“Kitchen Sink” Minestrone Soup

One day last week, I wanted some comfort food for supper… something hot and simple… something I could preferably prepare in one pot and be done.  That’s when I came up with this recipe: “Kitchen Sink” Minestrone Soup.

I have a real love for Italian food so after reading the recipe for “Classic Minestrone” in Italian Home Cooking (a great cookbook recommend by my BFF who lives in Italy!), I decided to come up with a less authentic version that would use up some stuff in my freezer and frig!

You’ve heard that saying… “everything but the kitchen sink”… yeah, I wanted to use up lots of stuff in my kitchen… everything but….

My “Kitchen Sink” Minestrone is actually nothing like the original recipe… well, maybe a little.  Sort of.  Not.

So, let me go over a few of my ingredients.

I had zucchini in my freezer from our garden last summer… and leftover beans from a few weeks ago that I had frozen.   Honestly, you could use 6-8 cups of any fresh or frozen veggies in this soup and I think it would work!  It’s very versatile.

I also had carrots that were looking a little sad needed using up… and a half a jar of Paul Newman’s marinara sauce in the frig that really needed a purpose  (we had used a little of it for homemade tortilla pizzas).

I also mention using Better than Bouillon.   I discovered this wonderful substitute for bouillon cubes ages ago (and use it in my potato soup now too!).  I absolutely love this product – but you could use bouillon cubes if that’s what you have on hand!

For the pasta, Ditalini or Conchigliette was was suggested in this soup, but I had these tiny stars… Stelline on hand.   The hubby and I bought because they were cute (okay, maybe I thought they were cute..he thought the kids would like them!) … and I thought they’d be perfect for my soup!

If you want a warm bowl of soup anytime soon… give this recipe a try!

Here’s my recipe… enjoy!

“Kitchen Sink” Minestrone Soup

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★★★★★

5 from 1 reviews

• Prep Time: 15 mins
• Cook Time: 45 mins
• Total Time: 1 hour
• Yield: 8-10 servings 1x

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Ingredients

• 1 pound of ground beef or italian sausage
• 6 cups water
• 4 tsp Italian Seasoning
• 1 heaping teaspoon of Better than Bouillon
• 2 cups cubed zucchini
• 2 cups marinara sauce
• 1 cup beans (I had baby lima)
• 2 cups corn
• 4 carrots peeled and chopped
• ¼ cup grated parmesan
• 12–16 ounces of small pasta

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Instructions

1. Brown your meet in large pot, drain any excess fat.
2. Add in 6 cups of water, Italian seasoning, Better than Bouillon and Marinara Sauce.
3. Stir, then add vegetables.
4. Bring to a boil, turn down, and then allow it to simmer for about 30 minutes.
5. Add in your pasta and cook until done.
6. Stir in the Parmesan just before serving!

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Notes

I had to add more water when serving the leftovers the next day – the pasta soaked up alot of the liquid!