Autumn Harvest Minestrone Soup
This is a minestrone soup chock full of fall vegetables and heavy on the garlic and rosemary. With butternut squash, cabbage, and pumpkin puree stirred in at the end to thicken, this is a gorgeous soup to enjoy all fall and winter. You'll love the fresh parsley and garlic stirred in at the end!
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 244kcal
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 onion diced (about 1 ½ cups)
- 2 stalks celery diced (about 1 cup)
- 1 large carrot diced (about 1 cup)
- 3 cloves garlic finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons minced fresh rosemary
- 8-10 cups chicken or vegetable broth low sodium recommended
- 2-3 cups diced butternut squash about ½ medium squash
- 2-3 cups chopped cabbage about ½ medium cabbage, or kale
- 15 oz. canned diced tomatoes
- 3 cups cooked cranberry, pinto, or kidney beans or 2 15-oz. cans, drained and rinsed
- 1 cup tiny pasta I like using fregula or acini de pepe (see notes)
- 1-2 cups pumpkin puree
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
- 1 clove garlic grated with a microplane zester
- salt and pepper to taste
- grated parmesan or Romano cheese and more olive oil for serving, optional
Instructions
- Heat the 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil in a large Dutch oven or pot over medium heat. Add the diced 1 onion, diced 2 stalks celery, and diced 1 large carrot. Sauté until softened and starting to brown, about 5-10 minutes.
- Stir in the chopped 3 cloves garlic and 2 tablespoons minced fresh rosemary. Sauté until fragrant, about 30 seconds to 1 minute.
- Pour in the 8-10 cups chicken or vegetable broth (start with 8 cups), and add the 2-3 cups diced butternut squash, 2-3 cups chopped cabbage, and 15 oz. canned diced tomatoes. Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer on low for about 10 minutes, until squash is almost completely softened.
- Add the drained and rinsed 3 cups cooked cranberry, pinto, or kidney beans and the 1 cup tiny pasta. Stir, then simmer covered for another 10 minutes, or until pasta is cooked. If you find the soup is too thick, this is a good time to add more broth (or water).
- Stir in the 1-2 cups pumpkin puree. Turn off the heat, then stir in the 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley and grate the additional 1 clove garlic with a microplane zester directly into the pot. Taste and season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Serve with grated parmesan or Romano cheese and more olive oil drizzled on top of each bowl. I like to add red pepper for a bit of spice, too.
Video
Notes
- Fregula is a toasted small round pasta, similar to acini de pepe or pearl couscous. I usually like using the tiniest pasta in soups because they freeze better than larger shapes. You can use any small or medium pasta you want here.
- Add a parmesan rind to the soup if you want. It will add salty umami flavor to the whole thing. Remove it and discard before serving. I like to keep them in my freezer for this purpose.
- For a vegetarian version, be sure to use vegetable broth instead of chicken. For vegan, be sure to skip the parmesan added at the end (or use a substitute).
- Minestrone soup is flexible and there are so many varieties out there based on availability of ingredients. Feel free to use cubed pumpkin instead of butternut squash, kale or chard instead of cabbage, throw in any other produce you have like zucchini or green beans... minestrone soup is always a good one to experiment with!
Nutrition
Calories: 244kcal | Carbohydrates: 39g | Protein: 12g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Sodium: 341mg | Potassium: 823mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 9984IU | Vitamin C: 24mg | Calcium: 107mg | Iron: 3mg