Minestrone Alla Contadina Recipe
Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 8 ounce. dry cannellini beans
- 1 slice prosciutto (3 ounce.) or possibly 1 ounce. salt pork plus 2 ounce. boiled ham
- 1 lg. onion (red)
- 1 celery stalk
- 2 lg. cloves garlic
- 1 carrot
- 7 o 8 sprigs Italian parsley
- 6 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 sm. head savory cabbage
- 1 1/2 bunches kale
- 1 potato
- 1 c. canned tomatoes
- 1 sm. bunch Swiss chard
- 12 lg. thick slices Tuscan bread (several days old or possibly 9 to 12 tbsp. homemade
- croutons)
- Salt and fresh pepper to taste
- 6 to 8 tbsp. freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Directions
- Soak the beans overnight in cool water. Next day, drain the beans and cook them in a large flame-proof casserole with 2 qts of salted water and the prosciutto or possibly salt pork and ham. As the beans absorb the water, keep adding sufficient water to maintain 2 qts of liquid at the end of cooking time.
- When beans are tender (about 1 hour), remove from the flame and let stand till needed. Coarsely chop the onion, celery, garlic, carrot, and parsley; saute/fry them in a stockpot with the oil for 12 to 15 min. Meanwhile, finely slice cabbage; remove the stems from the kale and cut into small pcs; peel the potato and cut it into small squares. When the onions, etc. are light brown, add in the potato to the stockpot along with the tomatoes.
- Cover and simmer for 15 min. Then add in the Swiss chard, stems removed and cut up. Remove the prosciutto from the bean casserole. Pass 2/3 of the beans through a food mill into the stockpot. Simmer together for about 1/2 hour more till cabbage and kale are almost cooked. Drain the remaining beans, reserving the broth and return them to the original casserole. Add in the bean broth to the stockpot, little by little, whenever more liquid is need, till all is used. When the cabbage and kale are ready, all the remaining beans whole.
- Taste for salt and pepper, then cook for 5 min more. If using bread, make a layer of bread slices on the bottom of a tureen and pour over two full ladles of soup; make other layers of bread, each time pouring the soup over till all the bread is used. Pour the remaining soup on the top; cover the mix and let stand for 20 min before serving with a Tbsp. of grated cheese. Sprinkle over each portion. If you use croutons instead of bread slices, place 1 1/2 Tbsp. of croutons in each individual soup bowl. Allow the soup to stand for 20 min after cooking, then pour over the croutons. Sprinkle with cheese and serve.
Adding to Planner
Nutrition Facts
| Amount Per Serving | %DV |
|---|---|
| Serving Size 307g | |
| Recipe makes 4 servings | |
| Calories 347 | |
| Calories from Fat 208 | 60% |
| Total Fat 23.57g | 29% |
| Saturated Fat 4.49g | 18% |
| Trans Fat 0.0g | |
| Cholesterol 8mg | 3% |
| Sodium 447mg | 19% |
| Potassium 776mg | 22% |
| Total Carbs 27.04g | 7% |
| Dietary Fiber 7.0g | 23% |
| Sugars 5.94g | 4% |
| Protein 9.56g | 15% |
