Recipes : Super Quick Minestrone : Food Network

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Super Quick Minestrone
Recipe courtesy Michael Chiarello

Ingredients
1 cup (4 ounces) tubetti pasta, or other small pasta
shape
Extra-virgin olive oil
6 cups chicken stock
1/4 pound pancetta, cut into 3 pieces
6 medium garlic cloves, each cut in 1/2 lengthwise
2 cups finely chopped yellow onions (2 small onions)
1 cup small-diced celery (2 medium stalks)
1 cup small-diced carrots (2 to 3 medium carrots)
1 tablespoon finely chopped rosemary or thyme leaves
1 (14-ounce) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

1 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes
4 cups small-diced zucchini (green/yellow) (5 small zucchini)
2 cups small-diced, peeled russet potatoes (1 large russet)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Directions
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high
heat. Add the pasta and cook according to package directions until al dente. Drain
and transfer the pasta to a baking sheet. Toss the pasta with a little olive oil
to prevent sticking.

In a large saucepan over medium heat, warm the chicken stock.

In another large saucepan over high heat, heat 1/4 cup oil. When the oil is hot
but not smoking, add the pancetta and cook until it begins to brown, 3 to 4
minutes, turning occasionally. Add the garlic and cook until it begins to brown,
about 1 minute, stirring occasionally. Lower the heat to medium and add the
onions, celery, and carrots.
Cook until the vegetables are soft, 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to
prevent browning. Add the chopped herbs. Raise the heat to high. Add the beans,
tomatoes, zucchini, and potatoes. Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Then
bring it down to a simmer and cook until the potatoes are tender, 12 to 15
minutes, skimming any foam off the top of the soup. Season generously with pepper.
Add salt, to taste. Just a few minutes before serving, add the cooked tubetti
pasta. Serve warm with Parmesan and olive oil passed at the table.

Cooking notes: Add the cooked pasta just before serving. If it sits in the soup

too long, it develops a flabby texture. Tubetti (little hollow tubes) are the
classic pasta for minestrone, but you could substitute another small shape of
pasta.