Autumn Minestrone Recipes

AUTUMN MINESTRONE SOUP

Steps:

• Heat oil in an 8-quart stock pot over medium high heat. Add onion, celery, fennel, potatoes, and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes.
• Add tomatoes and their juices, stock, and cannellini beans; season with 2 teaspoons salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook until potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes.
• Stir in vinegar and Swiss chard; season with salt and pepper. Divide pasta evenly between 6 to 8 bowls. Ladle over soup and garnish with cheese. Serve immediately.

GLUTEN-FREE NORTHERN ITALIAN AUTUMN MINESTRONE

Steps:

• Place cranberry beans into a large container and cover with several inches of cool water; let soak, 8 hours to overnight. Drain.
• Shred carrot, yellow onion, celery, and red pepper in a food processor to create a sofrito mixture.
• Heat oil in a 7-quart pressure cooker over medium-high heat. Add sofrito mixture and saute until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Add soaked beans, potatoes, diced carrots, zucchini, pumpkin, and diced onion. Cook and stir until warmed through, 3 to 5 minutes more. Add oregano, rosemary, and bay leaf. Stir well to coat vegetables with oil and seasonings.
• Add enough broth to cover vegetables by 1 inch. Close the pressure cooker lid and bring up to pressure, about 10 minutes. Cook an additional 10 minutes from the first whistle.
• Allow pressure to release naturally and remove lid, about 10 minutes. Taste and adjust salt if necessary. Add additional broth to allow for cooking the pasta. Bring to a boil and add pasta. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender but still firm to the bite, about 8 minutes. Add more boiling broth if needed during cooking.
• Ladle soup into bowls and top with minced hot pepper and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.

FALL MINESTRONE - RACHAEL RAY

Steps:

• Heat a soup pot over med-high heat; add olive oil.
• Add in the pancetta; brown for 2 minutes.
• Add in the red pepper flakes, garlic, mushrooms, onions, carrots, and celery; cook 5-6 minutes, until mushrooms are lightly browned.
• Season with salt and pepper; add in rosemary stems and sage; add in zucchini and chopped greens; stir them in to the pot until all the greens wilt down, 2-3 minutes.
• Add in the beans, tomatoes, broths, and cheese rind; cover with lid and bring to a boil.
• Uncover and add ditalini pasta; cook for 7-8 minutes at a rolling simmer, uncovered, until the pasta is al dente.
• Remove pot from heat; remove the rind and now bare rosemary stems; adjust salt/pepper to taste.
• Ladle soup into shallow bowls; top with grated cheese; serve with crusty bread.

FALL MINESTRONE SOUP

Steps:

• Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add carrots, celery, zucchini, and onion; saute until the vegetables are soft, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and rosemary; cook, stirring so the garlic doesn't burn, for another 2 minutes. Add tomatoes, potatoes, and chard.
• Bring to a simmer and cook until the chard is wilted, about 5 minutes. Add beef stock and beans, bring to a simmer, and cook until potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes.

VEGGIE-PACKED AUTUMN MINESTRONE

Steps:

• In a large stockpot, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the sausage and cook until no longer pink and just turning brown, 5 to 8 minutes. Add the celery, carrots and onions and saute until translucent, about 15 minutes. Add the rosemary, tomato paste and garlic and cook for 1 minute. Stir in the stock, tomatoes, beans and bay leaf and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 40 minutes.
• Add the sweet potatoes and zucchini and simmer until cooked al dente, about 10 minutes more.
• Place 1/2 cup of baby spinach at the bottom of each serving bowl and ladle on a portion of bubbling hot soup. The heat from the soup will wilt the spinach perfectly. Serve with some freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano and a squeeze of fresh lemon.

AUTUMN MINESTRONE

Steps:

• Warm the oil in a large soup pot on medium heat. Add the onions and garlic, and sauté for 5 minutes. Add the squash, celery, carrots, potatoes, oregano, salt, pepper, and water and cook for 10 minutes or until the potatoes are almost done. Add the kale and beans and simmer for another 5 to 7 minutes, until the kale is tender and the beans are hot.
• Serve immediately.