Minestrone

Since my family is Italian, I can be pretty picky about Italian food. I have made minestrone a few times, trying to perfect it so it's just like my mom's. I finally got it perfect last summer, but I thought I'd give Fannie's version a shot anyway. It wasn't as good as my mom's, but I was pleasantly surprised that it was pretty good, since some of her recipes have come up way short. After all, no one can cook like our moms. That's the whole reason I picked this cookbook when I decided to undertake this whole learning-to-cook adventure.

Onward to my adaptation of Fannie's minestrone.

1 c. dried white beans (I used Great Northern)
4 quarts water
tsp salt

Onions in the pot with herbs.

1/4 c. olive oil
1/4 c. butter
tbsp dried parsley flakes (or handful fresh)
2 onions
1 tsp. thyme (fresh if possible)
4 tomatoes
2 carrots
8 small kale leaves
2 c chopped cabbage
2 c sliced zucchini
2 tsp dried basil (or fresh if you have it!)
1/2 c. parmesan cheese, plus extra for garnish

Optional: potatoes, green beans, pasta, corn, green peppers, celery stalks and leaves, substitute beef broth for 2-4 c. of water

After addition of pureed beans.

• Soak the beans about 8 hrs (longer is fine) in 1 quart water. You can soak them overnight, or, if you know you're making this for dinner, put them in the water first thing in the morning, and they'll be soaked by the time you're ready to make dinner. 
• Drain water from beans once soaked, add 2 quarts of water and cook in a pot with a lid for about 1-1.5 hrs or until soft.
• When beans are done, add olive oil and butter to a large pot (do not overheat--oil should not smoke)
• Chop onions and add them to pot along with parsley and thyme
• Stir onions frequently for about 2 minutes
• Between stirring, pour beans and their liquid into a blender or food processor and process until smooth. Add to the pot.
• Chop carrots and add to pot
• Chop kale and add to pot. If you don't have kale, you can use any kind of greens. Fannie calls for Swiss chard. You could use spinach, etc, just make sure you adjust cooking times. Spinach or Swiss chard should go in after all the vegetables, since they take very little time to cook. I used kale, adding it here because it takes a while to cook.
• Chop tomatoes and add to pot
• Cover and simmer 15 minutes
• Add zucchini, cabbage and 1 quart water (or beef broth). I just used water. I had blanched my cabbage earlier this summer, so I used that. It cooled the pan down a lot, since it was still frozen, so I waited until the soup began to simmer again before starting the timer.
• Cook for 20 more minutes
• Add basil and 1/2 c. parmesan, stir and adjust seasonings. I added some oregano at this point, along with the basil, and some more salt. 
• Garnish with  more parmesan.

This looks all complicated from the long set of directions, but it's really not. It's time consuming to chop all those veggies, but it's not stressful if you don't worry about adding everything at once. I tried to add each thing in order, then go on with chopping the next thing and adding it as I went. It turned out pretty well, though I realized when it was almost done that I didn't have any parmesan. It was much better as leftovers when I added parmesan. But when I made it, I just garnished with regular grated cheese. It wasn't as good without parmesan.

Simmering in the pot.

Still, it was really good despite the fact that unlike my mom's, it doesn't have potatoes, noodles, garbanzos, or green beans. Since I don't have any of those things, it worked out well. It's the flavor that really makes it minestrone, and this one has it, at least more so than any restaurant minestrone I've had. So I'd say it's a success. I'd make it again for sure, especially if I didn't have a recipe for minestrone already. And I think next time I make it like my mom's, I'm going to change up the beans and do them as Fannie does. I really liked the thickness they added to the broth.