Best Minestrone Soup

Do you have a favorite Italian restaurant that serves your favorite Minestrone soup? I sure do. Carrabba's minestrone soup recipe and the Olive Garden Minestrone Soup are some of our favorites. I worked at a couple of Italian Restaurants during my college years and this is a recipe knock-off of all the minestrone soup recipes I love.

It's good for you and hearty enough to be a meal all by itself. This minestrone soup with cabbage is loaded with vegetables, beans, and so much flavor too. It really is the best minestrone soup recipe.

Minestrone Soup Variations

You can easily add one or a few of these ingredients to switch up your minestrone soup recipe. This soup recipe reheats nicely too so you could even have the classic version one night and then add a couple more ingredients to switch it up. I love adding some Ground sausage, a splash of cream, and a little extra cheese. There are so many great options.

Ground Beef
Ground Sausage
Sausage Links
Shredded Chicken
Blend it up and add a splash of cream for a creamy vegetable soup
Add Parmesan and some Crusty French Bread or Homemade Breadsticks
Chopped green onions
Fresh chopped chives
Croutons
Red pepper flakes
Other herbs like rosemary or oregano
Creme Fraiche

How to Make Slow Cooker Minestrone Soup

In a saute pan, add the olive oil and chopped onion. Saute on medium heat until the onions are soft and lightly golden brown. (about 8-10 minutes)
Add the remaining ingredients ( Zucchini, cabbage, shredded cabbage, tomatoes, beans, pasta, and herbs. Cover the Slow Cooer with a lid and heat on high for 2-3 hours, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender and the pasta is cooked.
Ladle into bowls. If desired, you can also sprinkle some parmesan or mozzarella cheese on top before serving. Enjoy!

Looking For the Best Soup Recipes?

For some more homestyle soup recipes like this one, give these a try:

Chicken Noodle Soup - full of chicken, homestyle noodles, carrots and peas, and quick to throw together.
Tomato Soup - roasting the tomatoes gives them so much more flavorful than the canned version, and it still tastes just as great with a grilled cheese.
Loaded Baked Potato Soup - if you are a sucker for soup and potatoes, this is for you!
Broccoli Potato Cheese Soup - loaded with veggies and cheddar cheese, this is delicious on it's own or served from a bread bowl.
Turkey and Rice Soup - filled with wild rice, turkey and veggies.
Taco Soup- A soup recipe that can be ready in about 20 minutes and loaded with all your favorite Southwest flavors.
Broccoli Cheese Soup- An easy and creamy cheesy broccoli cheese soup everyone will love.
Healthy Turkey Chili- It's a favorite at our house too.

Can You Freeze Minestrone Soup?

You can freeze minestrone soup. Just cool completely and transfer to freezer bags. Lay them flat in the freezer and store for up to 5 months. Once you are ready to use, you can thaw overnight in the fridge, or else transfer directly into a pot on the stovetop and re-heat on medium-low heat, stirring often.

If you want to go the microwave route, just transfer into a microwave-safe container and reheat for about 30 seconds at a time, stirring in between.

The Best Minestrone Soup Ingredients:

