my take on minestrone.election of gujarat, election in gujarat, indian temple in

my take on minestrone.

When you marry into an Italian family, you better learn how to cook authentic Italian dinners. To my husband, it does not matter if he's really only half Italian...to him, he is one-hundred-percent-the-real-deal. And let me tell you, his family definitely backs up that belief. (In a good way, of course). We live in New York and our last name could be straight off the boat from Italy. You get the picture.

All was well and good when we were first living together and both working demanding auditing jobs in D.C. - Hubs cooked dinner most of the time. He liked cooking. He was good at it. He knew what he liked. Well, this girl was just fine with that arrangement! However, that honeymoon quickly ended when I became a stay-at-home mama. Husband: "What do you mean you don't know what to make for dinner? You had all day to figure it out..."

I know, I usually sit around thinking about dinner all day. Sound familiar? But I gotta give it to him. I'll gladly take an hour or two to make some food over sitting in an office all day. (Hey now...don't bash me for taking a housewife tone. My husband works hard so I can stay home with our daughter. I wouldn't give that up for anything.)

So, this meant I better be putting some sort of deliciously olive-oiled dish on the table at least twice a week. Luckily, I've been able to put my own (how should I say...less fattening) Mediterranean spin on the hearty Italian classics. Hey, Italy IS bordering the Mediterranean Sea, is it not?

Classic Minestrone Soup
(adapted from a recipe found in the What Would Jesus Eat? Cookbook by Don Colbert, M.D.)

>>Start out by cutting your choice of veggies into bite-size pieces. This recipe makes 6-10 servings (meaning about 4 deep-dish soup bowl servings), so you'll need 7 cups of the veggies.

I use different veggies each time I make this. Basically whatever I'm feelin' at the moment. Last night, I used:

1 medium eggplant
1 small onion
1/4 bag of baby carrots
1 red pepper
1/2 bag of spinach (sounds like a lot, but it shrinks a ton when cooked)

>> Briefly heat 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the chopped veggies. Saute for about 5 minutes or until veggies begin to soften.

>> Stir in 1 cup tomato sauce and 5 cups of water with 5 beef bouillon cubes (you can sub 5 cups low-sodium beef broth if you prefer).

>> Stir in 16 ounces white or red beans (really any beans will work) or chickpeas. I used chickpeas.

>> Add a few spices you like, eyeballing the amount. I used oregano, basil, pepper, and hamburger seasoning. Yes, I know there is no hamburger in the soup. Try it! This spice is amazing on everything!