Vegetable Minestrone Soup

It is really starting to feel like fall here in Colorado. The temperatures are dropping, the leaves are changing color, and the hours of sunlight are noticeably less. Which means it’s time to say goodbye to summer salads and hello to warm slow-cooked foods. I hope you’re as excited as I am for soups, stews, and baking!

Soup has a special place in my heart. I love warming up with a hot bowl of soup on a cool day. Most of all I love dipping some delicious bread in some tasty broth. We eat A LOT of soup. Soup is easy to make and there are always leftovers, which means lunch for the next day, hooray! I love cooking, but it’s always nice to have a break too.

This Vegetable Minestrone Soup is one of my favorite soup recipes. One of the best parts about making minestrone soup is you can throw in just about any kind of summer squash or root vegetable. Any vegetable that goes well with a tomato broth will work: carrots, parsnips, celery, zucchini, yellow squash, butternut squash, potatoes, sweet potatoes, kale, peas, green beans, fennel, and probably many more. I especially like adding parsnip, they add kind of a little sweet surprise to a savory soup. The recipe below is my favorite combination of vegetable flavors, but if you are missing something don’t fret or make a special trip to the store, just use what you have. This is one of those everything-but-the-kitchen-sink soup recipes, my favorite kind! Please share a comment if you add different veggies and find a new delicious concoction!

If you are looking for a healthy meal, this soup is crazy nutritious. It includes a rainbow of vegetables and is full of protein, fiber, vitamin A, vitamin C, folate, potassium, and antioxidants. In addition to tons of veggies, this minestrone is made with a homemade vegetable stock which is also super nutritious. Add in some beans for protein and pasta to fill you up and there you have it. This soup is pretty much a veggie explosion, it’s so good for your body. Slurp it up!

How to Make Vegetable Minestrone Soup

Soup is one of the easiest meals to make. Chop the veggies, toss it all in a stockpot, add stock, and cook. That’s it! Plus I love the smell of soup on the stove. It will fill your whole house with the delicious aroma of savory goodness.

Make sure to give yourself plenty of time to make homemade vegetable stock, it is delicious! Although it does take time, this is mostly hands-off cooking time. So grab a book and relax while your tasty stock is simmering. Once your stock is ready to go strain the veggies and herbs and set your delicious broth aside. If you don’t have time to make homemade stock you can always use store-bought vegetable stock, but I super encourage you to try the homemade stock. It is soooo delicious and simple!

Now it’s time to get started making minestrone. Start with caramelizing the onions. I love some good french onion soup, it is still amazing to me that you can make a delicious soup out of just onions and seasonings. So I like to start this soup the same way and cook down some onions until they are nice and brown.

Next, you’ll add all of your vegetables, seasonings, garlic, and tomatoes. I am usually chopping as I go so I get a batch ready of veggies that take the longest to cook, then toss them in. And I work my way up to the fastest cooking vegetables and put them in last. I also like to cook the tomatoes for a little while without stock to let them carmelize just a tad too.

Then, pour in the stock, add the bay leaves, and fresh thyme. Once this reaches a boil toss in the dried pasta noodles and cannellini beans. Let the whole thing cook for about 25 minutes with the lid off. This is about the time I like to toss some ciabatta or sourdough bread in the oven to warm. After 25 minutes, check your pasta to make sure it is cooked (I always feel like pasta takes forever to cook in a full pot loaded with other stuff). If the pasta is cooked, find your bay leaves and thyme and remove them.

Lastly, add lemon juice, some fresh parsley, pepper, and salt to your liking. Then it’s time to eat! Serve with some warm bread for dipping. Yum!

Vegetable Minestrone Soup

Print Recipe

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5 from 4 reviews

A flavorful and hearty soup that can feed a whole crew. With a tomato base, this soup is loaded with veggies plus cannellini beans for protein, oh, and pasta too. A great cool-weather meal to warm your soul.

• Author: Erica
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 50 minutes
• Total Time: 1 hour
• Yield: 10-12 servings 1x
• Category: Plant-based
• Cuisine: Italian
• Diet: Vegan

Ingredients

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• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 red onion, thinly sliced
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 1 small parsnip, chopped
• 2 celery ribs, chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon of Spike seasoning
• 1 teaspoon of dried oregano
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 medium-sized zucchini, chopped
• 1 cup of green beans, cut (fresh or frozen)
• 1 large 28-ounce can of diced tomatoes
• 6–7 cups of vegetable stock
• 1 sprig of fresh thyme, or 1 teaspoon of dried
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 15-ounce can of cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 cup of dried campanelle pasta (or any smaller squiggly pasta variety)
• Juice from 1/2 a lemon
• Handful of fresh parsley, chopped
• Salt and fresh ground pepper to your liking

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Instructions

1. Add the olive oil to a large stockpot and kick the heat up to medium-high. Add the red onion and saute for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Cook the onions until they start to carmelize.
2. Add the carrots, parsnip, celery, garlic, Spike seasoning, and oregano to the stockpot. Cook for 5 minutes stirring frequently.
3. Add the red bell pepper, zucchini, and green beans. Cook for another 5 minutes stirring frequently.
4. Add the diced tomatoes and cook for an additional 5 minutes on medium-high.
5. Add the vegetable stock, thyme, and bay leaves. Once the soup reaches a boil add the cannellini beans and pasta. Cook the soup on medium-high for about 25 minutes, or until the pasta is al dente (the pasta will take longer to cook because the stockpot is full of much more than just water).
6. Turn off the heat. Remove the thyme and bay leaves. Add the lemon juice, parsley, salt, and pepper. Serve with some warm ciabatta bread.

Notes

Minestrone keeps in the refrigerator for up to 5 days and is delicious as leftovers!

Did You Give This Recipe a Whirl?

Please give it bunches of stars and send a comment to share your thoughts! What was easy? What didn’t work? Did you discover an even more delicious version? I’d love to know to keep improving each recipe.

Sharing is caring! If you love this recipe please pass it along to your peeps so we can all start eating a little healthier, one delicious meal at a time.

Cheers,

Erica