Smoky Minestrone with Cheesy Tortellini and Parsley Pesto

I am coming to learn that Minestrone is the Italian version of stone soup or the Mexican chicken caldo. It works great as a clean out the vegetable crisper soup, which could be why I have so many different versions of minestrone on my blog. This one is great for using zucchini, potatoes, and leafy greens.

There are several things I love about this soup. Thing 1 is the tortellini. In my humble opinion, one can never go wrong with cheese tortellini. Ever. Thing 2 is the parsley pesto. Although we are starting basil season her in CenTex, I used store bought parsley that was languishing in my crisper drawer. I like the slight bite of parsley better and had no desire to use the basil that was also languishing in my crisper drawer.

We all love this soup. The kids even ate the zucchini in this without a complaint. Being swim season and all these days, M ate three servings. I was pleased to be able to pull a leek from my little raised garden to use in this soup. The vegetable amounts are estimates--since I had small carrots and potatoes, I used 6 small carrots and 4 small potatoes.

This serves at least 6 and possibly 8. It is equally good on a warm, muggy early summer (yes, the end of May is early summer here) afternoon as it is on a cold winter's evening.

Smoky Minestrone with Cheesy Tortellini

adapted from WinnieAb on Food52

3 T olive oil

2 oz bacon or pancetta, chopped into small pieces (both chop easier if partially frozen)

1 lg onion, peeled and chopped

2 large garlic cloves, peeled and chopped

1 leek, trimmed and thinly sliced

3 carrots, peeled and sliced

2 ribs of celery, chopped

1 zucchini, chopped

1 medium-large potato, peeled and chopped

4 c chicken stock

1 (15-oz) can chickpeas

1 (28-oz) can diced tomatoes

salt

1 c kale, chard, or collards, roughly chopped

1 (9-oz) pkg cheese tortellini

Pesto
1 c packed parsley leaves

2 T pine nuts, toasted

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 T Parmesan cheese, grated

1 T olive oil

Heat 1 T of olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the bacon or pancetta and cook until they have started to brown. Add 2 more T of oil, if the pot looks dry, along with the onion, leek, and garlic. Continue to cook over medium heat until softened. Add the celery, carrot, zucchini, and potato. Stir for a minute or two. Add the stock, chickpeas, and tomatoes. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat, and simmer 30 minutes or so, or until the potatoes are tender (that will depend on how small you cut the potatoes).

If you are making this soup ahead of time, stop here. Finish right before you are ready to eat.

While the soup simmers, make the pesto. I find it easiest to do this by hand, based on the small recipe. Chop the parsley until it is very, very fine. Chop the toasted pine nuts and garlic. Add to the parsley, along with the Parmesan. Stir in the olive oil. Set aside.

Add the kale and tortellini to the soup(if you are using chard, add that a minute or two after the tortellini), and cook 7 minutes, or until cooked through. Taste and add more salt. Serve and garnish individual bowls with a nice spoonful of parsley pesto, as desired.

Pasta with Braised Kale (or Collards)

This year, the kale and collards keep on coming. I am not complaining, now that I love both of them. M is even coming around to eating them sometimes. Thank goodness that child is obsessed with having "strong" muscles and body. It makes getting her to eat kale a whole lot easier! J, on the other hand, will only eat it if he is starving, so I try to starve him (not really, just kidding everyone) on kale nights.

I went to this recipe for an easy kale and pasta recipe that didn't need many ingredients. I saw it mentioned on a food blog I checked with the statement that within 30 minutes of walking into the house, the blogger had supper ready and on the table. I have recently took issue with the "this only takes 30 minutes" fast, easy, supper statements. It always takes me longer. I don't have cut onions in my refrigerator, nor minced garlic, washed and appropriately cut kale, or any other already prepped food hanging around. If only my assistant would show up and do these things for me, then I could make my meals within the 30 minute time frame. Oh yeah, the nanny would also need to entertain the kids and keep the big two from arguing and baby I from hanging onto my legs crying that most pitiful, pick-me-up-now cry. This was fast and easy, just not 30 minutes fast. (Cooking time alone is 35 minutes without time for prepping or combining). Alright, I am done with my rant now (can you tell I've also been trying some of Martha Stewart's everyday fast supper recipes as well, all of which take longer than 30 minutes).

