Minestrone for the soul
Italian soup to warm our hearts
Cold nights and chilly mornings have finally driven away the oppressive heat and humidity of our long hot summer. The weather change means taking out sweaters, jackets, and shawls from closets and chests.
In the kitchen, the temperature drop signals a shift from cooling salads and light sandwiches to soups and stews that warm the body and soothe the spirit.
Our big family has favorite stews and soups that are easy to prepare and require ordinary ingredients found in most cupboards. At the top of our list is minestrone, a rich, chunky, and colorful Italian soup thick with vegetables. Served at any time from morning to midnight, minestrone paired with bread makes for a satisfying and healthy meal.
Although minestrone is the kind of hearty fare best eaten in the cold weather months, it can be enjoyed all year round, changing the ingredients with the seasons. It is served hot when it rains and even at room temperature in the summer.
Holy trinity
The basic minestrone recipes begin with three vegetables, onion, carrot, and celery, the same three vegetables that go into the most common type of soffritto, or flavor base, for countless sauces, stews, and soups.
But while most dishes require chopped vegetables for a soffritto to dissolve for maximum flavor, in minestrone each component vegetable retains its own identity, therefore the vegetables are diced into cubes.
The recipe for making the classic Italian vegetable soup for all seasons is easy to follow.
Sauté chopped onions, carrots, and celery in olive oil, butter, or corn oil over medium heat until limp and light brown.
Add cubed pancetta, bacon, sausage (Italian or Mexican), or smoked ham. Stir until fat is rendered from the meat.
Potatoes, tomatoes, and string beans, are added to the pot, allowing each ingredient to be well coated with the oil and absorb the flavor of all the vegetables. Dropped into the pot is an assortment of “hard” seasonal vegetables, such as all kinds of squash in the colder months, or zucchini in the summer months, as well as pumpkin and tomatoes, chopped into small cubes.
Last to be added are leafy vegetables, such as cabbage, kale, and spinach, cut into strips.
When the vegetables have all been heated through, pour in enough water or homemade broth to cover all the vegetables.
Add water (or broth) to cover, bring to a gentle simmer, and let simmer for an hour or more until all the vegetables are soft and the soup is getting quite thick.
Add one or more legumes, either pre-cooked or canned such as cannellini beans, fava beans, and chickpeas. Canned legumes should be drained and rinsed beforehand.
Dry small pasta could be added with the beans. Cooked pasta should be stirred into the boiling soup minutes before serving to prevent getting the minestrone mushy. Cook for another 20 to 30 minutes. Add more water if the soup is getting too thick. Crush some of the vegetables against the side of the pot. Serve the soup immediately. But it is much better made ahead and served the next day, or at least after given a few hours’ rest.
Minestrone is a rich, chunky, and colorful Italian soup thick with vegetables. Served at any time from morning to midnight, minestrone paired with bread makes for a satisfying and healthy meal.