My Mom Knows How to Make Minestrone Soup!
Now you can too!!
Budget and calorie wise, plus absolutely delicious, this recipe is our family favorite. There is something extra special when my mom whips up a pot or two for us to all enjoy. Best part is seeing the pleasure on her face when we gobble it all up and ask for seconds!
While it seems there are a lot of ingredients, each compliments the other to make an absolutely fab full-meal. Add some homemade or store bought crusty bread and an apple, cheddar cheese platter and I guarantee you are going straight to eating nirvana!
BONUS: Plan ahead and this recipe can be made and ready to serve in under an hour!
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Main Dish Minestrone
by Mom E

Ingredients:
♥ 6T butter or margarine
♥ 3 large carrots; diced, sliced or julienne
♥ 2 medium celery stalks; finely chopped
♥ 2 medium sweet or yellow onions: course chopped
♥ 1-2 gloves of garlic; finely diced
♥ 1 medium head cabbage; thinly sliced
♥ 1 16 ounce can chopped tomatoes; undrained
♥ * 8 cups of water
♥ * 2 t salt; optional
♥ * 2 t worcestershire
♥ * 1/4 t oregano
♥ * 1/4 t pepper
♥ * 4 medium new or white potatoes; chopped into large chucks
♥ * 4 bouillon cubes or envelopes
♥ * 2 large zucchini; cubed
♥ 2 15 1/4 - 20 ounce kidney bean
♥ 1 ten ounce frozen chopped spinach; thawed and squeezed dry
♥ 1/2 grated parmesan cheese;garnish.

Prep:
In a large pan over medium heat melt margarine/butter, toss in carrots, celery,onions, garlic,and cabbage. Saute until tender; approx. 20 minutes. Add tomatoes with the liquid and the next *eight ingredients, heat until boiling. Reduce to low,cover and simmer 30 minutes. Add beans and spinach; heat through. Make sure to add a little bit more water if the the soup is too thick; a little at at time until you have your consistency, Garnish each serving with a pinch or two of grated parmesan. Makes 18 cups. Approx. 285 calories per serving.
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Kick Your Minestrone Up a Notch
Some other ingredients you might like to add

Shhh! Don't tell my mom, but I have tried a couple of these ideas for her Minestrone Soup recipe. She does kinda know that I like to tweak original recipes, so she would not be too shocked :O
Try:
♥ 1/2 - 3/4 cup of cooked pasta, such as alphabets, rotini, farfalle, small elbow, orzo or one of your faves
♥ Sauteed mild or hot Italian sausage
♥ Crisp 3 - 4 strips of bacon and toss in just before serving
♥ Fresh kale or spinach
♥ Garbanzo, black, and or pinto beans
♥ Sweet potatoes or turnips
♥ Different spices or seasonings, like cardamom, crushed red peppers, Old Bay Seasoning, fresh basil, or any of your faves
♥ My Mom ♥
Give Us Your Thoughts
In my opinion Minestrone Soup is one of the best!
Fetching blurbs now... please stand byIt's my fave too!
LindaJM says:
Yes, I love minestrone soup... especially because it can be made to be entirely vegetarian.
Posted May 01, 2009
I actually prefer...
Soup is Good For the Soul
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Find the Perfect Soup Bowl for Your Minestrone
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These are a few of my personal picks
Chili's Chicken Enchilada Soup RecipeVery few things can rival the fantastic taste of Chili's Chicken Enchilada Soup. With big, juicy chicken breast pieces, lots of cheese, and the perfect base... not too mild, not too spicy, Chicken Enchilada is one of the most perfect soups out there
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How to Make Cream of Turkey Soup From Your Leftover Turkey The holidays are wonderful, but let's face it: there's a whole lot of eatin' goin' on. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but when the iconic holiday meal centers around a huge bird, chances are, you're going to have to find a way to use up all the leftovers.
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Healthy Vegetarian Recipes - Spicy Leek And Potato SoupThis is one of my favorite vegetarian soups when I am trying to eat healthily, cut down on the calories and lose weight! It is a healthy soup recipe which is really easy and quick to make.
I'd be happy to check out other soup recipes and will add them here, if they tickle my taste buds :)
A Little History
Just in case you wanted to know
Minestrone originally was a very humble dish and was intended for everyday consumption, being filling and cheap, and would likely have been the main course of a meal. Minestrone is part of what is known in Italy as cucina povera (literally "poor kitchen") meaning poorer people's cuisine.
Due to its unique origins and the absence of a fixed recipe, minestrone is not particularly similar across Italy: it varies depending on traditional cooking times, ingredients, and season. Minestrone ranges from a thick and dense texture with very boiled-down vegetables, to a more brothy soup with large quantities of diced and lightly-cooked vegetables that may include meats.
Like many Italian dishes, minestrone was probably originally not a dish made for its own sake, though this point is argued. In other words, whereas one might set about killing a cow, with the intention of then eating cooked cow, one did not gather the ingredients of minestrone with the intention of making minestrone. The ingredients were pooled from ingredients of other dishes, often side dishes or "contorni" plus whatever was left over.
I Would Love to Hear From You
My mom would too :)
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Reply
- jooloo jooloo Jun 9, 2009 @ 11:21 pm
- Sounds wonderful. I think I'd toss in a bit of sausage or bacon.
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Reply
- JaguarJulie JaguarJulie Jun 3, 2009 @ 6:39 am
- Ah minestrone! Yumm. Would love to have you add your soup lens to my Soup du Jour -- a compilation of fabulous soup recipes!
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Reply
- KimGiancaterino KimGiancaterino May 9, 2009 @ 11:11 pm
- Thanks for sharing another of your mom's wonderful recipes. Gorgeous lens, deserving of yet another Squid Angel Blessing.
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Reply
- A_RovingReporter A_RovingReporter May 4, 2009 @ 12:40 am
- Yummy, yummy. Kitchen lovers should add this soup recipe to their collection.
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Reply
- LindaJM LindaJM May 1, 2009 @ 10:20 am
- I'm going to follow your recipe for my next soup. Wonderful, colorful lens... I love your photographs! 5* and an angel blessing.
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My Mom's Minestrone Soup
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