Minestrone
60 min · 13 g protein · 272 cals / serving
A big pot of Italian vegetable soup, thick with two kinds of beans, zucchini, green beans, kale and a handful of small pasta in a tomato and herb broth. It is a meal in a bowl, and like every good minestrone it is even better the next day.
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large onion, diced
- 2 medium carrots, diced
- 2 stalks celery, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 can (14 oz) diced tomatoes
- 6 1/4 cups vegetable broth
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1/2 tsp dried thyme
- 1 bay leaf
- a pinch red pepper flakes
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 large zucchini, diced
- 1 1/2 cups green beans, cut into short pieces
- 1 can (15 oz) cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 can (15 oz) kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 cup pasta, ditalini or other small pasta
- 3 cups kale, stems removed, chopped
To serve
- a handful fresh basil, torn
- 3 tbsp nutritional yeast, in place of parmesan
Steps
- Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot and celery and cook, stirring now and then, for 8 minutes, until soft. Add the garlic for the last minute.
- Stir in the tomato paste for a minute, then add the diced tomatoes, broth, oregano, thyme, bay leaf, pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil.
- Add the zucchini, green beans and both kinds of beans, lower the heat and simmer, partly covered, for 15 minutes.
- Add the pasta and kale and simmer, stirring now and then, for 10 minutes, or until the pasta is tender. Fish out the bay leaf and taste for salt.
- Ladle into bowls and finish with torn basil and a sprinkle of nutritional yeast.
Good to know
Leftovers?
The pasta keeps soaking up broth, so add a splash of water or broth when you reheat. If you plan to eat it over several days, cook the pasta separately and add it to each bowl.
Which vegetables can I swap?
Minestrone is a use-what-you-have soup: cabbage, potato, peas, chard, spinach or squash all belong. Keep the beans, which make it a meal.
A vegan stand-in for the parmesan?
Nutritional yeast gives the same savory, cheesy finish. A spoonful of basil pesto made without cheese is lovely on top too.
Alternative
Can't fill you up alone — pair it with protein.
Per
- Calories
- 49
- Protein
- (20%)
- 2 g
- Fat
- (18%)
- 1 g
- Carbohydrates
- (62%)
- 8 g
- of which sugar
- 2 g
- Fiber
- 2 g
- Sodium
- 248 mg
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Computed from the ingredients with our published formula, not yet kitchen-tested. How
As written, 1629 kcal goes into the pot and 3509 g of ingredients comes out as about 3350 g of food: 49 kcal per 100 g. Cooking moves water and energy density is the score's biggest lever, so the dish is scored as cooked, not as an average of its parts. Every ingredient links to its food page, with the same data and score. The label's percentages are each macronutrient's share of the calories. The full formula.