Recipe: Crock pot minestrone soup

So this recipe is one that I'm trying this week, I haven't tried it yet but it looks delicious! My favorite part may possibly be that you can put everything in a crock pot and leave it to cook alllll day! So when you get home from work you have an amazing smelling house and dinner all ready - enjoy!

Crock pot minestrone soup

Minestrone soup is a classic hearty Italian soup with tomatoes, white beans, pasta and vegetables. You can use Swiss chard or kale instead of spinach if you wish and you don't have to puree the beans, it's just my preference. I modified this for the crock pot but I prefer to make this soup on the stove and let it simmer for about 45 minutes before adding the zucchini and pasta. The crock pot however is so convenient when you are working all day and want to come home to a cooked meal. I highly recommend adding the Parmesan cheese rind. This is also great with mini turkey meatballs, or even some sauteed crumbled turkey sausage.

Crock Pot Minestrone Soup

Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes

Servings: 6 • Serving Size: 1 1/2 cups

Calories: 215.7 • Fat: 0.7 g • Protein: 8.7 g • Carb: 42.0 g • Fiber: 6.7 g  

1/2 onion, chopped

1 cup carrots, chopped

1 celery stalk, chopped

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes

1 (15 oz) can white beans, drained, rinsed (cannellini or navy)

3 cups fat free chicken or vegetable broth

2 bay leaves

2 tbsp chopped fresh basil

1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves

salt and fresh pepper

3 potatoes, chopped

2 cups chopped fresh or frozen (defrosted) spinach

2 cups cooked small pasta like ditalini or elbows (al dente)

(Optional) parmesan cheese to top (extra pts)

Rinse and drain beans. Puree beans with 1 cup of the broth in a blender.

In a crock pot, combine broth, tomatoes, pureed beans, carrots, celery, onion, garlic, herbs, salt and pepper. Cover and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours.

Forty minutes before the soup is done cooking, add spinach. Cover and cook 30 more minutes. Add cooked pasta, cook 10 minutes more. Remove bay leaves, rosemary sprig, and season to taste with salt and black pepper. Ladle soup into bowls and top with extra parmesan cheese.