The Secret to Longevity and Healthy Hearts: A Minestrone Recipe for Soup Nights

The older I get, the more I adore a pot of soup. I love a soup where you can throw many healthy vegetables into a pot, walk away, and let it simmer. As I sit in my Raleigh home in mid-February, snow is swirling in the air, and I wish I had the forethought to buy ingredients for Minestrone soup. I originally posted this recipe on the HinesSightBlog 2012 for February, which is Heart Healthy Awareness Month with the American Heart Association. 

Made with many vegetables, greens, beans, and pasta, minestrone can provide super nutrients that slow aging and promote heart health. The great thing about Italian minestrone is that you can adapt the soup to the seasons and what is bountiful in the produce aisles.  The variations in this soup can be different from household to household. Why, you ask? Minestrone originated in Italy as a "leftover or "poor man's soup," meaning you use what you have on hand and turn it into a nice one-pot meal. 

You'll be hard-pressed to find two identical recipes when you search the internet.  Eating Well Magazine has well over 10 minestrone recipe variations on its site. Even Hollywood actor  and Italian cooking influencer Stanley Tucci recently wrote on his Instagram account that "Minestrone is the Secret to a Healthy Life," he said several times in his video that it's even better when cooked in a beautiful pot.  I don't know if that is true, but I love the Le Creuset pot I've had for almost 25 years. 

Heart Healthy Minestrone

Ingredients

      2 teaspoons olive oil

      1/2 cup chopped onion

      1/2 teaspoon dried basil

      1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

      2 garlic cloves, minced

      1 1/4 cups cubed peeled acorn or butternut squash (about 1 medium) (optional)

      3/4 cup diced zucchini  (left this vegetable out)

      1/2 cup chopped carrot

      1/2 cup diced fennel

      1 cup water

      1 (14-ounce) fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth

      5 tablespoons no-salt-added tomato paste

      1/4 cup uncooked ditalini (very short tube-shaped pasta). I used penne pasta

      2 1/2 cups chopped Swiss chard, Kale, or Spinach.  (I used spinach)

      1/2 cup rinsed and drained canned Great Northern Beans (I used a whole can of white kidney beans)

      1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

       2 tablespoons grated Asiago cheese (I used parmesan cheese)

Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion, basil, oregano, and garlic to pan; sauté 5 minutes or until onion is tender. Add squash and the following 3 ingredients (through fennel); sauté 5 minutes. Stir in 1 cup water, broth, and tomato paste; boil. Reduce heat, and simmer for 10 minutes or until vegetables are crisp-tender. Stir in pasta; cook for 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add chard; cook 3 minutes. Add beans; cook for 2 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Stir in pepper. Serve with cheese.