You know those soup recipes that are mostly broth with maybe six noodles and about four chunks of carrot per bowl? Yeah well, this hearty vegan minestrone is not one of those soups. (Thank goodness for that.)
I have a personal soup-making philosophy that definitely errs on the side of "more is more" and this is especially true for my vegan minestrone.
And why not? We're talking about butternut squash, sweet corn, pasta, and zippy fall flavorings like garlic, ginger, and fresh sage and thyme. All things this world could use a little bit more of, as far as I'm concerned.
My only concern is, at what point do I need to call it a stew? Because we're nearing that fine gray line 'round these parts.
In addition to nearing stew status, I have one more very important requirement for a truly delicious vegan minestrone experience: non-mushy noodles! Because nothing ruins a perfectly delicious minestrone soup like mushy noodles.
That's why my whole wheat penne doesn't even touch my soup until I'm ready to eat. Just cook noodles to al dente ahead of time scoop into bowls before adding the soup and serving. Leftovers can also be stored separately (add a little olive oil to your cooked pasta if it's sticking), so you'll never have to eat blobby, gelatinous leftover minestrone ever again.
You're welcome.
Not that leftovers will necessarily be a problem with this recipe. Dan and I ate this right up in a matter of 24 hours. In fact, it's all gone, and writing about vegan minestrone has me thinking about making it again (and in a bigger batch this time too).
Returning home from our trip to Quebec and Vermont (recap on the way) and gearing up to move into our new home(!) has me thinking more and more about the magical wonderfulness that is batch cooking.
And by thinking about it, I mean wishing I had done more of it as my kitchen slowly loses its functionality to piles of boxes and packing paper.
Do you have any tips for delicious healthy recipes that are moving-friendly? I need some more inspiration, so I just asked the same question to my fellow dietitians and healthy food bloggers. Roundup with their best recipes is in the works. (Totally selfish idea for a blog post, I know.)
But who am I kidding, in reality, we have the piles of boxes, but we haven't started the actual packing yet. I just know that the annihilation of my apartment's kitchen is coming. It's inevitable and I'm happy-sad about it.
I couldn't be more excited to start cooking in our new house but our first Colorado kitchen will always hold a special place in my heart. It may not have any natural light and our appliances may be from the 80's, but it was good to us. I mean, it's where I thought up and concocted some of my favorite recipes, like this one, this one, and this one too.
Man, apparently vegan minestrone soup gets me all sorts of sentimental but just think of all the hearty soups stews I'll be cooking up in the mountains. It's about to get real nice and cozy here on TGG this winter, I can tell you that much.
When one door closes...well, you know the rest.
Hearty Vegan Minestrone with Butternut Squash
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil or cooking oil of choice
- 1 large about 1 cup onion, diced
- 3-4 cloves about 1 teaspoon garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon fresh grated ginger
- 2 carrots about ½ cup, peeled and chopped
- 2 stalks about 2 tablespoons diced celery
- 1 cup cubed butternut squash
- 2 ears about 1 ½ cups fresh or frozen corn kernels (I used fresh in recipe testing)
- 3 cups vegetable broth
- 1 28 ounce can crushed tomatoes with basil (I used Muir Glen brand in recipe testing)
- 1 15.5 ounce can white kidney beans, including liquid (may also drain and rinse if desired)
- ¼ cup nutritional yeast plus addiitonal for serving if desired
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper plus additional for serving if desired
- 3 fresh sage leaves
- 3 sprigs fresh thyme
- Salt and cracked black pepper to taste
- 2-3 cups cooked whole grain pasta for serving
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Instructions
- Heat oil in a large soup pot over medium-high heat. Add onion and salt and cook until onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, ginger, carrot, and celery and cook additional 2-3 minutes. Add squash and corn and cook 2-3 more minutes, adding more salt as needed throughout cooking process.
- Stir in broth, tomatoes, beans, nutritional yeast, oregano, crushed red pepper, and black pepper to taste. Add fresh sage and thyme and bring to a boil before decreasing to a simmer. Simmer for about 15 minutes or until soup is hot and flavors have melded.
- To serve, spoon cooked pasta into separate soup bowls and ladle minestrone on top. Stir to combine and sprinkle with more nutritional yeast and crushed red pepper if desired.
- Store cooked pasta separately from leftover soup to prevent mushy noodles upon reheating. Soup may be stored in the refrigerator for up to one week or stored in the freezer (hold the pasta) for up to three months.
[clickToTweet tweet="Looking for #vegan stew? This Butternut Squash Minestrone is fall comfort food at its finest!" quote="Looking for #vegan stew? This Butternut Squash Minestrone is fall comfort food at its finest!"]
Andrea says
This looks amazing. I’m wanting to add zucchini, thoughts?
Stephanie McKercher, RDN says
Zucchini sounds delicious with this. Thanks for the idea, Andrea! Let me know if you try it. 🙂
Arielle says
I’ve made a lot of different soups before. This is easily top 3! I made a few adjustments just based on what I had and didn’t have, so I didn’t use corn, I used dried thyme, chickpeas, diced canned tomatoes and added dried basil. The flavors were amazing. So thankful I found this!
Stephanie McKercher, RDN says
Yay! I'm so glad you enjoyed the recipe, Arielle! Thanks for leaving a rating/comment!
Casondra says
This was BOMB! My husband and kids ate it up! I will be making it again for sure!
Stephanie McKercher, RDN says
So happy to hear this! Thanks for trying the recipe and commenting, Casondra!
Jen says
I have done this Minestrone recipe twice and will make it again soon. I like the ginger but half of my family thinks it makes the soup too spicy. I also do the Parmesan substitution. Thank you!!
Stephanie McKercher, RDN says
Thanks, Jen! So happy you and your family enjoy it! 🙂
Tom says
Delicious. I used only one can of tomatoes, skipped butternut squash and replaced white beans with red beans. It is more colourful, but the taste is the same. Thank you!
Stephanie McKercher, RDN says
Thanks so much, Tom! Sounds like a delicious twist on the recipe! 🙂
Judy Magavero says
In your recipe Hearty Vegan Minestrone with Butternut Squash, is the squash pre-cooked? How large should the chunks be?
Stephanie McKercher, RDN says
Hi Judy, I did not pre-cook the squash ahead of time, and I chopped it to about 1-inch-sized cubes. You can really use any size—larger cubes will require a little longer cooking time. Thanks for asking!
Nichole says
Is the nutritional yeast necessary? Can I substitute something else in its place?
Stephanie McKercher, RDN says
Hi Nichole, the nutritional yeast is not required but it will give the soup some delicious cheesy flavor. If you''re okay with dairy products, parmesan cheese would be a great substitute. Thank you! 🙂