Tuscan Bean Soup

Okay, I am such a liar, lol! I haven't been on the computer much but I have a chance now to post a scrumptious recipe. As I said before, our family loves soup, so here is another winner. I didn't have a single complaint on this one and the ENTIRE pot was gone when dinner was over, and it is packed with nutrition.

Tuscan Bean Soup

Ingredients:
3 tbsp olive oil
2 small- medium onions or one large one, chopped
2 carrots, sliced
4 garlic cloves, crushed
2 celery sticks
1 fennel bulb, trimmed and chopped
2 large zucchini, sliced
14 oz. can diced or crushed tomatoes
2 tbsp pesto
3 3/4 C. vegetable stock
14 oz. can of navy beans, or any white bean, drained
salt and ground pepper to taste
For the base:
1 tbsp olive oil
1 lb fresh spinach

1. Heat the oil in a large pan. Add the chopped onions, carrots, crushed garlic, celery and fennel and fry gently for about 10 minutes. Add the zucchini and fry for a further 2 min.
2. Stir in the chopped tomatoes, pesto, stock and beans and bring to the boil. Lower the heat, cover and simmer gently for 25-30 min., until the vegetables are completely tender. Season with salt and black pepper to taste.
3. Heat the oil in a frying pan and fry the spinach for 2 min., or until wilted. Spoon the spinach into heated soup bowls, then ladle the soup over the spinach. Just before serving, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with ground pepper.


When I made this I used a little bit more pesto than it called for. The fennel really gives it a nice flavor too. I also served mine with multi-colored spiral noodles, per Calista's request. She ate hers with the noodles instead of the spinach. I also made multi-grain bread with it, yummy!! Everyone asked me to make this a LOT more!

Oh, and it only took me about 15 minutes to make this one and about ten minutes of just simmering before we ate it, a HUGE plus for busy families!