"But food is not just a conversational common denominator like the weather is in Britain. The subject, sometimes passionately debated, represents a personal philosophy of life." --Kinta Beevor

Thursday, September 23, 2010

Minestrone Soup

      Today is the first day of autumn and I celebrated by making a big pot of minestrone.  And, if I do say so myself, it's really good.  I get excited when a new vegan recipe turns out to be as good, or better than my non-vegan version of a favorite dish.
     I cooked the kidney beans in a big pot of water.  When the beans were nearly done I added the tomato, TVP, seasonings, fresh cut carrots, celery, onion, and yellow squash. I let the vegetables cook with the beans and water.  I kept the bean cooking water to add a little body to the soup.  I was careful to check the veggies so they didn't overcook to mush.
  Then, I added the frozen veggies, cooked chick peas, fresh spinach, and cooked pasta.  The heat already in the soup warmed these ingredients.
   One of the best things about minestrone is that you can vary the ingredients depending on what you have on hand.
  • kidney beans
  • no salt added diced tomatoes
  • no salt added crushed tomatoes
  • TVP (texturized vegetable protein)
  • garlic
  • bay leaf
  • basil
  • parsley
  • oregano
  • Spike no salt seasoning
  • turmeric
  • hot sauce
  • celery
  • carrots
  • onion
  • yellow squash
  • pasta
  • chick peas
  • frozen cut green beans
  • frozen corn
  • fresh spinach

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