I make this soup often. I make it when it’s freezing cold or when we’ve got friends or family staying for the weekend. It’s delicious, easy to make, freezes well and is really filling. It’s also Cork Daddy’s favourite. A good reason if ever there was one.
minestrone soup
1 x brown onion, finely diced
4 x rashers of bacon, finely chopped
2 x garlic cloves, crushed
2 x sticks of celery, finely diced
1/4 of a red capsicum, finely diced
1 x large potato, peeled and finely diced
2 x carrots, peeled and finely diced
A handful of frozen peas
A handful of green beans, ends removed and finely chopped
4 x cups of vegetable stock
1 x 400 gram tin of tomatoes
1 x sachet of tomato paste, 50 grams
2 x bay leaves
Chilli flakes, optional
1 x 125 gram tin of four bean mix
1/4 cup of risoni
Salt and pepper
Olive oil, a dash
Fresh flat leaf parsley, finely chopped, to serve
Buttered toast, to serve
- Add a dash of olive oil to a large saucepan and saute the bacon, onion and garlic until soft.
- Next, add the celery and capsicum and continue to cook, stirring every now and then.
- Add the potatoes, carrots, peas, beans, stock, tinned tomatoes, tomato paste, bay leaves and a light sprinkling of chilli flakes. Season with salt and pepper.
- Let the soup come to the boil and then back it off to a low simmer. Let it simmer for 30 minutes.
- Add the risoni and strained tin of beans. Let it simmer for another 10 minutes. Discard the bay leaves.
Serve sprinkled with parsley and hot buttered toast.
Lo’s tips
- I always have bacon rashers individually glad wrapped in the fridge on stand by.
- I have fresh bay leaves in the freezer too.
- You could also use macaroni instead of the risoni if you like.
- You could use just kidney beans instead or you could add a tin of lentils if you prefer.
- The soup freezes really well. Freeze in individual serving sizes and heat in the microwave when needed.
If you make this minestrone, please leave your comments below. xx
Beautifully done …
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Thanks so much Fayella
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Made this last night and it was delicious! I used alphabet pasta which was fun (even though I served it to adults they still liked spotting them) and had it with crusty toasted ciabatta. The chilli flakes and parsley were excellent additions
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Who doesn’t love some alphabet pasta!? Thanks Ali for sharing
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I’ve been wanting to make minestrone soup for the last few winters and have finally given it a try thanks to your blog. I loved it, this recipe will definitely become a staple in my winter weeknight meals. The toasted sourdough that I served with it was pretty tasty too – looking forward to tasting your homemade sourdough Lo. (I was a bit heavy handed with the chilli flakes but certainly didn’t regret it!)
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I’m glad you tried it and liked it! Yeah those chilli flakes can be a bit strong Thanks for sharing.
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Thanks Lo! Whipped this up for dinner tonight – I doubled the recipe as all good fathers with 1 week old babies in the house would do. Even though I put the beans in with all the other veggies rather than waiting for the Risoni (I was speed reading with a 3 year old helping me cook), it was the best Minestrone I have ever had! Looking forward to the remaining soup for dinner tomorrow night!
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Father of the year
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Freezes really well for lunches!
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This was so easy to make, full of goodness and incredibly tasty! Had it for another dinner that week and lunch! So yummy. Even managed to impress the other half who’s not only a very good cook but also very picky! Can’t wait to try more recepies
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Thank you for sharing! Glad your other half was 😊.
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