After becoming weary of the excessive salt and dearth of vegetables in canned versions, I came up with this minestrone soup. This dish is based on the delectable minestrone that is abundant in vegetables and is served at Sheepherder’s Inn in Sacramento, California. Serve with a great merlot, romaine salad, and substantial bread.
| Prep Time: | 35 mins |
| Cook Time: | 45 mins |
| Total Time: | 1 hr 20 mins |
| Servings: | 8 |
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2 onions, chopped
- 2 cups chopped celery
- 5 carrots, sliced
- 4 cups tomato sauce
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 2 cups water
- ½ cup red wine (Optional)
- 3 zucchinis, quartered and sliced
- 2 cups baby spinach, rinsed
- 1 (15 ounce) can green beans
- 1 cup canned kidney beans, drained
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
- salt and pepper to taste
- ½ cup seashell pasta
- 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese for topping
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large stockpot over medium-low heat. Sauté garlic in hot oil until fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes. Add onion; cook and stir until translucent, 4 to 5 minutes. Add celery and carrots; sauté for 1 to 2 minutes.
- Pour in tomato sauce, broth, and water; bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Add red wine; reduce heat to low. Stir in zucchinis, spinach, green beans, kidney beans, basil, oregano, salt, and pepper. Simmer until soup is heated through, 30 to 40 minutes.
- Meanwhile, fill a medium saucepan with water and bring to a boil. Cook seashell pasta in boiling water, stirring occasionally, until tender yet firm to the bite, 7 to 8 minutes. Drain and set aside.
- Place 2 tablespoons cooked pasta into individual serving bowls. Ladle soup over pasta and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Spray with olive oil to serve.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 228 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 30 g |
| Cholesterol | 1 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 8 g |
| Protein | 9 g |
| Saturated Fat | 1 g |
| Sodium | 1142 mg |
| Sugars | 11 g |
| Fat | 8 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
Very good and hearty and a great way to use up vegetables.
Super easy and super yum.
Added a little less zucchini because my family doesn’t care for it, but then added a can of garbanzo beans instead. Loved how this turned out. Will make this again!
Fantastic! Loved it! Didn’t change anything other than we like little bits of smoked link sausage it:) Yummy My go to recipe now.
I used chicken bone broth and dried oregano, and crushed tomatoes. I don’t enjoy green beans in soup so I added more zucchini instead. It came out great. The pasta shells I bought were not the greatest so I would suggest to use the best quality pasta you can find. It was a little dense to my liking following the recipe.
I made this a few times and it comes out correct every time. I never use the wine and it is just fine. Making some for family tomorrow.
This has become my signature soup. The only difference is I add cheese tortellini instead of shell pasta.
WOWEEEE!!!! Deeeeeelicious! I made a few changes, I threw in an additional can of beans-great northern beans. I used 1 can of “hot” diced Rotel tomatoes and 1 jar of Classico Tomato & basil pasta sauce, added so much flavor. Didnt need the red wine. I followed the rest of the recipe, my entire family LOVED this, hearty, comforting and perfect w/parmesan cheese and garlic bread. My daughter is 12, she said “delight in every bite”, whereas I said, “swoon with every spoon”, either way, this minestrone will not disappoint!
I just made this tonight. Didn’t change a thing! So delicious, warm and comforting. Funny how I found the recipe…I was looking for recipes for canned green beans! Lol
This is a very simple and easy to follow recipe. I only made 1 change. I used jarred Pasta Sauce instead of tomato sauce which gives it more flavor. Yum
This is a 10-star recipe! I’ve made it several times now, to rave reviews from friends and family alike. The only changes I make are to use either fresh or frozen green beans, and reduce the tomato sauce to about 3 cups/24 ounces. Jamie, thank you SO much for sharing your healthy, hearty minestrone.
I make this with concentrated homemade turkey stock. So delicious! Great base for any veggies. Haven’t added the red wine and haven’t missed it. Highly recommended!
It was great. Family loved it. Used frozen zucchini spirals and white beans since that was what I had. Did not use the paremsan.
With a few tweaks this has become a family favorite since 2009.
I read several reviews before I made this. Decided to make a few minor modifications due to the reviews. Only used chicken broth, no water and only used 1-14oz. can of Italian seasoned diced tomatoes for the tomatoes (no tomato juice). This was very good. Several of my friends had seconds.
This is a hit among the family. already asking when they can have it again while eating at dinner. I made it exactly like the recipe. Perfection!
Great soup! Big pot – enough to have a couple of meals, give some away, and freeze some! If you have some “elbows” you need to use up, they work just fine for the pasta.
Loved it the way it is!! Didn’t change anything.
It was delicious! I used whole grain pasta instead. So good. Great tip to leave the pasta out of the soup and place it in the bowl first. This way the pasta doesn’t soak up all the liquid.
My husband and I enjoy soup, so I am always on the look-out for new recipes. This is one of the best I have ever made! The only thing I changed was to add more broth at the end of cooking so it wouldn’t be quite so thick; I just eyeballed it. It was even better the next day (and the day after that) for lunch!
Outstanding. I was dubious about using that much red wine but it was perfect. Not overpowering but definitely made it richer. I used ditalini pasta instead of small shells, and dried herbs (adjusted for quantity) otherwise followed exactly. I wouldn’t change a thing.