Olive Oil- This is used to cook the onion and give it a deep, rich, Italian recipe flavor.
Chopped Onion- Adding onion will give the soup a sweet flavor. We like to caramelize our onions before adding everything else. I promise this little bit of extra time is well worth the hassle.
Minced Garlic- Fresh is always best but the jarred garlic works great too.
Carrots- The best carrots to use are fresh, big carrots. They are even sweeter than the mini ones and don't have any preservatives on them.
Cauliflower- A must with Minestrone soup.
Zucchini- small zucchini is best. If you're using small zucchini, no need to peel the skin, wash and dice.
Shredded Cabbage- You can buy the cabbage pre-shredded or do it yourself. It's a really flavorful, healthy, and hearty ingredient.
Chicken Broth- You can use the jarred chicken base from Costco and make your own broth, use a carton of broth, or even homemade chicken broth. They all work great. If you're wanting a vegetarian or vegan minestrone soup recipe, just replace the chicken broth with your favorite vegetable broth.
Stewed Italian Tomatoes- San Marzano tomatoes work great here. Just be sure they're diced or crushed or do it yourself in the blender before adding the tomatoes to the soup.
Kidney Beans- Black Beans or Pinto Beans would work in a pinch. Kidney beans are the classic bean to use a Minestrone Soup Recipe.
Macaroni Pasta- This recipe can be made with or without pasta. If you're making this for the main course, the beans and pasta really help make it hearty.
Parsley- Adding some parsley will give it a fresh taste. YUM.
Italian Seasoning (or Parsley, Oregano, Basil) or add equal parts of these three herbs. It is the perfect balance of Italian Herbs.
Oregano- This is is to top off the herbs in this amazing soup.
Salt- You can start with half of the salt and then add more if desired. I error on the side of maybe a little salty.
Pepper-Black pepper works great.
Parmesan Cheese- If you have a parmesan cheese rind, throw it in the soup while the veggies cook. You can take it out before you serve the minestrone soup and then add some more fresh parmesan cheese on top before serving. Oh, so delicious.

How To Make the Best Minestrone Soup-Stovetop

Prepare the vegetables by washing, peeling if necessary, and cutting them up.
Add olive oil and chopped onion in a large dutch oven or stockpot. Saute on medium heat until the onions are soft and lightly golden brown. (about 8-10 minutes)
Add the remaining ingredients ( Zucchini, cabbage, shredded cabbage, tomatoes, beans, pasta, and herbs) and boil. Turn down the heat to medium and cover with a lid. Let simmer for about 25-30 minutes, stirring occasionally or until the pasta and veggies are tender.
Ladle into bowls. You can also sprinkle some parmesan or mozzarella cheese on top if desired. Serve.

Best Minestrone Soup

This is the Best Minestrone Soup recipe. It's just like the minestrone soup you love at your favorite Italian Restaurant. It's a classic Italian soup recipe loaded with vegetables, rich broth and topped with delicious parmesan cheese. It's so easy and your family is going to love it.

Course Main Course, Side Dish, Soup

Cuisine American, Italian

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 40

cooling time 5

Total Time 55

Servings people

Calories 154kcal

Author The Carefree Kitchen

Ingredients

3 Tbsp Olive Oil avocado oil is the next best substitute
2 cups Chopped Onion chopped small, a white or yellow onion works best.
2 teaspoon Minced Garlic fresh is best but the jarred garlic works fine too
2 large Carrots Whole carrots, peeled and cut into ¼" slices
1 ½ cups Cauliflower Washed and chopped into ¾" chunks
1 small Zucchini washed, sliced and quartered
2 cups Shredded Cabbage pre-shredded works great.
1 ½ Quarts Chicken Broth Vegetable Broth works great too.
1 28 oz can Italian Stewed Tomatoes Crushed or diced
2 cans Kidney Beans (drained)
¾ cup Macaroni Pasta or sub your favorite small pasta
1 tablespoon Parsley dried
2 teaspoon Basil dried
1 teaspoon Oregano dried
1 teaspoon Salt
¼ teaspoon Pepper
½ cup Parmesan cheese Mozzarella works great too.

Instructions

In a large dutch oven or stockpot, add the olive oil and chopped onion. Saute on medium heat until the onions are soft and lightly golden brown. (about 8-10 minutes)
Add the minced garlic, carrots, and cauliflower. Saute 2 for minutes longer.
Add the remaining ingredients ( Zucchini, cabbage, shredded cabbage, tomatoes, beans, pasta, and herbs and bring to a boil. Turn down the heat to medium and cover with a lid. Let simmer for about 25-30 minutes, stirring occasionally or until the pasta and veggies are tender.
Ladle into bowls. Can sprinkle some parmesan or mozzarella cheese on top if desired. Serve.

Nutrition

More of the Best Soups Recipes

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This is the Best Minestrone Soup recipe. It's just like the minestrone soup you love at your favorite Italian Restaurant. It's a classic Italian soup recipe loaded with vegetables, rich broth, and topped with delicious parmesan cheese. It's so easy and your family is going to love it.

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