Wednesday

Minestrone d'inverno


There is nothing better on a cold winters day than a nice, hot bowl of authentic minestrone. It's a very forgiving and versatile dish, you can adapt the vegetables to suit seasons, preferences, occasion or just simply what you have in the fridge. For the winter version of minestrone, I personally tend to just change the pulses and the green leafy vegetables.

Serves 4
Ingredients
basil
1onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, sliced
5 celery stalks, slices
2 large carrots, roughly cubed
150g cubed pancetta, optional
2x 400g plum tomato tins
270g dried cannellini beans, soaked overnight and cooked
400g cavolo nero, or swiss chard, curly kale
1 organic chicken stock cube
100g spaghetti, snapped in small pieces
grated parmesan cheese
olive oil

1) In a heavy based pan, on a medium heat, add 3tbsps of olive oil and add the cubed pancetta. Fry the pancetta until crisp and golden and immediately add the onion, garlic, carrot and celery. Add a pinch of salt so the onions don't brown and cover with a lid and leave to cook for 25mins, on a low heat.
2) Add the plum tomatoes and season with salt and a generous amount of black pepper. Stir well and leave to cook for a further 10mins. Slice the stalks of the basil and add to the pan.  
3) Pour in 700ml of boiling water and crumble in the stock cube. Check the seasoning again.
4) Slice the cavolo nero and add to the pan. Followed by the cannellini beans and stir well. Leave to cook on a medium low heat for 5mins.
5) Add the broken pieces of spaghetti and leave to cook for a further 10mins.
6) Grate over a little parmesan and add a generous amount of torn basil leaves.
7) Serve with a nice crusty bread and more parmesan to serve at the table.

*Cooks Tip: Never throw away parmesan rind. For a dish such as this, you can add it to the cooking process and take it out at the end. Once you grate the parmesan as much as you can, store the rind in the fridge and it keeps for months.


 

25 comments:

Dana Salvo said...

Yum! One of my favorites : )

Anonymous said...

This looks delicious and perfect for all the cold weather we've been having. Thanks for sharing!

Mrs Mulford said...

I love soups and it's really cold here in the SW - Soup weather.We are used to snow after Christmas not before - beautiful colours in your soup - would like to try this out. Cheers Pauline

Whineaux (Dawn) said...

Looks fantastic and I have some swiss chard in the fridge -- I know what's for dinner! thx!

Anonymous said...

Definitely will be trying this because I have all the veg and parmesan rind in my fridge, Thanks for the inspiration!!

adorasbox said...

Healthy and yummy, my favourite combination.

BakingWithoutABox said...

Lovely dish! Great versatility!

Kate @ Diethood said...

This is right up my alley - I love making soups and stews!

Anna said...

Lovely recipe, minestrone is my favorite soup.

Tes said...

This just sounds so healthy and delicious. Soup is always perfect for this cold weather :)

Anna's Table said...

I can't agree with your more, minestrone soup is so satisfying and versatile. You can basically clean out your fridge,and use whatever vegetables are on hand.

Alil Country Sugar said...

One of my all-time favorites. I will have to give this a try.

Steph said...

Love, Love, LOVE SOUP!!!

Alchemy In The Kitchen said...

I would pay money for this soup! Minestrone is one of my favourites. Your tip about the Parmessan rind is a good one.

Mother Rimmy said...

You really can't beat a minestrone soup for a savory hearty meal, can you? Thanks for the Parmesan rind tip!

Anonymous said...

great recipe...gonna try this out for sure...

And thanks for the parmesan rind tip, good one!

Treat and Trick said...

Such a comforting and healthy dish! Sounds delicious....

Anonymous said...

This soup looks so warm and tempting! Just found your blog and love your recipes! Totally agree to always save the parmesan rind!

Adelina said...

Your minestrone looks great... I also love the photo.

The Cheese Goddess said...

Looks so hearty and delicious! I would love to have a bowl of that right now! Thanks for sharing this recipe, and of course, the Parmesan cheese brings the soup up a notch!

Trish said...

Congrats on top 9!! The soup looks wonderful. Hearty & comforting.

Terra said...

Congrats on your top 9! I love love hearty soups, this looks amazing:)

Take care,
Terra
www.cafeterrablog.com

Monet said...

Now I just need a huge hunk of sourdough bread. This soup would be the perfect end to a cold day. Thank you for sharing with me. Have a wonderful weekend!

Emily Z said...

This looks like a wonderful minestrone. I have yet to make minestrone myself, but I plan to in the near future. This looks utterly perfect for the colder weather that so many of us are experiencing. Beautiful job!

abraham said...

one of my favourite soups and you have done justice to this recipe...