Sunday's Soup

Today's soup is no longer on the Panera Bread website. I'm really surprised because it's a good one. In fact, this is the second time I've made it. It's hearty and yet still light. Packed full of all the vitamins and nutrients that we especially need to stock up on this time of year, at least in the northern hemisphere :)  

 Tuscan Vegetable Soup

 The Ingredients;
3 tabelspoons of olive oil
1 1/2 cups of chopped red onion
1 cup of chopped celery
1 cup of chopped carrots (I sliced mine)
4 large cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon of red pepper flakes
1 can (28 ounces) plum tomatoes in puree, chopped with juice
8 ounces of kale, stems removed, leaves chopped
8 ounces of green chard, stems removed, leaves chopped
2 cups canned cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
7 cups of vegetable or chicken broth
1/4 cup of chopped fresh basil
1/2 teaspoon of salt
Grated Parmesan cheese for garnish

Directions;
1. Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the onions, celery, and carrots. Cook until the vegetables begin to soften, 6 to 8 minutes. Add the garlic and pepper flakes and cook for 1 minute. Add the chopped tomatoes (with juice), kale and chard. Cook until the kale is wilted, 8 to 10 minutes.

2. Puree 1 cup of the beans and 1 cup of the broth in a food processor until smooth. Add to the soup along with the remaining beans and 6 cups of broth. My soup was just a bit thicker than I liked, so I added a little more broth. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes.

3. Stir in the basil and salt. Simmer about 10 minutes. Serve sprinkled with Parmesan.

*Tip  For extra flavor, saute 1/4 cup of chopped pancetta along with the vegetables. You can also add the rind from a wedge of Parmesan cheese to simmer in the soup. It add a super rich taste of Parmesan.
I had added a zucchini to my soup as well as some black pepper.
This is a great soup for freezing. It makes a rather large pot of soup, approximately 8 servings.
My house smells so good right now. I can't wait for supper!