Recipes · Soups & stews
Minestrone
AI-written · not yet kitchen-tested
With minestrone the order matters: firm vegetables such as carrot and potato go into the pot first, zucchini and green beans later and the pasta last. Cook everything at once and you end up with mush instead of vegetables with some bite.
This recipe was written with AI assistance and has not yet been kitchen-tested. Check quantities and times as you cook, and follow safe core temperatures for meat, poultry, fish and eggs.
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 onion finely diced
- 2 clove garlic minced
- 200 g (7.1 oz) carrots peeled, in 1/2-inch (1 cm) dice
- 2 stalk celery stalks thinly sliced
- 150 g (5.3 oz) potatoes waxy, peeled, in 1/2-inch (1 cm) dice
- 500 g (1.1 lb) ripe tomatoes coarsely chopped
- 1.5 l (6 1/4 cup) vegetable broth hot; check the label for allergens
- 1 bay leaf
- 250 g (8.8 oz) zucchini in 1/2-inch (1 cm) dice
- 150 g (5.3 oz) green beans trimmed, cut into 3/4-inch (2 cm) pieces
- 1 can white beans one 14-ounce can, rinsed and drained
- 80 g (2.8 oz) small soup pasta such as ditalini or small elbows
- 0.5 bunch basil leaves, roughly torn
- 40 g (1.4 oz) alpine-style cheese finely grated, for sprinkling
- salt to taste
- black pepper to taste
Method
- Finely dice the onion, garlic, carrots, celery and potatoes into pieces of about 1/2 inch (1 cm) so they soften at the same rate. Chop the tomatoes coarsely, dice the zucchini and cut the green beans into 3/4-inch (2 cm) pieces.
- Warm the oil in a 4-quart (4-liter) pot over medium heat. Sauté the onion, carrots, celery and potatoes for 6 minutes, stirring, until the onion turns translucent. Add the garlic for the last 30 seconds.
- Add the tomatoes, broth and bay leaf, season with pepper and bring to a boil. Hold off on the salt until the end, since the broth is already seasoned. Set the lid on at an angle and simmer over low heat for 15 minutes.
- Stir in the zucchini and green beans and simmer for another 10 minutes, until the beans are tender but still have some bite.
- Add the white beans and the pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, until the pasta is done according to the package. Stir often, because pasta and potatoes like to stick to the bottom. If the soup gets too thick, add a splash of hot water.
- Remove the bay leaf, season with salt and pepper and take the pot off the heat. Stir in the basil, let the soup rest for 5 minutes and divide it among four bowls. Sprinkle with the cheese.
Tip: Leftovers keep for two days in the refrigerator. The pasta keeps absorbing liquid, so thin the soup with a little water when reheating.
Tip: Out of tomato season, a 14-ounce can of diced tomatoes works in place of the fresh ones.