A wild storm blew in this afternoon. The day began with clear, blue sky, warm temps and a south wind. It actually felt like spring, which would be lovely…except that I knew the truth. Mother Nature does this bait-and-switch thing every February. We have a few amazingly glorious days, just enough to make you eyeball the spring-ish clothes in your closet. And then…BAM! Shut down by a massive dose of winter. Mother Nature was definitely laughing today. Running a few errands, I noticed a wall of black clouds creep up over the mountains. Within a half hour, we had booming thunder, torrential rain and wind, and then the snowflakes began to fall. Naturally, I headed straight home for a big bowl of steamy soup.
There’s just something about a snowy, wet day that begs for soup. This one-pot minestrone soup is hearty, (mostly) healthy, and can be whipped up in less than half an hour. Plus, it makes tons and freezes brilliantly! So the next time Mother Nature pulls one on you, you can laugh right back at her as you pull some soup out of the freezer for an already-made meal. Sorry, Mother Nature! Not going to fall for your tricks. We’ve got soup and big fleecy blankets waiting for just such an emergency.
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp. olive oil
- 2 red onions
- 2 lbs. mild or spicy Italian sausage
- 4 cloves garlic
- 2 tsp. dried oregano
- 5 cups chicken broth
- 5 cups beef broth
- 4 carrots
- 4 celery ribs
- 1 cup fresh or frozen white corn kernels
- 2 14-oz. cans tomato sauce
- 2 14-oz. can stewed Italian-style tomatoes
- 1 can black beans
- 1 can white beans
- 1/2 cup (or more) fresh basil
Instructions
- Heat oil in large stock pot. Chop red onions, add to pot and sauté.
- Add sausage, and cook until browned.
- Add garlic and oregano.
- Pour broth into pot.
- Peel carrots, and chop carrots and celery. Add to pot, and cook until fairly soft.
- Add corn, tomatoes, tomato sauce and beans and heat through.
- Stir in basil right before serving.
Notes
*Add cabbage, zucchini, cauliflower...be creative and clean out your veggie drawer for this one!
*If you don't like it spicy, just use mild Italian sausage.
*If freezing a portion: Cool soup first. I like to use large freezer ziplocs to freeze. Label the bag, and add the date you made it as well as the amount you are freezing. I use a liquid measuring cup to measure and scoop it into the bag. Zip shut, making sure to let out all the air, and lay flat in freezer. This method takes up very little room in freezer, and bags can be laid right on top of each other.
35 Comments
would it work to do it with vegetable broth? Or would that change the taste to much?
Angela, I think it would be fine with vegetable broth. Try it and let us know! The sausage is really what give it its full flavor, so if you take that out, it will definitely change a lot. Hope that helps. Happy cooking!
This looks quite good. Yeah, you don’t have to convince me, I’ll have a bowl.
Jared, hope you like it. Happy cooking…and eating!
The weather did the same thing here! It’s still blowing like crazy!!! This looks amazing!
Chloe, wow…Crazy weather! Perfect day for soup. Hope you like it!
your photos alone are gorgeous!! Thanks for the recipe..looks easy enough for me to recreate!
Thanks Kim! That’s the beautiful thing about this recipe. It’s SO simple to make and super yummy 🙂
It hasn’t been cold enough in Houston to really appreciate a warm bowl of soup, but this looks so delicious!!! I wish we got even a hint of winter down here!
Jessica, I have two siblings in Houston, and they say the same thing! Enjoy your lovely weather…and happy cooking!
Mmmm this looks so good!
This looks delicious! I’ve always made minestrone as a vegetarian recipe, but I love your addition of sausage. Yum!
Valentina, I have a vegetarian version in my fridge right now! But I do love me some sausage:) Enjoy!!
Perfect for a rainy day like today!!!
Colleen, so true! If there ever was a rainy-day soup, this minestrone is it. 🙂
Wow, sounds like some crazy weather, it looks like it was the perfect excuse for that delicious looking minestrone! That soup looks soo good and full of many yummy vegetables!
Elsa, we’ll take any excuse for a big bowl of minestrone haha. And the loaded veggies are an added bonus! Thanks for checking us out!
I adore Minestrone, my grandmother used to make this for me when I was little. Love re-creating the timeless classics.x
Cynthia, I agree! Sometimes the classics are THE BEST! Hope you love it.
Our snowy days are behind us, the windy days have arrived. This great looking soup will be a warm healthy meal.
Thanks for the recipe….looks easy enough for me try when its winter in Australia. xx Manon
Minestrone is one of my favorites and this looks so good! My mouth waters even this late at night as i write this! love!
Vanessa, right?? I agree…It’s one of my favorites, too! Hope you love it.
I have pinned this for later… It looks AMAZING and I cannot wait for the cooler weather to come (I’m Australian) so I can enjoy warm comfort meals again. Thanks for sharing!
Kacey, I think one of the best things about cold weather is the FOOD! Hope you love this minestrone! And thanks for following us from so far away. Happy cooking!
Yum! I haven’t had this soup in ages!
Malena, hope it’s as good as you remember! It’s an oldie but goodie:) Happy cooking!
Well this looks fantastic!! I would love to make this! Your photos are stunning as well!
Ruthie, thank you! It’s a super easy recipe, and we think it’s pretty darn good! Happy cooking and eating!
Just what I was looking for, really going to try and make this x
Gill, happy cooking! Glad you found something you want to try. Hope you love it!
This looks delicious! I have to try this, Thank you for sharing !
Pam, thanks for checking it out! Hope you enjoy it!
that looks appetizing..love minestrone soup but never landing up making one myself..looking at your recipe I am tempted to try it. Thanks for sharing.
Minestrone is the BEST! So yummy, warm and healthy too. Give it a try and let us know how you liked it!