Saturday, April 9, 2016

Clean Out the Fridge Minestrone - 21 Day Fix Approved!


In my house, by Saturday, the fridge is pretty much empty of anything that can constitute a meal. Sounds familiar on your end too, right?  There are always some veggies still lingering that did not get used for my other meals, and some are starting to turn soft.  I used to toss them out, and boy was that a big mistake!  Don't throw them out!  You can salvage those veggies!  Take all the left over veggies you've got and make a minestrone soup!!  You'll get several meals out of what would have been trash, money that would have gone to waste!

Soups are so easy to make!  Unless you head to the store to get the ingredients fresh, there really is no wrong way to do this and if you don't have everything, no worries, just use what you've got.  

Suggested Ingredients:
2 Tbps Olive Oil
1/2 head of Cabbage
3 Carrots
3 stalks Celery
1 Red Pepper
1 Parsnip
1 Onion
1 Zucchini
3 cloves of Garlic
1 large can of stewed tomatoes
1 can of cannellini beans or garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
Salt/Pepper to taste
For the broth you can use water, chicken stock or vegetable broth
1/2 cup (dry) choice of small pasta, like ditalini, orzo, etc.  Quinoa may be a good option too for protein!


Directions:
Chop up all the veggies into bite size pieces. In a large hot pot, add the olive oil, carrots, celery, onions and garlic.  Turn the heat down so not to burn, and cook for a couple minutes, stirring occasionally until veggies are softened.  Then add in the rest of the vegetables, and continue to cook for a couple more minutes to soften.  Do not let them get brown.  Add in the broth, enough to cover everything.  Add in the tomatoes, beans, salt/pepper.  Cook for at least 1-2 hours on low, or until all the veggies have softened completely.  If you choose to add a pasta, add it in about 20 minutes before serving and turn up the heat a bit to create a gentle boil.   When the pasta has cooked all the way through, you are ready to serve.  Top with freshly grated parmesan cheese and enjoy!!

*You can also add green beans and cauliflower, but I did not have any on hand.

21 Day Fix/Portion Fix Equivalents:
2 cup serving = 1 Green, 1/2 Yellow (If you add the optional cheese, use 1 Blue)

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