Mmm Mmmm Minestrone

When I hosted my first Shabbos dinner in NYC, I also decided to have a soup course. (Because that's what you do when it's 90 degrees outside, right?) The truth was, I had made some really good Beef Minestrone soup a few days earlier for dinner and had, like, half the pot leftover. So I figured having 10 people over was a good way to use up some leftovers!

This minestrone soup and I go way back. Back when I was dating a certain ex-boyfriend, I was visiting him for the weekend and we went to friends of his for Shabbos dinner. They served minestrone soup that was really good and that my ex really liked, so we asked for the recipe. We didn't end up getting it, but later that weekend, my ex asked if I could maybe figure it out and make it for us for dinner. We went to the grocery store, I haphazardly threw some things into a cart, and then tried my luck back at his apartment. It came out perfectly - so hearty and thick and beefy, but still really healthy-tasting and satisfying. I've made it several times over the last few years, and every time I make it, I remember how much I like it!

Fast forward to last week: I knew that, after eating the soup for a few nights during the week, I wouldnt have enough to feed 10 people at Shabbos dinner. Also, when you refrigerate and then re-heat the soup, the noodles absorb a ton of the liquid. So I sauteed up some more veggies, added some more tomatoes, broth, and pasta, and I had a full pot of soup again - it was a never-ending pot of soup! My suggestions for making more soup are at the end of the recipe. Also, I added WAY too many noodles, so I'm cutting the noodles way down in this version of the recipe. But hey, if you like pasta, add as much as you'd like!

Beef Minestrone Soup
serves Unlimited

3 tbsp. oil
1 lb. ground beef
1 large onion, chopped
2 large carrots, peeled, quartered, and thinly sliced
2 zucchinis, halved and sliced
1 can of small white beans (or any combination of beans), drained
1 28-oz. can of crushed tomatos
6 cups beef broth, divided
6 oz. mini shell pasta (or mini bowties)
salt and pepper to taste

1. In a stock pot over medium heat, brown the ground beef in the oil until it is fully cooked.
2. Add the onion, carrot, and zucchini and sautee until the vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes. Add the beans and heat until warmed through.
3. Add the crushed tomatoes and 4 cups of beef broth and bring to a boil.
4. Pour in the pasta, and allow the soup to cook at a rapid simmer until pasta is soft and soup is thickened, about 8-10 minutes.
5. Add the additional 2 cups of broth. Season to taste.

*To make the soup stretch and feed 10 more:
2 tbsp. oil
1 small onion, chopped
1 zucchini, halved and sliced
1 carrot, peeled, quartered, and sliced
1/2 can small white beans (or any variety), drained
1 15-oz. can of crushed or diced tomatoes
5 cups beef broth
3 oz. mini shell pasta (or mini bowties)
salt and pepper, to taste

1. Heat the already-made soup on a low heat until warm.
2. In a separate pot, heat the oil and sautee the onion, zucchini, and carrot on medium heat until soft. Add the beans and heat through.
3. Add the tomatoes and 3 cups of beef broth and bring to a full boil. Add the additional pasta and cook at a rapid simmer until the pasta is soft.
4. Add the fresh soup to the re-heated soup and add any remaining broth until it's the consistency that you like. (Note: keeping the soup on the stove thickens it, so keep some broth handy to thin it out as needed.) Season with salt and pepper to taste.