This vegetarian creamy minestrone soup is loaded with sautéed vegetables simmered in diced tomatoes and loaded with Parmesan cheese flavor. Cannellini beans are blended with the broth to create a subtle creamy texture that thickens the soup to make it a filling, hearty, meatless meal. Serve it with a piece of crusty bread or on its own. This healthy soup delivers tons of filling, low calorie nutrients without sacrificing any flavor.
Parmesan Rind. Explained.
I really do love cooking for my family, but as a mom of three young boys, my time is limited, so when I see an ingredient I don’t use regularly, I usually try the recipe and skip the mystery ingredient or move on to another recipe. I’ve been skipping the “Parmesan rind” in my minestrone soup for years. It’s not something I usually have on hand and my minestrone was still pretty good without it. BIG mistake.
For cheese lovers like myself, the rind is worth getting acquainted with. There is a ton of cheese flavor packed in the protective outer layer of a Parmesan cheese wheel (which develops as it ages). If you add that rind to sauces or soups, it adds BIG, cheesy flavor that truly takes the dish to the next level.
You can find a slice of Parmesan cheese with the rind at the cheese counter in the deli section of your grocery store. You’ll use the rind for the preparation of the soup and the cheese portion to top each bowl of soup for extra cheesy flavor. For this creamy minestrone soup, I’d suggest using an 8-ounce piece of Parmesan cheese with the rind. The rind will infuse cheesy flavor into the broth, and the cheese portion is grated or shaved and placed on top of each bowl of soup.
Prefer the slow cooker?
This creamy minestrone soup is delicious and super simple using the slow cooker. Here’s how it’s done…
- Sauté the onion, celery and carrots on the “sauté” setting for 5-7 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté for one minute. Add the tomato paste and sauté for an additional 2-3 minutes. If your slow cooker doesn’t have a “sauté” setting, you’ll need to use a pan on the stovetop and transfer the vegetables and tomato paste mixture into the slow cooker.
- Cut the rind off of the slice of the Parmesan and set the cheese portion aside. Add the rind into the soup along with the broth, Italian seasoning, diced tomatoes and red kidney beans. Cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 3-4 hours.
- While the soup cooks, grate or shave the cheese so that it’s ready to top each bowl of soup once it’s done cooking.
- Once the soup is done cooking, use a ladle to remove 1 cup of the broth from the soup. Add the cup of broth and the cannellini beans to a blender and blend until smooth. Add the creamy beans back into the soup and stir with a whisk. Taste and add salt and pepper as needed.
- Serve each bowl of soup with about 1-2 tablespoons of grated or shaved Parmesan cheese.
Anything goes…into creamy minestrone soup
This soup is one of my favorites because swapping out ingredients for what’s on hand is easy. The broth is so delicious that almost anything goes. I love to make this soup at the end of the week when I have vegetables leftover from other recipes that I don’t want to go to waste. I’ve included my favorite ingredients in this recipe, but below are some suggestions for substitutions or add ons. If you have these on hand, throw them in. Anything goes when it comes to minestrone.
- Pasta – I’ve skipped the small pasta in this recipe for a few reasons. I eat gluten-free and I’ve found that most gluten-free pastas don’t hold their form in soups. Also, the creamed beans give this soup a thicker consistency and I think the pasta isn’t necessary with a thicker broth. That said, if you miss the pasta, feel free to add it in!
- Beans – I love red kidney beans, but garbanzo beans (chickpeas), great northern beans or cannellini beans are all great in this soup.
- Frozen green beans, peas or corn – If I’m using frozen vegetables I prefer to add them at the end of the cooking process. They only need to simmer in the hot broth for about 10 minutes to defrost.
- Zucchini can be used in place of or in addition to the Summer squash.
- Mushrooms are not an ingredient traditionally used in minestrone soup, but if you have them, go for it! I’ve used drained canned mushrooms which I added along with the broth, and fresh mushrooms which I sautéed along with the onions, celery and carrots.
- Fresh spinach or baby spinach is great in this recipe. To add spinach, simply throw about two cups into the soup during the last 1-2 minutes of cook time. Be careful not to overcook it as it will turn to soggy mush.
- Sliced Italian sausage or Kielbasa is a great option if you’d like to add a little extra protein. Simply sauté it along with the onion, carrots and celery.
Creamy Minestrone Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 onion chopped
- 3-4 celery stalks chopped
- 1 cup carrots chopped
- 2-3 cloves garlic finely chopped
- ⅓ cup tomato paste
- 8 ounce piece of Parmesan cheese with the rind You'll use the rind to flavor the soup and the cheese to add to each bowl as a topping.
- 4 cups vegetable broth or chicken broth My favorite vegetable broth is Better than Bouillon Seasoned Vegetable Base but any veggie broth will do.
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning I like to keep it simple by using an Italian seasoning rather than individual seasonings. Italian seasoning has all the important Italian flavors like basil, oregano, parsley and thyme in one seasoning to keep it easy!
- 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes halved.
- 2 15-ounce cans red kidney beans drained and rinsed
- 15 ounce can cannellini beans drained and rinsed
- Salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Sauté the onion, celery and carrots in a large soup pan or dutch oven for 5-7 minutes or until softened. Add the garlic and sauté for an additional minute.
- Add the tomato paste and stir to combine. Continue to cook on the sauté setting for 2-3 minutes while stirring.
- Cut the rind off of the slice of the Parmesan cheese and set the cheese portion aside. Add the rind into the soup along with the broth, Italian seasoning, diced tomatoes and red kidney beans.
- Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes.
- While the soup cooks, grate or shave the cheese so that it’s ready to top each bowl of soup once it’s done cooking.
- Once the soup is done cooking, remove the Parmesan rind from the soup. Use a ladle to remove 1 cup of the broth from the soup. Add the cup of broth and the cannellini beans to a blender and blend until smooth. Add the creamy beans back into the soup and stir with a whisk. Taste and add salt and pepper as needed.
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