for a hearty vegetable soup to warm you up during the cold days of winter, then this Classic Italian Minestrone Soup is the one for you. Buon Appetito!

Updated from October 31, 2016.

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