Name: Hearty Minestrone Soup
Prep time: 22 min
Cook time: 52 min
Total time: 75 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: italian
Ingredients: 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (plus more to drizzle); 1 null onion (medium, finely diced); 3 stalk celery stalks (roughly diced); 2 null carrots (roughly diced); 1 null zucchini (medium, roughly diced); 3 clove garlic cloves (large, finely diced); 2 null bay leaves (fresh if you have one growing in your garden); 2 sprig fresh rosemary (twigs, leaves chopped finely or 0.5 tsp dried); 2 stalk fresh thyme (stalks, leaves picked or 0.5 tsp dried); 1 tsp sweet smoked paprika; 0.25 tsp chilli flakes ((optional), adjust to taste); 1.25 tsp salt (adjust to taste); 800 g plum tomatoes (quality peeled, from 2 x 400 g / 14 oz tins); 1 null sweet potato (large, cubed into 1.25 cm / 0.5" dice); 150 g conchigliette pasta (or other small pasta of choice (use rice for GF version)); 150 g savoy cabbage (shredded finely); 100 g lacinato kale (de-stemmed and shredded finely); 1 can cannellini beans (from 1 x 400 g / 14 oz can); 1.25 litre water; null null black pepper (to taste)

Instructions

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1

Heat the extra virgin olive oil (2 tbsp) in a large, heavy-bottomed pot.
2

Once the [extra virgin olive oil] is hot, add onion (1), stalks (3 celery), carrots (2), and zucchini (1) (if using). Sauté on a very low heat for minutes (15), until soft.
3

Add cloves (3 garlic), leaves (2 bay), fresh rosemary (2 sprig) and fresh thyme (2 stalk). Sauté for another minutes (5), stirring occasionally.
4

Stir in sweet smoked paprika (1 tsp), chilli flakes (0.25 tsp) (if using) and salt (1.25 tsp). Adjust [chilli flakes] to taste.
5

Add plum tomatoes (800 g) to the pot, crushing them with a wooden spoon. Pour in water (0.5 litre). Cover and simmer for about [30-45 minutes], until the [plum tomatoes] break down. Add more [water] if the pot looks dry.
6

Pour in water (0.75 litre) and potato (1 sweet) cubes. Bring the soup to a simmer, then cook for minutes (5).
7

Next add in conchigliette pasta (150 g) (use [rice] for GF version but add it with [sweet potato] as it takes longer to cook). Cover the pot with a lid and simmer for about minutes (6) before adding shredded [savoy cabbage] and [lacinato kale].
8

Finally add in savoy cabbage (150 g), lacinato kale (100 g) and cannellini beans (1 can). Simmer for further minutes (5) until all the ingredients are fully cooked.
9

Taste and adjust the seasoning.
10

Divide between bowls, drizzle each portion with a teaspoon of extra [extra virgin olive oil] and sprinkle with freshly ground [black pepper].