Soup with pasta and beans

The first basic step is the same as with so many other of our favorite soup recipes, including, of course,  chicken noodle soup and bean soup. I love sauteing onions, garlic, carrots, and celery to give the soup strong and rich flavor. Then in goes the broth and whatever will be the main ingredients of the soup. Today it’s pasta and cannellini beans. Enjoy!

Recipe   Servings: 8     Calories: 298 per serving

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped (or 2 cubes frozen pulp)
• 2 carrots, peeled, chopped
• 2 celery stalks, chopped
• a small pinch of red pepper flakes or to your taste
• a pinch of dried oregano, thyme, basil (all or any one of these)
• 8-9 cups of chicken or vegetable stock (ok if you combine with some water)
• 4 tomatoes, peeled, cut in pieces (or small can of diced tomatoes)
• a packet of small pasta
• 2 cans cannellini beans
• salt and pepper to taste

How to make: In a big pot, heat the oil. Saute the onion until it becomes clear. About 5 minutes. Add the garlic. Add the chopped carrots and celery stalks. Add the seasonings and cook for about 5 minutes. Add the broth and the tomatoes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Bring to boil and add the pasta. Cook the pasta according to packet instructions. Two to three minutes before the pasta is ready add the beans and cook for a few minutes. Take the pot off the fire.

 Notes and tips:I recently saw this recipe on simply recipes and I quite liked the idea of adding chopped parsley before serving. Also, in this version, I didn’t have fresh tomatoes so I used a can of diced tomatoes. It’s ok but fresh tomatoes are better. This is because the canned tomatoes will not have the opportunity to cook for a long time to integrate well.