I've tried many Crock Pot Minestrone recipes, and I have a "go-to" but this is my new favorite and will replace my old one for sure.
Crock pot Minestrone
1 lb sausage
2 cups vegetable/chicken stock
2 cups water
1 lg can diced tomatoes
chopped celery
chopped carrots
chopped onion
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried crushed rosemary
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp sugar
salt and pepper to taste
chopped zucchini
garlic minced
1 can kidney beans, rinsed
2 cups spinach
1/2 cup pasta (I used Stelline) cooked
Finely shredded Parmesan
Cook sausage in skillet on stove until brown, add to crock pot
Add stock, water, tomatoes, celery, carrots, onion, herbs and sugar to crock pot.
Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Cook on low for 6-8 hours.
An hour before ready to eat add zucchini and kidney beans.
5 minutes before ready to eat add cooked pasta and spinach
Serve warm topped with Parmesan cheese
As much as I love a "throw everything in" and be done recipe, slowly adding the ingredients like zucchini, kidney beans and spinach gives a great texture to the soup. Remember I don't give "amounts" for the vegetables/garlic etc, because every family likes things differently. You may want to add more carrots than celery, this way you can customize your minestrone yourself.
Enjoy!
