Minestrone

Directions

1. 1
   Prepare: 1 cup dried cannellini or borlotti beans (see page 78).
2. 2
   This will yield 2 1/2 to 3 cups of cooked beans.
3. 3
   Reserve the cooking liquid.
4. 4
   Heat in a heavy-bottomed pan over medium heat: 1/4 cup olive oil.
5. 5
   Add: 1 large onion, finely chopped, 2 carrots, peeled and finely chopped.
6. 6
   Cook for 15 minutes, or until tender.
7. 7
   Add: 4 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped, 5 thyme sprigs, 1 bay leaf, 2 teaspoons salt.
8. 8
   Cook for 5 minutes longer.
9. 9
   Add, and bring to a boil: 3 cups water.
10. 10
    When boiling, add: 1 small leek, diced, 1/2 pound green beans, cut into 1-inch lengths.
11. 11
    Cook for 5 minutes, then add: 2 medium zucchini, cut into small dice, 2 medium tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and chopped.
12. 12
    Cook for 15 minutes.
13. 13
    Taste for salt and adjust as necessary.
14. 14
    Add the cooked beans, along with: 1 cup bean cooking liquid, 2 cups spinach leaves, coarsely chopped (about 1 pound).
15. 15
    Cook for 5 minutes.
16. 16
    If the soup is too thick, add more bean cooking liquid.
17. 17
    Remove the bay leaf.
18. 18
    Serve in bowls, each one garnished with: 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, 1 tablespoon or more grated Parmesan cheese.
19. 19
    Follow the recipe, but add 2 finely chopped celery stalks to the soffritto and cook to a rich golden brown.
20. 20
    Instead of thyme, add about 1/2 teaspoon chopped rosemary and 1 teaspoon chopped sage with the garlic.
21. 21
    Borlotti or cranberry beans can be substituted for the cannellini beans.
22. 22
    Omit the green beans, zucchini, fresh tomatoes, and spinach, and use instead 1 bunch kale, stemmed, washed, and chopped; 1 small can of tomatoes, drained and chopped; and 1/2 butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch cubes (about 2 cups).
23. 23
    Cook the tomatoes and kale with the soffritto for 5 minutes, add the water, and cook for 15 minutes.
24. 24
    Add the squash and continue cooking until tender, about 10 to 15 minutes, before adding the cooked beans.
25. 25
    Follow the recipe, but to the soffritto add 2 celery stalks, chopped fine, and cook to a rich golden brown.
26. 26
    Cut up 1/2 head cabbage into bite-size pieces and cook until tender in salted boiling water.
27. 27
    For the green beans, zucchini, and tomatoes, substitute 1 pound turnips and 1/2 pound yellow potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-size pieces.
28. 28
    If the turnips have fresh greens attached, stem, wash, and chop them and add them to the soup with the turnips and potatoes.
29. 29
    Towards the end of the cooking, add the beans and, instead of the spinach, the cooked cabbage.
30. 30
    Instead of carrot in the soffritto, use 1 fennel bulb, trimmed and cut into bite-size pieces.
31. 31
    Do not let it brown.
32. 32
    If green garlic is available, use 2 or 3 stalks, trimmed and chopped, instead of garlic cloves.
33. 33
    Use 2 leeks instead of one.
34. 34
    Add the liquid (half water, half broth, if possible), bring to a boil, and simmer for 10 minutes.
35. 35
    Omit the green beans, zucchini, and tomatoes.
36. 36
    Substitute 1 cup shelled peas (from 1 pound in the pod) and 1/2 pound asparagus, trimmed and sliced on the diagonal into 1/2-inch-thick pieces.
37. 37
    Add with the beans and cook for 5 minutes before adding the spinach.
38. 38
    If not serving this soup right away, cool it down quickly in an ice bath so the asparagus does not lose its bright green color.