Classic Tuscan Minestrone soup – a classic Italian soup loaded with fresh, seasonal vegetables. Serve with Parmesan for topping and crusty Italian bread.
One of my favorite soups for a cool fall day is classic Tuscan Minestrone. The mixture of vegetables, stock, and pasta makes for a hearty lunch or satisfying dinner.
The list of ingredients may look long, but it is not complicated. This recipe can be easily executed by even the most novice cook and will be enjoyed by the entire family. I usually serve minestrone with crispy bread sticks or garlic toast.
How to Make Classic Tuscan Minestrone
Prep the onion, carrot, celery, garlic, cabbage, parsley, and basil and set aside.
In a large soup pot or Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion, carrot, celery, and garlic. Cook, stirring frequently, for 3-4 minutes or until the onion is translucent.
Add the cabbage and cook, stirring, for 1 additional minute. I used savoy cabbage, but any green cabbage is perfectly fine.
Add the stock, tomatoes, parsley, basil, Italian seasoning, bay leaf, and Parmesan rind (if using). Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer, partially covered, for 30 minutes.
About the Parmesan rind – as I said, it’s optional but I do highly recommend it. It gives your soup a really lovely flavor. If you don’t happen to have a Parm rind hanging out in your fridge, ask the deli at your grocery store. They just might give you one (or two or three) for the asking.
Add the zucchini, garbanzo beans, and green beans and simmer for an additional 10 minutes. Remove and discard the bay leaf and Parmesan rind.
While the soup simmers, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat and cook the pasta according to the package directions. Drain. Add the cooked pasta to the soup pot and season the soup to taste with salt and pepper.
Serve immediately. Pass grated Parmesan separately.
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Tuscan Minestrone
Ingredients
- 1 medium onion diced
- 1 large carrot peeled and sliced
- 1 celery rib sliced
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 2 cups shredded green cabbage
- ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 5 cups vegetable stock
- 28 ounces canned diced tomatoes
- 2 teaspoons dried Italian seasoning
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 Parmesan rind optional
- 1 small zucchini diced
- 15 ounces garbanzo beans drained and rinsed
- 4 ounces tender green beans trimmed, cut into 3/4” pieces
- 4 ounces small shell shaped pasta
- Salt and pepper to taste
- ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan for garnish
Instructions
- Prep the onion, carrot, celery, garlic, cabbage, parsley, and basil and set aside.
- In a large soup pot or Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion, carrot, celery, and garlic. Cook, stirring frequently, for 3-4 minutes or until the onion is translucent. Add the cabbage and cook, stirring, for 1 additional minute.
- Add the stock, tomatoes, parsley, basil, Italian seasoning, bay leaf and Parmesan rind (if using). Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer, partially covered, for 30 minutes.
- Add the zucchini, garbanzo beans, and green beans and simmer for an additional 10 minutes. Remove and discard the bay leaf and Parmesan rind.
- While the soup simmers, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat and cook the pasta according to the package directions. Drain. Add the cooked pasta to the soup pot and season the soup to taste with salt and pepper.
- Serve immediately. Pass grated Parmesan separately.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information is calculated by software based on the ingredients in each recipe. It is an estimate only and is provided for informational purposes. You should consult your healthcare provider or a registered dietitian if precise nutrition calculations are needed for health reasons.
I’m Lana Stuart, an award-winning cookbook author, food blogger, and lifelong cook raised deep in Southwest Georgia. I started Lana’s Cooking in 2009 to share the tried-and-true recipes I grew up with. Around here, the food is full of flavor, the traditions run deep, and there’s always room at the table.
How much is a serving???
The nutrition information is figured on 8 total servings for the recipe. So a serving would be 1/8 of the whole recipe.
Very Yummy and filling soup! It seemed like a lot of work (for this old, slow gal)
but I prepped everything as Lana suggested and it took about an hour total. Well worth the many meals it makes. My only “cheat” was cooking the noodles in the soup during the last 10 to 12 minutes. A definite Keeper.
Thank you, Lana 😋
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Jeanne!
My favorite soup is french onion–the gooey cheese and toasted bread makes it even better! Cream of mushroom, ox tail, and chicken tortilla soup would all have to be runners up, though
Thanks so much for this wonderful soup recipe. As the fall weather settles in, a nice hot cup of soup is just what the “doctor ordered”. Thanks again.
Gail
My favorite soup is beef barley.
I love soups! My very favorite one is the one I made tonight; Cheesy-bacon-potato soup. Oh, so good.