Shelling Bean Minestrone Recipes

MINESTRONE WITH SHELL BEANS AND ALMOND PISTOU

Steps:

• In a large pot over medium-low heat, heat the oil. Tie rosemary, thyme and parsley in a bundle with kitchen string if desired (this makes it easier to fish out later). Add the herbs, leeks, garlic, zucchini or yellow squash, carrot, salt and pepper to the pot and sauté until the vegetables are golden, 10 to 15 minutes.
• Add broth, shell beans, tomatoes, green beans and 4 cups water to the pot. Simmer partly covered until the beans are tender, 30 to 45 minutes. Discard herbs. Thin with a little water if the soup is too thick.
• Prepare the pistou: Pulse the basil, almonds, tomato, Parmesan, garlic and salt in a food processor until basil is chopped and all the ingredients are combined. Drizzle in olive oil while the motor runs and continue processing until a paste forms. Serve the soup with dollops of the pistou, letting people add more as needed.

CLASSIC MINESTRONE

Steps:

• In a large pot, heat oil over medium. Add onion, carrots, celery, red-pepper flakes, rosemary, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion begins to turn golden, 5 to 8 minutes.
• Add tomatoes; cook until some of the liquid evaporates, 1 minute. Add potato, cabbage, cannellini beans, and 7 cups water; bring to a boil. Stir in green beans.
• Reduce to a simmer, and cook until all the vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper; stir in garlic, if using, and basil. Serve sprinkled with Parmesan and, if using, torn basil. Drizzle with more oil, if desired.

THREE BEAN SPRING MINESTRONE

Steps:

• Put the oil in a saucepan over a medium heat, add the shallot, fennel, garlic and a pinch of salt and cook until softened. Drain the beans, reserving the starchy water from half of one can. Tip these into the pan along with the stock, green beans and cheese rind. Cook for 15 mins until the green beans are completely softened.
• Stir in the peas, cook for a couple of mins more, then stir in the lemon zest and grated cheese.

CLASSIC MINESTRONE

Steps:

• In a casserole heat the olive oil. Add the onions and cook until golden, about 5 to 7 minutes. Then add the carrots and celery and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Add the beans, bay leaf and thyme and toss for 1 minute. Then add the beef stock, Parmesan rind (if using), plum tomatoes and their juice, and salt and pepper to taste. (Careful with the amount of salt since Parmesan rind will add a salty flavor.) Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 1 hour. Add the potatoes, zucchini and savoy cabbage and cook for 20 minutes more or until the vegetables are tender. Finally, add your pasta and cook, covered, for about 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper, ladle into bowls and serve with some pesto.

SHELLING-BEAN MINESTRONE

Steps:

• Combine shelled beans, fennel bulb, whole shallot, halved carrot, and smashed garlic cloves in a medium pot; add water to cover by 2 inches. Add 1 tablespoon salt and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce heat and simmer until beans are creamy in centers, 40 to 50 minutes. Season to taste toward end of cooking.
• Meanwhile, bring a pot of water to a boil and prepare an ice bath. Using a paring knife, lightly score bottom of each tomato with an X. Add tomatoes to boiling water and blanch until skin pulls away, 20 to 30 seconds. Transfer to ice bath. When cool enough to handle, peel tomatoes, remove seeds, and coarsely chop. (You should have about 2 1/2 cups.)
• Heat oil in a medium pot over medium-high until shimmering. Add chopped fennel and shallot and sliced carrots; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are golden in places, about 5 minutes. Stir in minced garlic; cook until fragrant, 30 seconds. Stir in tomato paste and cook, stirring, until toasted, 1 minute more. Add chopped tomatoes; cook until tomato juices reduce slightly, about 3 minutes. Stir in pole beans and water or stock; season. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and partially cover. Simmer until vegetables are tender and flavors meld, about 30 minutes.
• Cook pasta in a pot of salted boiling water until al dente; drain. Stir 2 cups cooked shelling beans into soup; season with salt and vinegar to taste. Just before serving, stir in greens. Divide pasta and soup among bowls, and serve with a drizzle of oil and sprinkles of parsley and red-pepper flakes.

GREEN BEAN MINESTRONE

Steps:

• Fry the onion, garlic, carrot and celery in the olive oil in a large saucepan until tender but not browned. Scoop out and set aside. Fry the pancetta, if using, you won't need to add any more oil but keep the heat low until it starts to give off fat. Fry until browned but not too crisp. Tip into a sieve and drain off any excess fat. Put the carrot mixture back into the pan with the pancetta and add the bay leaf, plenty of seasoning and the stock. Bring to a simmer, add the pasta and cook for 5 mins.
• Top and tail the green and runner beans, slice both into lengths that will easily fit on a spoon and add to the pot with the broad beans. Cook for 3 mins, then add the cabbage. Bring back to a simmer and cook for 2 mins. Spoon the pesto onto the top of the soup just before serving and serve with the bread.