Katzen S Minestrone Vegetarian Recipes

KATZEN'S MINESTRONE (VEGETARIAN)

Steps:

• Part One: The Broth.
• Remove the papery skins from the garlic heads and break them into cloves.
• Whack the cloves with the broad side of a wide knife.
• Combine everything up to and including the thyme in a large pot and bring to a boil.
• Cover, lower the heat, and simmer for an hour.
• Strain the stock and use right away, or refrigerate in a sealed container for up to four days, or freeze up to six months.
• Part Two: The Soup.
• Sauté onions in oil, until they are starting to soften.
• Add carrots, peppers, zucchini, garlic, basil, oregano, chili flakes, and turn down to medium-low and cover, stirring frequently, until the veggies start to soften a bit.
• Add diced tomatoes and broth, and season with salt and pepper.
• Bring to a simmer, cover, and allow to cook for 45 minutes or so.
• Add drained and rinsed beans.
• Add pasta, and cool immediately or pasta will start to break down and fall apart.

VEGETARIAN MINESTRONE

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the onion, carrot, celery, garlic, salt, rosemary, black pepper and crushed red pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are just tender, 8 to 10 minutes.
• Stir in the broth, 2 cups water, the cannellini beans, tomatoes, zucchini and vinegar. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; reduce the heat to medium low and simmer until the zucchini is just tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in the collard greens and simmer until the greens are tender, about 2 minutes. Stir in the orzo. Season with salt. Top with the shredded parmesan.
• Photograph Courtesy of Time Inc. Books/Alison Miksch.

PERFECT VEGETARIAN MINESTRONE WITH OPTIONAL SAUSAGE

Steps:

• In a large soup pot, warm the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion, celery, and carrot and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes until soft.
• Add the garlic and saute, stirring, for about 1 minute.
• Add the potatoes, squash, broth, tomatoes, beans, sage, thyme, bay leaves, and Parmesan rind. Continue cooking over medium heat for about 10 minutes, until the soup comes to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer soup for 1 to 2 hours (I prefer 2 hours to really get the flavors mingling).
• About 20 minutes before you're ready to serve the soup, cook the pasta to al dente, according to your package directions. Drain add to the soup along with the zucchini and parsley. Continue to simmer for about 20 minutes, then taste and add additional salt and pepper if desired.
• If adding sausage to all or part of the soup, heat the tablespoon of olive oil in a medium saucepan and brown the sausage completely, breaking it up into small pieces. Remove any excess oil.
• If adding sausage to only half of the soup, ladle just under half of the soup into the saucepan, over the drained sausage. This should be about 4 - 5 cups of soup. If you're adding sausage to the entire batch, just stir it directly into your pot of soup.
• Remove bay leaves, taste again, and adjust seasonings if desired.
• Serve sprinkled with shredded Parmesan cheese, if desired.