Winter Minestrone With Butternut Squash (Printable)

Hearty Italian soup with butternut squash, kale, beans, and pasta in a rich tomato broth—perfect comfort food.

# What You Need:

→ Vegetables

01 - 2 tablespoons olive oil
02 - 1 medium yellow onion, diced
03 - 2 medium carrots, peeled and diced
04 - 2 celery stalks, diced
05 - 3 garlic cloves, minced
06 - 1 small butternut squash (approximately 1.5 pounds), peeled and diced
07 - 1 medium zucchini, diced
08 - 1 cup chopped fresh kale, stems removed
09 - 1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes with juices

→ Legumes & Grains

10 - 1 can (15 ounces) cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
11 - 0.5 cup small pasta (ditalini or elbow macaroni)

→ Liquids

12 - 6 cups vegetable broth
13 - 1 cup water

→ Spices & Seasonings

14 - 1 teaspoon dried oregano
15 - 1 teaspoon dried thyme
16 - 0.5 teaspoon dried rosemary
17 - 0.25 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
18 - Salt and black pepper to taste

→ Finishing

19 - 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
20 - Grated Parmesan cheese for serving (optional)

# How To Make It:

01 - Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add diced onion, carrots, and celery. Sauté for 5 to 6 minutes until vegetables are softened.
02 - Stir in minced garlic and cook for 1 minute until fragrant.
03 - Add diced butternut squash and zucchini to the pot. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
04 - Pour in diced tomatoes with juices, vegetable broth, and water. Bring mixture to a boil.
05 - Stir in oregano, thyme, rosemary, and crushed red pepper flakes. Reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes.
06 - Add cannellini beans and pasta to the soup. Simmer for 8 to 10 minutes until pasta is tender and squash is soft.
07 - Stir in chopped kale and cook for 2 to 3 minutes until wilted. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper to taste.
08 - Remove from heat and stir in fresh parsley. Ladle into bowls and top with grated Parmesan cheese if desired.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • It comes together in under an hour, which means you can go from craving comfort to actually tasting it without losing your mind.
  • The butternut squash gets so tender and almost creamy that you won't miss anything heavier.
  • Kale softens into the broth instead of staying tough and bitter, which converts even the skeptics.
02 -
  • Don't add the pasta until the very end—if you add it too early, it absorbs all the broth and turns the soup into something between soup and stew, which is its own thing but not what we're making here.
  • Kale is tougher than it looks until it gets a real cooking, so don't panic when it looks like you're adding an entire bushel—it will shrink down to something reasonable.
03 -
  • If you have a Parmesan rind sitting around, drop it into the pot during simmering and remove it before serving—it dissolves flavor into the broth that tastes like someone's been cooking here for decades.
  • Don't be afraid to taste as you go and adjust the seasoning at the end; minestrone is forgiving and wants to taste like exactly what you need on that particular day.
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