Know what's better than minestrone soup? Minestrone soup with cheesy tortellini! With this nutrient-packed one-pot recipe, you can bring comfort to the table any day of the week.
What is Minestrone?
According to my battered copy of Herbst and Herbst's Food Lover's Companion, the Italian word minestrone means "big soup" and refers to a "thick vegetable soup that generally contains pasta and sometimes peas or beans." Unlike its lighter cousin, minestra, minestrone is hefty enough to be served as a complete meal.
Tortellini Minestrone FAQs
One of the best things about minestrone is that it can be customized to fit your tastes, seasonal produce, and dietary preferences. Here are some simple ideas to make it your own.
Yes! I recommend keeping the onion and garlic, but you can totally swap out the others. Instead of carrots, use finely chopped winter quash or pumpkin or sweet potatoes. Instead of celery, use diced bell peppers or summer squash or chopped green beans. And instead of spinach, try the same amount of chopped kale, chard, or collard leaves. Just aim for 4 or 5 cups of diced veggies (in addition to the onion), and make sure you cut them all to about the same size for even cooking.
Sure, but it will take longer to cook. If you have frozen tortellini, let it thaw in the fridge overnight.
Nope. Tortellini comes in lots of different flavors: spinach, pumpkin, mushroom, etc. Feel free to use whichever one you like the most!
This recipe comes together in about 35 minutes as written, but you can shave off some time if you cut the onion and other vegetables into smaller pieces (¼-inch dice instead of ½-inch dice); you could even chop them up in your food processor all at once.
Go ahead and add it! Cook ground sausage or bacon along with the veggies. Or, stir in shredded cooked chicken when you add the tortellini and beans.
Looking for more recipes like this vegetarian Tortellini Minestrone Soup? Check out my one-pot meal recipes.
Quick and Easy Tortellini Minestrone Soup
Equipment
- Large pot
- Cutting board and knife
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, finely diced (½-inch pieces)
- 4 medium carrots, peeled and finely diced (½-inch pieces)
- 3 celery stalks, finely diced (½-inch pieces)
- 4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more as needed
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more as needed
- ¼ teaspoon dried chile flakes (optional)
- 2 quarts low-sodium vegetable broth (or chicken broth if you are not vegetarian)
- 1 (15-ounce) can diced fire-roasted tomatoes
- 1 (15-ounce) can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 (16-ounce) package refrigerated cheese tortellini
- 2 cups baby spinach leaves
- ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat for 2 minutes. Add the onion, carrots, celery, garlic, Italian seasoning, 1 teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon black pepper, and chile flakes (if using). Cook, stirring frequently, for 7 minutes or until the onion is translucent and the carrots are beginning to soften.
- Pour in the broth, diced tomatoes, and a big pinch of salt. When the broth comes to a boil, add the kidney beans and tortellini. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 8 minutes or until the pasta is tender.
- Add the spinach and parsley and stir until the spinach is completely wilted. Taste and add more salt and pepper as needed.
- Serve hot.
Noel says
Perfect for a quick meal on a Monday night!
Peggy Paul Casella says
Yay!