Pancetta & Vegetable Soup
This Italian style Pancetta and Vegetable soup, is packed full of flavour and goodness.
Soups are a go-to dinner for me in winter, there is truly nothing more comforting than a bowl of soup with some crusty bread on a winters night. Like a warm hug!
This soup is packed full of vegetables, and is a great way to get your vegetable intake up for the day! This makes a huge serving, so you will always have leftovers for a few days. It gets better each day!
Of course it has pasta in it, I’ve used elbows, however I often change it up with whatever I have in the pantry.
Tuscan kale can be difficult to find at times, but if you can get some at your local fruit shop then it’s worth the trip as it finishes this off nicely.
Also, serving covered in parmesan is a MUST!
Prep Time: 15 min
Cooking Time: 45 min
Serves: 6
Ingredients:
2 pieces pancetta about 0.5cm thick
2 carrots cut into half moons
4 celery sticks cut into 1cm pieces
1 onion diced
3 garlic cloves crushed
3 bay leaves
1/4 TSP chilli flakes
4 sprigs thyme
2 cups chicken stock
2 cups water
800g canned whole tomatoes
400g canned cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup macaroni or pasta of choice
1 bunch cavolo Nero aka Tuscan kale, stems removed and roughly chopped
Method:
Cut your pancetta into small cubes
Heat olive oil in a pot over medium heat
Add your pancetta and fry for about 5 minutes - don’t rush this step as you want all the fat and flavour to come out!
Add the onion and garlic and fry for a further 5 mins
Add carrot, celery, bay leaves, chilli and thyme. Give it a stir and let it cook for 10 mins
Add the stock, water and canned tomatoes.
Stir and then let it cook for 30 minutes half covered with a lid
Add beans, macaroni and cavolo Nero and cook for a further 15 mins
Serve with grated parmigiana and crusty buttered sourdough!
