Minestrone Soup with Tortellini Recipe

As I have told all of you recently, I cannot get enough soup.  Maybe it’s the weather, maybe it’s the produce, but I LOVE having thick, healthy soups in the winter time and often load them up with fresh vegetables.  I put a fun spin on traditional Minestrone Soup by adding in a bunch of vegetables to bulk it up and using cheesy tortellini for the pasta.  Comfort food at it’s finest ~ this soup is chalked full of veggie goodness and a complete meal in a bowl.

MINESTRONE SOUP WITH TORTELLINI (print here)

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 6 oz lean Canadian style bacon, diced
• 1 medium red onion, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 large carrot, chopped
• 1 large celery stalk, chopped
• 28 oz canned kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 15 oz fire roasted, diced tomatoes with garlic
• 4 cups Chicken Broth
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning
• A few pinches crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/2 bunch organic kale, roughly chopped
• 1 package tortellini, I used pesto flavored or 1/4 pound uncooked whole-wheat pasta
• Sea salt and black pepper to taste
• 1/4 cup fresh basil, thinly sliced

INSTRUCTIONS:

1.  Heat the oil in a large sauce pan over medium-high heat. Add olive oil plus Canadian bacon and cook 1-2 minutes until slightly browned.

2.  Add onion, garlic, celery and carrot; cook until the vegetables begin to soften, about 4 minutes.

3.  Add the tomatoes, broth, beans, spices and kale, bring to a boil.

4.  Add tortellini/pasta; return to a boil and cook until the pasta is tender, about 5 minutes for the tortellini and 8 minutes for the pasta.

5.  Remove from the heat and stir in the basil, salt, and pepper. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese if desired.

* Make it VEGETARIAN by subbing the Canadian bacon for fakin’bacon or omitting.

** Make it VEGAN, by omitting the Canadian bacon, plus cheese and using Whole Wheat Pasta for the Tortellini.

Makes eight, 1 1/2 cup servings, 6 Points+ each!

Nutritional Information per serving

STEP-BY-STEP:

Canadian Bacon is by far the “healthiest” bacons you can get, in my opinion.  I liked the version at Trader Joe’s (surprised!) because of it’s awesome stats.

Start off by adding olive oil with your diced Canadian bacon to “brown” it over medium heat.

Add your garlic, onion, carrot and celery cooking until softened, about 4 minutes.

Add kale, tomatoes, beans, broth and bring to a boil.

Plus spices!

This is your optional step.  I LOVE mixing up a traditional recipe with something fun!  Why add plain WW pasta when you can add Trader Joe’s Pesto Tortellini.

Add your choice of pasta and cook according to the package instructions ~ about 5 minutes for the tortellini.

Remove from heat and stir in your chopped basil.

If desired, top with parmesan and Enjoy!

This is the type of soup that is fantastic the first day but even better the next as all the flavors blend together.  It’s total comfort that packed with veggies and healthy!  What more could you ask for? Try it and get creative with your mix-in’s.

Thanks everyone for being so understanding on my last post about my struggle to find balance and for your tips.  I know it time I will find my groove again…..for now ~ I hope you enjoyed this recipe from my archives, it is by far one I NEED to make again ~ YUM!

You still have time to win your signed copy of Rocco’s new book!

Tomorrow I head over to TJ’s Test Kitchen for a fun Fit Bloggin’ Pizza~tastic day!

Night all!

Tagged as: kale, Pasta, Soups