Healthy Winter Minestrone Recipe for the whole family

Winter Minestrone Recipe

The sheer variety of vegetables combined with cannellini beans is enough to make this a very healthy, fibre-loaded meal. If you use a homemade bone broth for the stock, you will derive even more nutrition and healing from this delicious minestrone.

Serves: 4–6

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Winter Minestrone Recipe

By: Georgia Harding

The sheer variety of vegetables combined with cannellini beans is enough to make this a very healthy, fibre-loaded meal. Plus, your whole family will love!


Servings

4–6

Prep time

Cook time

Recipe


Ingredients

  • 2 tbsp butter or ghee
  • 1 large onion, peeled & finely diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, peeled & chopped
  • 4 rashers free-range (preferably nitrate-free) bacon, diced
  • 2 carrots, peeled & diced
  • 2 sticks celery, sliced
  • Small bunch basil, leaves picked & stems finely chopped
  • 2 × 400g tins diced tomatoes
  • 100mL red wine (optional)
  • 425g tin cannellini beans, drained & well rinsed
  • 1 large or 2 small zucchini, diced
  • 200g silver beet or spinach, leaves chopped
  • 600mL chicken or vegetable stock (homemade is preferable)
  • 50g spaghetti, broken into pieces (put in plastic bag & break by hand or by bashing with rolling pin)
  • Sea salt & pepper, to taste
  • Extra-virgin olive oil and parmesan cheese, to serve

Method


  • In large pot, heat butter or ghee and over a very low heat cook onion, garlic, bacon, carrot, celery and basil stems (reserve leaves for later). You are not frying but rather sweating the vegetables and bacon with the lid ajar for around 20 mins until soft (but not brown).
  • Now add tomato, red wine (optional), cannellini beans, zucchini, silver beet or spinach and stock.
  • Turn up heat to moderate and return to simmer. Add spaghetti and cook for approx. 10 mins or until spaghetti is just cooked.
  • Season with sea salt and pepper to taste.
  • Serve with basil leaves, a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil and parmesan cheese.
  • Tip: To make this vegan, use vegetable stock and don’t add the bacon. You may like to increase the amount of beans.

  

Tried this recipe? Mention @wellbeing_magazine or tag #wbrecipe!

Georgia Harding

Georgia Harding

Georgia Harding is a naturopath with almost 20 years experience, a mother and a passionate health educator. After many years consulting in a busy practice, lecturing in natural medicine and sharing her knowledge on talkback radio, Georgia decided to reach out and share her passion for holistic health by developing her blog, Well Nourished.
On her website, she shares fad-free health advice and intolerance/allergy-friendly recipes to inspire people to live happy, healthy lives and create delicious food memories.

Georgia’s ebook Rise and Shine: A Well Nourished Breakfast will inspire and guide you to prepare the most important meal of the day in just minutes. Her latest ebook The Well Nourished Lunch Box contains over 50 nut-free, allergy-friendly wholefood sweet and savoury snacks, lunches and meals to inspire you to pack a nourishing lunch box that your kids will love to eat and you will love to make.

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