Sausage Minestrone Soup

This sausage minestrone soup has all the goodness of the classic vegetable soup but with an extra kick from flavorful Italian sausage.

Course Soup

Cuisine American

Keyword Italian sausage, vegetables

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 50

Total Time 1 5

Servings

Calories 457kcal

Author Elizabeth

Ingredients

1½ teaspoon Olive Oil
1 pound Mild Italian Sausage casing removed torn into pieces or use bulk sausage
1 medium Onion small dice
2 Carrots cut into rounds, half rounds or diced
1 Celery Rib sliced or diced
3-4 Garlic Cloves minced
1½ teaspoon Italian Seasoning
¼ teaspoon Black Pepper
1 14.5 ounce can Diced Tomatoes do not drain
6 cups Chicken Broth
½ cup Small Pasta shells, ditalini, etc.
1 15.5 ounce can Cannellini Beans drained and rinsed (also called white kidney beans)
1 medium Zucchini quartered and sliced into bite sized pieces
2-3 ounces Fresh Spinach about two generous handfuls
Salt to taste if needed at the end
Grated Parmesan Cheese for serving optional

Instructions

Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy pot over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, but not smoking add the Italian sausage.
Cook the sausage for 4-5 minutes until browned, stirring frequently and breaking up any large pieces. Drain excess oil (see notes)
Lower the heat to medium and add the onions, carrots and celery to the pot. Cook for 4-5 minutes until the onions start to soften and are translucent, stirring frequently.
Add the garlic, Italian seasoning and black pepper to the pot, cook for 1 minute, stirring frequently.
Next, add the tomatoes and chicken broth. Stir while gently scraping any bits off the bottom of the pot.
Raise the heat to high and bring the broth to a boil (it will take about 5 minutes). Lower the heat to medium-low, cover the pot and simmer the soup for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Raise the heat to medium and add the pasta. Let the broth come to a boil again. It should happen right away but if it does not, raise the heat a little. Then drop it back to medium once it is boiling.
Cover the pot and cook for 5 minutes. Stir it occasionally to make sure the pasta is not sticking to the bottom.
Still on medium heat, add the cannellini beans and zucchini, stir well and cover the pot. Cook for 10 minutes until the pasta is tender. Stir the soup occasionally, again making sure the pasta is not sticking to the bottom.
Finally, add the spinach to the pot and stir until it starts to wilt. Cover the pot and cook the soup for 3- 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Taste and add salt if needed. As a reference we did not add extra to ours.
Serve with parmesan cheese, if desired and enjoy.

Notes

Depending on the sausage used there could be excess oil after browning. To remove it from the pot, follow these easy steps: Take the pot off the heat. Pile the browned sausage to one side of the pot and tip it slightly so the oil pools opposite the meat. Use a ladle or large spoon to scoop most (or all) of it out. Level the pot, place it back over the heat and continue with the recipe.

The pasta tends to sink to the bottom of the pot until it starts to soften. Stirring regularly will prevent it from sticking and burning on the bottom of the pot.

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