When I was growing up my Mother made lots of soup. Not only did she enjoy the comforting meal but she would also make soup for friends in the neighborhood who were sick or going through a hard time. Soup was the comfort food that she shared with the world.
Recently I decided to continue the tradition. I started to make soup for people the same way my mother did all those years ago. Did your dog die? You get soup! Is your Mom sick? I’ll make you soup. Going through a breakup? A bowl of soup will make you feel better.
Cooking for someone else is creating love in an edible form. And here’s something that I hadn’t anticipated, the act of making the soup is not just medicine for someone else, but it’s medicine for me too.
There’s something special about slowing down long enough to make sure the onions celery and carrots are all properly cooked before adding the stock. Being deliberate about everything that goes into the pot results in truly intentional cooking, which creates what I call cooking magic. It’s the act of creating a dish that is truly special, made with intention just for you.
The magical dish that I make is minestrone. What is minestrone? It’s an Italian soup made with veggies, pasta, and beans. The best part of the soup? You can make it any way you like. You can make it with only veggies and beans (hold the pasta), with gluten-free pasta, with pasta and no beans. The combinations are endless.
While you can get this soup at Olive Garden, their mediocre mass-produced soup is not the same as receiving soup made just for you by someone who loves you. Not to mention that if you make the dish yourself, you always know what the ingredients are. And for me, that’s important.
There’s a misconception that soup is really hard to make. For a while, I thought that too. That is, in fact, a big fat lie. Soup is not hard to make when you consider the fact that there is a simple formula for creating amazing soup.
While you can get this soup at Olive Garden, their mediocre mass-produced soup is not the same as receiving soup made just for you by someone who loves you. Not to mention that if you make the dish yourself, you always know what the ingredients are. And for me, that’s important.
There’s a misconception that soup is really hard to make. For a while, I thought that too. That is, in fact, a big fat lie. Soup is not hard to make when you consider the fact that there is a simple formula for creating amazing soup.
Mirepoix + stock + everything else = amazing soup
Mirepoix (pronounced “Mira-pa-wah”) is a French culinary term for diced onion, celery, and carrot. It’s the start of any great soup.
My family does not love onion, so I generally use about half of an onion at most for an entire pot of soup. If you’re using a Mirepoix, you start with an onion and cook it until it’s translucent. Once the onion is cooked, add the celery and let it continue to cook. Then before the celery is completely cooked, add the carrot. Once the vegetables are fully cooked, you’re ready to add your stock. Beef, chicken, veg, whatever you want.
The “everything else” in the Amazing Soup Equation depends upon what kind of soup you want to make. Feel like a chicken tortellini? Add chicken, tortellini, and veggies that would complement both of them. Want to make a hearty bean soup? Add 3 types of beans and some sausage (if that’s your thing).
With minestrone, the “everything else” component includes tomato sauce, beans, more veg, and pasta. Make this recipe your own creation.
The secret to soup is seasoning it. Add some seasoning (AKA salt) every time you add something new to the pot. This provides much more depth of flavor than adding a ton of seasoning at once.
Minestrone
Difficulty: Easy4
servings15
minutes30
minutesThis classic soup is easy to make. Just remember that for the most flavorful soup, every time you add something new to the pot add seasoning (AKA: salt and optional seasoning like garlic powder or onion powder). This will add flavor in layers and result in a very flavorful soup.
Ingredients
1 onion
2 stalks celery
2-4 carrots
1 can tomato sauce or roasted tomato
1-2 quarts of chicken or veg stock
1 Can kidney beans
1 cup small pasta
1 chopped zucchini
salt, garlic powder and Italian seasonings to taste
Optional Add Ins:
Your Favorite Root Veggies
Pasta (gluten free or regular)
Beans of any kind
Protein (such as sausage, pancetta or chicken)
Directions
- Dice the onion; add it to a large stock pot or dutch oven with 2 tbsp of olive oil and a pinch of salt. Cook the onion until translucent
- Dice celery and carrots. Add celery to the pot with a pinch of salt. Give the veggies a good stir and let the soften. Do the same with the carrot.
- Once the veggies are soft, add chicken broth and 1 can of tomato sauce.
- Season with salt and add Italian seasoning: oregano, rosemary, and basil.
- Let the broth come to a low boil while you prepare the rest of your ingredients. (let boil for 10 to 15 minutes)
- Taste a few times over the course of the low-boil. Season with salt and Italian seasonings as needed
- Customize your soup with your favorite, beans or pasta to make this dish your own.
- Let soup resume on a low heat for another 5 minutes or so. Season accordingly.
- Delicate veggies (such as peas and spinach) should be added at the end of the cooking process when the heat is turned off.
