Minestrone soup

Minestrone soup is one of my families favorite soup.Its so delicious, healthy and filling on a chilly evening. Whenever we go to Olive Garden restaurant, this is a must order. I wanted to try this at home to make it more healthy and enjoy it whenever we need it.So i found a perfect recipe almost similar to the restaurant taste. Only thing I came to know was they add Red wine to the soup, which is bad news for a non-alcoholic person like me. But Red wine is very good for health and a similar drink is used in Ayurveda so I am kinda o.k with it once in a while. Since it requires lot of ingredients it needs a little preparation before hand. Its good for kids as its filled with vegetables and pasta.

Ingredients:
3 tbsp Olive oil
1 cup minced white onion (about 1 small onion)
1/2 cup Zuchhini chopped
1/2 cup Italian Green beans (frozen)
1/4 cup Celery minced (about 1/2 stalk)
4 tsp Garlic minced(about 4 cloves)
4 cups Vegetable Broth
2 (15 ounce) cans/soaked Red Kidney beans
2 (15 ounce) cans small white beans, drained
1 can(14 ounce) diced tomato or fresh tomato diced
1/2 cup carrots shredded
2 tbsp Parsley fresh minced
1 1/2 tsp Dried Oregano
1 1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 tsp Dried Basil
1/4 tsp Dried thyme
3 cups Hot water
4 cups fresh baby spinach
1/2 cup Small Shell Pasta

Method:

Heat three tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat in a large soup pot.Saute onion, celery, garlic, green beans, and zucchini in the oil for 5 minutes or until onions begin to turn translucent.Add vegetable broth to pot, plus drained tomatoes, beans, carrot, hot water, and spices.Bring soup to a boil, then reduce heat and allow to simmer for 20 minutes.Add spinach leaves and pasta and cook for an additional 20 minutes or until desired consistency.Makes about eight 1 1/2 cup servings. Finally add Parmesan cheese on top and serve with Garlic bread.

Note: Make a pot full so it last for a week, as it stays good in fridge .