Food
Minestrone Soup
Minestrone Soup
This makes a HUGE pot of soup. The recipe is based upon using a whole bunch of swiss chard and a bunch of parsley. My Mother worked at an Italian restaurant when I was a teenager and through careful observation over time recreated their wonderful "secret" minestrone soup recipe. This is a restaurant sized batch be warned. It freezes great.
Ingredients:
2 Onions
2 Leeks
1 bunch Swiss Chard
1 bunch Parsley
5 ribs celery
1/3 head garlic
2.5 pounds beef chuck roast, cut into small cubes (or ground beef)
42 ounces (one 28 oz. can + one 14 oz. can) tomato sauce
2T Italian Seasonings
2 cans green beans
2 cans kidney beans
2 cans garbanzo beans
1/2 pound pasta, cooked and drained (spagetti noodles, broken or other macaroni)
10 cups water or beef broth
Salt & Pepper to taste
Preparation:
Grind or finely chop first 6 ingredients into a large bowl.
Brown beef, remove and set aside.
Add chopped vegetables to pan and saute for a few minutes in oil as needed. Add tomato sauce, water or beef broth, garlic, seasonings and browned meat.
Cook for about an hour then add the canned beans. Cook for an additional half an hour then turn off the heat and add cooked and drained pasta. Season to taste with salt & pepper.
Serve with fresh grated parmesan cheese.