Italian sausage minestrone
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 2 celery stalks, finely sliced
- 1 leek, finely sliced
- 2 carrots, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 3 Italian pork sausages, skinned
- 400g tinned tomatoes
- 1.2 litres water or vegetable stock
- 1 tbsp thyme leaves or rosemary sprigs
- 2 bay leaves
- 100g mixed pasta shapes
- 400g tinned borlotti beans, rinsed
- 2 small zucchini, finely sliced
- sea salt and pepper
- parmesan and extra virgin olive oil to serve
What better way to improve a traditional minestrone soup than to crumble some coarse pork sausage meat into it?
Method
- Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a heavy bottomed saucepan and add the celery, leek, carrot and garlic. Fry over gentle heat for 5 minutes. Remove.
- Add remaining oil, and pinch the sausage meat into the pan. Break it up with a wooden spoon and fry until browned.
- Return the vegies to the pan, and add the tomatoes, stock or water, thyme and bay leaves, and simmer, partly covered, for 30 minutes.
- Cook the pasta in boiling salted water for 10 minutes, then drain.
- Add the pasta, beans, zucchini, sea salt and pepper to the soup, and simmer for a further 10 to 15 minutes.
- Serve with extra herbs, grated parmesan and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.
Serves 4
