Better Than Olive Garden Minestrone Soup

All I crave is for soups when the weather starts to get chilly in the evenings. And this minestrone with some bread is my ultimate comfort food! SOUP season is almost here! It is getting pretty chilly in the evenings, and so I would take a hearty bowl of soup for dinners from now on! I am sorry if I flood my website with soup recipes! But trust me they are all so delicious. I first tasted the minestrone soup at Olive Garden, and please don’t at me. I am an immigrant. And on my first day in the US, I found myself at Olive Garden ordering a bowl of minestrone soup and cheese fondue! I always felt that vegetarian options were scarce at the restaurants during my initial days here. But, now it’s almost been a decade and I call this country my home away from home. And, I promise over the years of perfecting the minestrone soup recipe, this recipe is better than Olive Garden!

What is Minestrone Soup?

Minestrone in Italian means serving a thick vegetable soup. Calling Minestrone Soup is like calling it soup soup! This thick vegetable soup is made in a hearty and herby thick tomato broth, which is packed with seasonal vegetables, cannellini, or red kidney beans, and some small variety of pasta. I love to add vegetables like corn, zucchini, and French beans. You can also add, different squashes, and potatoes to make this soup even more filling! A hearty base of almost all soups is onions, carrots and celery, and so are they in this recipe. I pretty much add any canned beans I have on hand! And, sometimes I like to add pesto, as it brings more oomph to this recipe! My family and I love this soup, and it is in our weekly rotation menu! Inaaya loves to dip fresh buttery bread in the soup and enjoy! This minestrone is one of her favorites and the only way she will eat beans. I prefer to use canned San Marzano tomatoes and during summers made with fresh tomatoes for this minestrone soup recipe. I find San Marzano tomatoes are sweeter in taste, more juicy, and have fewer seeds than the other varieties of tomatoes. Hence more often seen being used in soups and pasta sauces.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe?

Because this recipe is better than olive garden Minestrone Soup. It is a One-Pot Recipe for hearty and cozy lunches and dinners. This recipe is easy, quick and delicious. I love how versatile this recipe is. And the ingredients can be substituted with whatever you have in your pantry. You can use an Instant Pot, Slow Cooker, or a traditional cooking pot You can make this soup vegan and gluten-free.

Ingredients To Make The Minestrone Soup

Olive Oil - Use good quality single-origin cooking olive oil for the fruity flavor in this recipe. Bay Leaves - You can use either fresh or dried bay leaves in this Minestrone recipe. Aromatics - We will be using fresh minced garlic for this recipe. Vegetables - We will be using the holy soup veggie mix of onions, carrots, and celery. I like how loaded this soup is with vegetables. You can add any seasonal vegetables of your choice. I am adding zucchini, corn, and French beans. Beans - For a quick-fix meal, I prefer to have canned red kidney beans and cannellini beans on hand. Today, I am using red kidney beans for this recipe. Spices - We will be using dried thyme, oregano, fine black pepper powder, salt and sugar to spice this soup. Use smoked paprika if you can tolerate spice. You might wonder why sugar. A little bit of sugar will caramelize the flavors, and create a balance of flavors in the soup. San Marzano Tomatoes - You must use canned and diced San Marzano tomatoes to make this recipe. These tomatoes add a sweet umami flavor, and have fewer seeds than other varieties of tomatoes. I use the fire-roasted diced San Marzano tomatoes for that extra smoky flavor. Pasta - Use any mini pasta available like mini macaroni, mini shells, or ditalini. I am using mini shells for this recipe. Use gluten-free pasta to make this recipe gluten-free. Vegetable Broth - I like to use low-sodium store-bought vegetable broth for my soups. You can also use vegetable bouillon cubes, or vegetarian better than bouillon

Garnishes

Flat Leaf Parsley - I like to add a pop of green for garnishes, and flat leaf parsley works perfectly for this recipe. Parmesan Cheese - Parmesan cheese adds the right saltiness and sharpness to cut the tartness from the tomatoes. If you want to make this recipe vegan, use vegan parm or skip adding parm. Red Chili Flakes - add some red chili flakes to add spice and smokiness to the soup. Parmesan

Variations for Minestrone Soup Recipe

Don’t worry if you don’t have canned tomatoes, because you can substitute it with marinara sauce. Are you bored eating this soup the same way? Add some pesto! I bet you will love the addition of pesto in this recipe. Substitute any seasonal veggies with the vegetables mentioned. I like to add sweet potatoes, pumpkin and squashes, potatoes, asparagus etc to the soup. If you want to add more protein to the recipe, brown some ground-up vegan sausage, and add puffed tofu. I like to serve the soup with grilled cheese.

Step-By-Step Recipe To Make The Minestrone Soup

In a pan add 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Once hot, add bay leaves.
Next add in the onions, and minced garlic. Saute until onions are golden and translucent.
Add 1 cup of diced carrots and ¾th cup of cut celery stalks. Mix well.
Next, add in the 1.5 cups of vegetables. I am adding a mix of zucchini, corn and french beans.
Add spices. Add 1 teaspoon each or oregano, thyme and black pepper powder. You can also add half a teaspoon of smoked paprika. Next add 1.5 teaspoons of salt, and 1 teaspoon sugar. Mix everything well.
Add 1 cup of any mini pasta you have on hand, and add 28oz of fire-roasted San Marzano Tomatoes!
Add 4 cups of vegetable broth and simmer on low, until the pasta and veggies are cooked.
Once the soup thickens and the veggies and kinds of pasta are cooked roughly after 15-20 minutes, grated parm.
Garnish it with finely chopped fresh leaf parsley.
Serve it with a side of toasted buttery bread, grilled cheese, garlic bread, or chili cheese toast.

What to Serve with Minestrone Soup?

This soup is delicious and filling on its own, but there are always a few extras that will make it even more delicious. Bread - Toast a delicious sourdough bread with butter and serve along with soup! You can also serve it garlic bread or chili cheese toast and or grilled cheese. Green Salad - I served a delicious green spring salad to go with the soup, with some marinated tofu and red wine vinaigrette.

Storage Instructions

Store the minestrone for up to 5-6 days in the refrigerator in an air-tight container. Heat only the portion of the soup you desire to drink! Although it is so delicious, it just won’t sit in your refrigerator!