Jamie's lovely chunky minestrone

Name: Jamie's lovely chunky minestrone
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 50 min
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 4
Ingredients: extra-virgin olive oil; 4 rashers (strips) smoked streaky bacon, finely chopped; 1 red onion, peeled and finely chopped; 2 carrots, peeled and finely chopped; 2 sticks celery, finely chopped; 3 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped; 2 400 g tins good quality plum tomatoes; 1 jar Jamie Oliver Red Onion and Rosemary Pasta Sauce; 1 courgette, (zuchini), roughly chopped; 2 400 g tins cannellini beans, or borlotti beans; 200 mL red wine; 1 L chicken stock, preferably organic; 200 g baby pasta, or spaghetti, broken up into small pieces; 75 g spinach, washed and chopped; sea salt; ground black pepper; Parmesan

Prep Time10 mins
Total Time1 hr
Makes4 to 6 Servings

Jodi Pudge

Jamie Oliver's lovely chunky minestrone is fast, delicious, healthy and sure to be a family favourite.

Ingredients

extra-virgin olive oil
4 rashers (strips) smoked streaky bacon, finely chopped
1 red onion, peeled and finely chopped
2 carrots, peeled and finely chopped
2 sticks celery, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
2 400 g tins good quality plum tomatoes
1 jar Jamie Oliver Red Onion and Rosemary Pasta Sauce
1 courgette, (zuchini), roughly chopped
2 400 g tins cannellini beans, or borlotti beans
200 mL red wine
1 L chicken stock, preferably organic
200 g baby pasta, or spaghetti, broken up into small pieces
75 g spinach, washed and chopped
sea salt
ground black pepper
Parmesan

Instructions

Heat a lug of olive oil in a large, deep saucepan on low heat, and add the bacon, onion, carrots, celery and garlic. Sweat very slowly, stirring occasionally, until soft but not coloured, about 20 min. Add the tomatoes, the jar of pasta sauce, the courgette, drained beans and red wine. Give everything a good stir and simmer for 15 min.
After this time, add the stock and baby pasta. Stir and continue to simmer until the pasta is cooked – this will take about 10 min, depending on the shape of your pasta.
Add the spinach and stir until it’s wilted down. If you think the soup looks a bit thick, add a splash more stock until you get the consistency you’re looking for. Have a taste and season with salt and pepper. Serve drizzled with extra-virgin olive oil with lots of freshly grated Parmesan on top. Heaven!

Try His Food!

The Jamie Oliver line of pasta, sauces and seasonings starts at $3. Find a store near you at shalitfoods.com.

This article was originally published on Mar 01, 2012

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