Slow Cooker Minestrone Soup
Well, the weather is getting cooler, so that means soup weather! I was craving it this week, so I used my handy slow cooker. I used the 4 quart pot (it has a 2 and 6 quart also). I was planning to have an easy day, but it got super busy. Thankfully, the cooker did all the work and I took all the credit! And I froze the extra for even quicker meals in the next few weeks! We enjoyed this dinner with a salad and some fresh Italian bread.
Ingredients
1 onion, chopped
1 cup carrots, chopped (I only used 1/4 cup)
1 celery stalk, chopped, optional
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 (15 ounce) can white beans, rinsed (cannellini or navy) or 2 cups cooked beans
4 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 (28 ounce) can of diced tomatoes
1 oz chuck of parmesan rind
1 rosemary sprig (or 1 tsp dried)
2 bay leaves
2 tbsp fresh basil (or 2 tsp dried)
1/4 cup fresh Italian parsley, chopped
1 pound frozen meatballs, optional
2 medium zucchini, chopped
1 box elbow or shell pasta, cooked al dente
extra parmesan cheese for top
- To ease preparation in the morning, chop all vegetables the evening before and assemble.
- Combine vegetables, beans, broth, tomatoes, parmesan rind, herbs, meatballs, salt and pepper in slow cooker.
- Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.
- 30 minutes prior to serving, add zucchini.
- Prior to serving, remove parmesan rind, rosemary sprig, and bay leaves.
- Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Serve over pasta and top with extra parmesan cheese.