Minestrone Soup: the hearty Italian recipe for a classic comfort food

Minestrone soup is a healthy, thick Italian soup made of vegetables, tomatoes, beans and pasta or rice if you want. It is a classic dish of the Italian tradition, a nourishing comfort food. Super easy to make, it is perfect for warming up during cold days from fall to spring.

You can customize your minestrone soup with your favorite seasonal vegetables or use up leftover greens, the result will still be tasty and inviting. This homemade minestrone recipe will be even tastier the next day and it is way healthier than Olive Garden or store-bought versions.

You can serve it steaming in winter or lukewarm as soon as the temperatures rise, sprinkled with plenty of grated parmesan cheese. Serve it with croutons or crusty bread to enjoy it at its best. You can also add some short pasta, rice or spelt, for an even more complete main course.

In our version, the vegetables are cut into small pieces and gradually added to the pot, gradually covering with boiling water. Carrots, onions and potatoes, which should never be missing, are combined with pumpkin, zucchini, leeks and cherry tomatoes, which you can eventually replace or add with a spoonful of tomato paste.

When almost cooked, frozen peas are dipped into the pot, cooked for a few minutes so that they remain of a beautiful bright green color. Finally, when the fire is off, our minestrone soup is garnished with fragrant basil leaves and savory, grated parmesan cheese.

What is Minestrone Soup?

Minestrone is a thick vegetable soup that is part of the Italian culinary tradition. It is made of carrots, potatoes, onions, beans, peas and seasonal vegetables. Super easy to make, serve this vegetarian recipe with grated parmesan cheese.

The first English traces of this word can be found as early as 1871. The word minestrone derives from minestra which means soup, or from minestrare which means to serve.

Italian Minestrone vs Vegetable Soup

The recipe for minestrone and that one of a simple vegetable soup may seem to be the same thing, but they actually hide differences.
Minestrone is basically a thick vegetable soup which is richer and healthier than a classic vegetable soup thanks to the addition of beans, or even pasta or rice.

Homemade Minestrone Soup Ingredients

Minestrone soup recipe calls for many ingredients to get a tasty yet healthy dish.
Carrots, onions and leeks are indispensable to create an aromatic base thanks to the classic Italian soffritto.
Potatoes are great for thickening minestrone soup thanks to the release of starch.

Tomatoes add a sweet yet tangy flavor.
Beans and peas are great for giving a slight crunchy texture to the soup.

Vegetable broth is great for adding a flavorful liquid part. You can use the store-bought one or make your own vegetable broth.

Add your favorite aromatic herbs and don't forget oil, salt and pepper.

Parmesan cheese is very important. Grating it over the cooked minestrone soup gives an even more savory and flavorful note to the dish.

Tips for making Classic Minestrone Soup

You can also add other vegetables, such as beets, broccoli, kale, spinach, green beans.

Use the aromatic herbs that you have on hand or a freshly ground black pepper, which will further enhance the flavor.

If your children do not like to eat chopped vegetables, you can blend the minestrone soup with an mixer and transform it into a creamy pureed soup.

You can replace leeks with celery.

If you want to make minestrone soup ahead of time. Anyway, if you want to add pasta or rice, it is best to cook it separately and finally combine it to the minestrone soup.

For a vegan minestrone soup, leave out parmesan.

For a richer minestrone soup, you can also add some ground meat.

What to serve with Minestrone Soup

You can serve minestrone soup with a crusty bread, croutons or breadsticks. For a even healthier meal, enjoy it with a tossed salad.

How to store Minestrone Soup

The minestrone soup can be stored in the refrigerator, in a special airtight container, for at least 3 days.

Can you freeze Homemade Minestrone Soup?

If you have used fresh ingredients, you can also freeze it for about 3 months, once closed in an airtight container.

How to make Minestrone Soup

Cut the pumpkin in half (1).

Remove the seeds and internal filaments (2).

Cut it into slices (3).

Remove the peel (4).

Cut the pulp into cubes (5).

Wash the zucchini, trim them and cut them into half-cm slices (6).

Cut them into small cubes (7).

Peel the onion and chop finely (8).

Transfer it to a pan with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and let it dry gently (9).

Meanwhile, clean the leek and cut it lengthwise (10).

Then slice it finely (11).

Add the leek to the fried onion and mix (12).

Peel the carrots with a potato peeler (13).

Cut them into sticks (14).

Then reduce them into cubes (15).

Add the carrots to the other vegetables (16).

Cover the vegetables with hot water (17).

Meanwhile, peel the potatoes as well (18).

Cut them into cubes (19).

Add the potatoes to the pot with the other vegetables and mix (20).

Pour more boiling water (21) and flavor with a little rosemary.

Add the beans (22).

Add the zucchini (23).

Add more hot water (24).

Add the diced pumpkin (25).

Wash the cherry tomatoes and cut them in half (26).

Add the cherry tomatoes and mix (27).

Cover with boiling water (28) and cook for about 45 minutes.

After this time, add the frozen peas (29) and continue cooking for about ten minutes. Season with salt.

When cooked, turn off and flavor with a few chopped basil leaves (30).

Distribute the minestrone soup in individual bowls, completed with a drizzle of raw extra virgin olive oil and serve (31).