Minestrone Soup Recipe

Prepare ingredients: finely dice the onion, carrot and celery (soffritto) into small uniform pieces. Mince the garlic and set aside.

Heat a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Add 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil. When oil shimmers, add the diced onion, carrot and celery. Sweat (do not brown) the soffritto for about 6–8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are softened and translucent.

Add the minced garlic and cook 30–45 seconds more until fragrant, stirring so garlic doesn't burn.

While soffritto cooks, core and seed the roma tomatoes and dice into 1/2-inch pieces. Core, seed and dice the red bell pepper. Trim the zucchini ends and dice into 1/2-inch pieces. Rinse and roughly chop the spinach if leaves are large.

Add the diced red bell pepper to the pot and cook 3–4 minutes until it begins to soften. Then add the diced tomatoes and cook another 4–5 minutes, stirring and breaking down the tomatoes with the back of a spoon to release juices.

Stir in the diced zucchini and cook 2–3 minutes to take the raw edge off; the zucchini will finish cooking in the simmering stock.

Pour in 6 cups of vegetable or chicken stock and stir to combine. Add the drained cannellini beans and bring mixture to a gentle boil over medium-high heat.

Once boiling, reduce heat to a simmer. Add the bay leaf, fresh thyme, dried oregano and red pepper flakes. Simmer uncovered for 12–15 minutes to meld flavors and cook the vegetables through.

Add the ditalini pasta and continue to simmer for the time indicated on the pasta package (usually 8–10 minutes) until pasta is al dente. Stir occasionally to prevent pasta from sticking to the bottom.

In the last 2 minutes of cooking, stir in the fresh spinach so it wilts into the soup.

Taste the soup and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste (start with 1 teaspoon salt, adjust as needed). Remove and discard the bay leaf.

If the soup is too thick, add up to 1 cup additional hot stock or water to reach desired consistency and reheat briefly.

Ladle soup into warmed bowls. Sprinkle about 1 tablespoon (or to taste) freshly grated Parmesan over each bowl, drizzle about 1 teaspoon Tuscan extra-virgin olive oil over the top, and finish with chopped fresh parsley if using.

Serve immediately with crusty bread. Leftovers keep tightly covered in the refrigerator for 3–4 days. Reheat gently on the stovetop; if pasta absorbs too much liquid, add a splash of stock or water when reheating.