I’ve been teaching a 4 week series called “Healthy Eating On A Budget”. We focus on the foods that reduce risk for cancer and other diseases, nourish the body and keep you feeling satisfied.
There are several recipes that we’ve tried and all the participants have really enjoyed them. One of the recipes we made last week is called Chunky Minestrone and comes from the Southern Living Slow Cooker cookbook.
This is a meatless soup that gives you protein through the beans. For more protein, just double the beans! In case you don’t remember, beans are one of the best cancer fighting foods out there!
Beans have lots of phytochemicals, like saponins, protease inhibitors and phytic acid. Not to mention all the other beneficial components like fiber and B vitamins.
Give this one a try and see how you like it!
Chunky Minestrone
- 3 (14-ounce) cans low-sodium fat-free chicken broth
- 2 (14 ½- ounce) cans no-salt-added diced tomatoes with roasted garlic, undrained
- 1 (15.5-ounce) can cannellini beans OR great northern beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed
- 1 cup water
- 1 ½ cups frozen chopped onion, thawed (see Tips)
- 1 medium carrot, chopped
- 1 medium zucchini, quartered and sliced
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- ½ cup uncooked small shell pasta
- ⅔ cup pre-grated Parmesan cheese or part-skim mozzarella cheese
- Combine first 11 ingredients in a 4-quart slow cooker
- Cover and cook on LOW 5 ½ hours. Add pasta and cook on LOW 30 more minutes. Sprinkle each serving with cheese.
- Tips:
- •You can use fresh chopped onion instead of frozen.
- •You can cook this in a regular pot in about 30-45 minutes. I would suggest sauteing the onion and carrots for 5 minutes before adding the other ingredients. Then simply simmer the soup until the carrots are soft and add the pasta for the last 10 minutes.
I made this at home after doing it in class. I used a regular pot, doubled the recipe and froze some. I’m enjoying it for lunch this week!
– Julie
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