Minestrone is an Italian classic loved for its simple taste, combining pasta, beans, tomatoes and vegetables with Italian herbs.
However, like most soups, making it at home is a labor of love that requires a long list of ingredients and a fair amount of time.
This simplified recipe allows you to whip it up in just 10 minutes including preparation and cooking time.
The BBC Good Food team shared a recipe for ‘minestrone in minutes’, revealing quick shortcuts that anyone can try at home.
They said: “Quickly release a hearty bowl of soup, perfect for a quick lunch or warming dinner.”
The dish is healthy, vegetarian and low-calorie, 162 kcal per serving. It’s also surprisingly low in salt, at 0.54g per serving, unlike most minestrone dishes.
Plus, the recipe calls for just seven ingredients, including pesto and frozen vegetables, to minimize cooking time and the need for a cocktail of herbs and spices.
BBC Good Food fans who have tried the recipe hailed the “surprisingly tasty” results, noting there was “no cutting”. One person suggested adding a can of black beans or chickpeas for extra protein and substituting a teaspoon of Italian herbs for the pesto if they don’t have it on hand.
Ingredients
1 liter of hot vegetable broth
400 g chopped tomatoes
100 g of thin spaghetti, cut into short pieces
350 g of frozen vegetables
Four tablespoons of pesto
A drizzle of olive oil
Serve with coarsely grated vegetarian Parmesan cheese
Method
Take a medium-sized pot and fill it with chopped tomatoes and stock.
Bring the ingredients to a boil before adding the chopped pieces of spaghetti and let them cook for six minutes or until they are cooked through.
Add the frozen vegetables a few minutes before preparing the pasta and bring the liquid to a boil.
Simmer for a further two minutes until cooked through, then serve hot in bowls with pesto and oil and a sprinkling of Parmesan.
