Tex Mex Minestrone Food

MINESTRONE SOUP WITH PASTA, BEANS AND VEGETABLES

Steps:

• In a slow cooker, combine broth, tomatoes, beans, carrots, celery, onion, thyme, sage, bay leaves, and 1/2 teaspoon each salt and black pepper. Cover and cook on LOW for 6 to 8 hours or on HIGH for 3 to 4 hours.
• Thirty minutes before the soup is done cooking, add ditalini, zucchini and spinach. Cover and cook 30 more minutes. Remove bay leaves and season, to taste, with salt and black pepper. Ladle soup into bowls and sprinkle parmesan cheese over top. Garnish with basil, if desired.

16 MIN-ESTRONE

Steps:

• Add water and salt to a pot for pasta and bring to a boil. Add the stock to a pot and heat over medium-high heat until hot.
• Put a large pot over medium heat and add the olive oil. Add the chicken, sprinkle with salt and pepper and cook, stirring, until the chicken begins to brown, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Meanwhile, add the pasta to the boiling water and cook according to the package instructions.
• Add the celery, bell pepper, onion, carrot and zucchini to the pot with the chicken. Add the red pepper flakes and season with salt and pepper. Cook until the vegetables begin to soften, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes, beans, basil, oregano and hot stock. Bring to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper.
• Drain the pasta and add it to the soup. Stir in the chopped parsley. Serve with a dollop of pesto and a sprinkling of Parmesan.

TEX-MEX MINESTRONE RECIPE

Steps:

• Brown meat in large saucepan; drain.
• Add all remaining ingredients except cheese; mix well. Bring to boil; simmer on medium-low heat 8 min. or until pasta is tender, stirring occasionally.
• Serve topped with cheese.

TEX-MEX MINESTRONE

Steps:

• In a 3-quart size saucepan, brown the ground beef. Drain off any excess fat.
• Add remaining ingredients, (except the cheese) and stir.
• Bring soup to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer.
• Simmer the soup for about 5-8 minutes, or until pasta is cooked, and soup has heated through.
• Ladle soup into bowls.
• Sprinkle each bowl with desired amount of cheese.
• (Adding cheese cuts down on the 'heat', so soup isn't too hot 'n spicy.).
• Yield: 3-4 servings.
• Note: I didn't have a bottled Italian dressing on hand, so I used a home-made Italian Dressing, (which I made from a packet I had purchased from Aldi's).