Today we’re celebrating the abundance of fall with: SOUP!
Thick, super chunky, veggie-loaded, tomato-based minestrone soup gets a hearty dose of fall flavor in the form of butternut squash, kale, sweet potatoes and lots of sage!
Its a big bowl of comfort for those chilly fall days, and I am so here for it.
Best part? It comes together so quickly (just chop everything and throw it in a pot!), only needs to cook for about 15 minutes, and is just asking to be sprinkled with parmesan, drizzled with a little olive oil, and scooped up with a crusty piece of bread.
I mean, does it get much better than that? I think not.
Let’s make it!
First, we chop all of our vegetables. I’m talking carrot, onion, celery, butternut squash, sweet potatoes, and garlic.
Everything gets piled into a soup pot, sautéed for a few minutes in some olive oil, then topped with fire roasted crushed tomatoes (so much flavor goodness!), veggie broth, lots of fresh sage, salt, and pepper.
The soup gets brought to a boil, your favorite tiny pasta gets added (I used cavatelli here), and everything cooks for 10 minutes, or until the pasta is al dente.
At this point we add in a can of kidney or cannellini beans, some finely diced kale or baby spinach, taste, and voila.
The chunkiest minestrone soup, absolutely loaded with fall vegetables, ready to be scooped into bowls and devoured.
Need more warm, cozy soups in your life? Check out my 15 MINUTE CREAMY VEGAN BROCCOLI SOUP / FALL HARVEST SQUASH SOUP WITH ROASTED CAULIFLOWER / GOLDEN CAULIFLOWER SOUP / SMOKY BUTTERNUT SQUASH + WALNUT CHILI.
If you make this simple, veggie-loaded, vegan-friendly minestrone soup recipe, be sure to let me know how it turns out! Leave a comment below, or take a picture of your soup and share it with me on Instagram so I can see!!
HEARTY FALL MINESTRONE SOUP WITH KALE, BUTTERNUT, AND SWEET POTATOES
Time: 30 minutes
Serves: 4
Ingredients:
- 1 medium butternut squash, ‘neck’ only (see notes)
- 2 medium carrots
- 1 small sweet potato
- 4 stalks celery
- 1 small white or red onion
- 2 large garlic cloves
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 2 teaspoons sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon dried chili flakes
- 28oz can crushed tomatoes (preferably fire-roasted, if you can find them)
- 4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
- 1 sprig fresh sage(to yield 1 tablespoon, minced)
- 1 cup dry, small pasta (such as mini shells)
- 14oz can kidney beans, drained
- 4 large kale leaves
Instructions:
- Peel and dice the butternut, carrots, sweet potato, and onion. Finely dice the celery and garlic.
- Place all chopped veggies into a large soup pot, turn heat to medium-high, and add olive oil, salt, pepper, and chili flakes. Sautee for about 5 minutes, stirring often, until fragrant and beginning to brown.
- Add crushed tomatoes and broth, stirring to combine, and increase heat to high.
- Once soup is boiling, add pasta and reduce heat to medium, so it is boiling, but not bubbling all over your stove. Cook for 10 minutes, or until pasta is al dente.
- While soup cooks, remove sage leaves from their stems and finely mince the leaves, then add them the pot. Remove kale leaves from the stems and finely chop, setting aside.
- Once the pasta is cooked to your liking, add kidney beans and kale to the pot, and stir to combine. Taste and add more salt or pepper, if needed. Turn off heat and let sit for 5-10 minutes, or until cool enough to serve.
- Leftover soup keeps well in the fridge (cooled completely, stored in an airtight container) for up to 5 days, and should be reheated with an extra splash of broth or water.
NOTES:
To make peeling and chopping the butternut faster, I like to use only the ‘neck’, or the long straight portion of the butternut squash here. Simply cut the butternut where the round, seed-filled section is, and save this end for roasting and turning into mashed butternut (or another use). Depending on the size of your squash, you should get between 2-3 cups of diced squash from the ‘neck’ portion alone, which is plenty for this soup!
Feel free to add/substitute any veggies to utilize what’s in season where you live. Cauliflower, green beans, Swiss chard, etc, would all be great here!