This is one of our favourite soup recipes. We try to make this soup at least once a month, but if we can get the produce cheap enough, we will make it more than that.
Leftovers of this soup also taste great!
Slow Cooker Minestrone Soup (Print this recipe)
Ingredients:
- 1/4 Onion, Minced
- 2 Cups Spinach
- 2 Cups Small Pasta, Cooked
- 2 Large Carrots, Chopped
- 2 Celery Stalks, Chopped
- 1 Can Diced Tomatoes
- 3 Cups Chicken Broth
- 1 Chunk of Parmesan Cheese Rind
- 1 Teaspoon Basil
- 3 Garlic Cloves, Minced
- 1/2 Teaspoom Thyme
- Salt & Pepper
- Parmesan Cheese
- 1 Kidney Beans, Drained & RinsedInstructions:
1. In a slow cooker/crock pot, combine tomatoes, beans, broth, onions, celery, carrots, herbs, garlic, parmesan cheese rind, salt & pepper. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours.2. about 35 minutes before the soup is finished, add spinach and cook for another 25 minutes – then add cooked pasta, cook for 5 minutes more.
3. Remove parmesan cheese rind and ladle soup into bowls. Top with extra parmesan cheese.
Makes 4 servings.
Pearla: We always buy fresh parmesan and that’s how we get the rind. I’m not sure if you can purchase ONLY the rinds.. but I’m sure some delis would sell them. Might be worth it to ask.
Cassie, where do you get the rind? Any way of getting the rind without buying the cheese itself? I find fresh parmesan cheese delicious, however the price can be through the roof. Looking forward to trying this recipe!
Maureen: I’m so glad you liked it! I love adding parmesan cheese rinds to soups.. so yummy!
Made this yesterday in the crockpot and reheating today. Yummy! Have always wanted to use parmesan rind in a soup as I heard it was good. Created a nice flavour and the tomatoes I used were the fire roasted ones with a smokey taste. I’ve kept the pasta out and will add when we eat it. I find that it can soak up the broth when I add them. Thanks for the recipe!
M-E: I’m so glad you both enjoyed it!
Just wanted to say I made this last night, and we loved it! The boyfriend, who typically isn’t a big fan of soup, even went for seconds. THANKS!
Amanda: About 6 1/2 hours.
Diane: Around 800mL.
How long do you put in slow cooker ?
What size can of diced tomatoes?
GRP: great idea! I have a sealer but it isn’t that great, though I have never tried it on veggies-might have to pull it out again!
Teachermum: Thats a good idea to check the damaged or old produce rack for soup stuffs. I have that seal a meal thing , and use it so often. What I do especially in the winter months to make sure i always have enough of certain veggies left over for my soups or any other dish i make that people always seem to ask for just out of the blue…When i get the fresh or frozen veggies…I blanch and prepare the fresh for freezing and get them measured out into the amounts needed for each dish (going by the menu plan i almost always have made up). I then seal them up in individual packages and put them in the freezer. I also do this with extra cheese that ive got and dont think i will use right away….except i dont freeze my cheeses. For me…this saves me time and keeps my veggies so fresh tasting for a quite a lot longer than just the bag they come in from the super (or not so super) market. just thought i would mention this. I hope its ok to do this, as im pretty new to the site and dont want to step on any toes.
This does look good. I make one VERY similar to this one. The differences being i use a whole small onion,and 1 cup each spinich& arugula, and i add the spices thyme, sea salt, fresh ground black pepper, and i add a pinch of cayene. Im going to try your way next time and see how much of a difference there is. It looks amazing I cant wait to try it. Thanks for sharing
This is a delicious-sounding recipe! Thanks for sharing it, Cassie. I buy the “real” parmesan that I grate, and then I always have a leftover rind. As much as I try to grate every last little bit, I never know what to do with that darn rind! Now I’ll use it in this soup.
If you have any more recipes with parmesan rinds, please share them too!
MMMM, I love soup and that recipe looks tasty-saving it for sure! I’ve never tasted a soup yet that didn’t taste better the next day.
Hubby would be happy to never eat soup…I could eat it every day! As long as there isn’t too much broth he doesn’t mind and does eat anything I put in front of him…you literally can stand a spoon up in it though!
Great use of veggies that are past their prime also-pays to check the “damaged or old” produce rack if you have soup in mind.