Beef & Butter Bean Minestrone Soup
Discover this hearty and nutritious Beef & Butter Bean Minestrone Soup, a tasty crowd-pleaser perfect for lunch or dinner. This amazing recipe swaps pasta for beans, adding extra yumminess to every spoonful. With a few simple steps, this effortless meal is easy to tweak according to the vegetables you have in the house & will make your whole family ask for seconds!
Serves 4-6
Effort: Easy
Prep: 15 mins
Cook: 40 mins
Gluten free
Ingredients
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, finely diced
2 carrot, peeled and diced into 1/4-inch pieces
2 celery stalk, trimmed and diced into 1/4-inch pieces
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
250g beef mince
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp tomato paste
6 cups beef stock (3 tbsp beef stock powder & 6 cups of boiling water)
1 can diced tomato
2 small zucchini, diced
2 cans butter beans
1 dried bay leaf
1 parmesan rind
Fresh parsley
Grated parmesan to serve
Instructions
In a large saucepan or Dutch oven, add the oil and heat over medium heat. Stir in the onion, carrot and celery and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Cook, stirring frequently, until the vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes.
Increase the heat to high and add the beef mince and garlic. Cook until the beef is browned and cooked through, about 6 to 7 minutes.
Stir in the tomato paste & diced tomato and mix to combine.
Add the beef stock, beans, zucchini, parmesan rind and bay leaf. Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat to a low simmer and cook until the liquid has thickened, about 30 minutes.
Remove the parmesan rind & bay leaf and discard. Add a big handful of chopped parsley then season with salt and pepper, to taste.
Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with grated parmesan.
Hints & tips
Parmesan rind - Enhance the soup's flavours by nestling a parmesan cheese rind into the soup as it simmers. This simple step will infuse the entire soup with a delectable, salty parmesan taste that will leave your taste buds wanting more!
Easy swaps - If you are a traditionalist you can use pasta instead of the butter beans. Add an extra 1/2 - 1 cup of water to allow for the pasta absorbing the liquid during the cooking process.
Swap the zucchini for any veg you have on hand such as cabbage, potato, leek or even pumpkin.
Butter beans can be swapped for any bean you have in the cupboard.
Add ins - Add in any extra veggies you like. Wilting chopped spinach or any leafy green would be a great addition.
Serving suggestion - Serve Beef & Butter Bean Minestrone Soup ladled into a bowl & sprinkled with grated parmesan. Serve warm buttery bread on the side.
Portion size - This recipe will serve up to 6 people. A great recipe to make at the start of the week of lunches!
Storage - Store in the fridge for 4-5 days. Suitable of freezing.
