Minestrone Soup (serves 6-8)

Minestrone is a classic Italian soup and perfect for a cold winter’s day. It may sound like a lot of work when you read the list of ingredients, but it’s really just all about chopping and combining everything together.

Ingredients:

2 onions, finely chopped
3 carrots, chopped
3 sticks celery, chopped
2 large potatoes, chopped into squares
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 cup green beans, chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter
1 ½ litres water
1 cube beef stock
1 cube vegetable stock
2 tins peeled, chopped tomatoes
1 tin cannellini beans
100g spaghetti
salt and pepper, to taste
parmesan cheese, grated for garnish

Method:

1. Heat the oil and butter in a large pot, add onions and cook till soft and golden brown.
2. Add the carrots, celery, potatoes, garlic, green beans and tomatoes. Cook for 2-3 minutes.
3. Add the water and stock cubes.
4. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and let it simmer semi-covered for 1-1 ½ hours. The soup should be fairly thick at this point. If it is not, leave the lid off and simmer for a further 15 minutes.
5. Add the beans and spaghetti, season with salt and pepper and bring to the boil for approximately 15 minutes.
6. Serve with garlic bread and a little grated parmesan.