Minestrone Soup
You can pretty much throw anything you want in here. Go for it.
Servings: 8 -10
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 4-5 strips bacon finely chopped
- 2 links chicken sausage chopped (with sausage skin peeled off)
- 1 clove garlic peeled and chopped
- 1 onion peeled and finely chopped
- 4-5 carrots washed and chopped
- 4 sticks celery chopped
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 bay leaf
- Parmesan rind if you have one
- 1 - 28 ounce can diced tomatoes
- 1 - 15.5 ounce can garbanzo beans drained and rinsed
- 4 cups 1-quart container low-sodium vegetable broth
- A few large handfuls curly kale stalks removed, chopped
- salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- 5 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese; optional
- serve with crusty bread
Instructions
- Heat a large pot over a medium heat and add a lug of olive oil. Throw in the bacon and sausage and fry it gently until it starts to turn brown and smell fantastic. Add the garlic, onion, carrots, celery, dried oregano and bay leaf and cook slowly for about 15 minutes, stirring now and then, until the vegetables have softened.
- Add the tomatoes, cheese rind, chick peas and vegetable broth, season with salt and pepper and then cover with a lid and bring everything slowly to the boil. Simmer for about 30 minutes.
- Next, add the kale, and cook for about 10 more minutes. Finish by seasoning with more salt and black pepper if needed. Remove the bay leaf and rind before serving. Serve with freshly grated parmesan on top if desired.