We loved the recipe, even though it took me 45 minutes to make. We gobbled it almost all up in one meal---just enough leftovers for Curtis to take to work for lunch the next day.

Pasta with Braised Kale (or Collards)
from Bon Appetit

1 lb or so kale, rinsed, large center ribs/stem removed, and cut crosswise into 1/2" slices
3 T olive oil or bacon fat (mmm....)
1 medium onion, finely chopped (about 1 1/2 c)
4 - 8 lrg garlic cloves, thinly sliced (I used 4---8 seemed like an awful lot)
1/2 lb spaghetti or other thin, long pasta
2 t fresh lemon juice
Parmesan cheese, finely grated

Heat 2 T of oil or fat in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion and cook until soft, stirring occasionally, about 6 minutes. Add sliced garlic, sprinkle iwth slat, and cook until onion is golden brown, stirring occasionally, about 5 more minutes. Add kale and remaining 1 T oil or fat and toss until wilted. Cover pot and reduce heat to medium low. Cook until kale is very tender, stirring occasionally and adding water a little bit at a time if pot is dry, about 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook spaghetti in large pot of boiling salted water. Drain, reserving 1/4 c cooking liquid. Add cooked spaghetti to kale mixture (or vice versa, depending on what pot is larger). Add lemon juice and 2 T of reserved cooking liquid. Toss to combine, adding more tablespoonfuls of water if dry. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan and serve.

Smoky Greens and Beans

Mmm...this is a great side or a stand alone light supper. I think it was intended as a soup, but I just needed it as a side, so I just didn't dish a lot of the broth (and had the leftovers as soup). I didn't have smoked paprika, so regular worked just fine. Next time, I'll be sure I do have the smoked paprika. That's right friends, there will be a next time for this one. I also just used water for the broth and it was just fine.

Smoky Greens and Beans
adapted from Bon Appetit

2 T olive oil
1 lg onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 14 1/2-ounce can diced tomatoes in juice
1 1/2 t smoked paprika (or regular if you can't find smoked)
1 3/4 c (1-14oz can) vegetable broth, chicken broth, or water
8 c coarsely chopped assorted greens (kale, mustard greens, and/or collards, about 8 ounces)
1 15-oz can cannellini beans, drained
grated Manchego or Parmesan or other hard salty cheese

Heat oil in large pan over medium high heat. Add onion and saute until softened and beginning to brown, about 6 minutes. Add garlic, stir 1 minute. Add tomatoes (with juice) and paprika; stir 1 minute. Add broth and greens. Bring to boil, stirring often. Reduce heat and simmer until greens are wilted and tender (depending on the type of greens depends on the time--I used all collards and it took longer than 15 minutes), about 15 minutes. Stir in beans and simmer just until beans are heated through, 1 - 2 minutes. Sprinkle with cheese.

Spanish Beans and Greens Soup

I am a huge fan of collards and kale these days. I think my favorite way to use them this year is in soups and I seem to have a soup recipe for all occasions that has collards/kale. Some things seem to be similar amongst the soups---cannellini beans, broth (of course), and usually potatoes and sausage. It's the other things and seasonings which makes the soups unique. This one had saffron (mmm....one of my favorite things!). It is also a very forgiving soup if you don't have enough (or all the ingredients). I had only 1 1/2 c of cannellini beans and that was not a problem. M would have liked more beans, but she survived.

All of us who tried this loved it. M ate two or three bowls and even ate the collards in the last bowl when I told her it was the most nutritious part of the soup (she's really into food that gives her "energy" and "makes her strong" right now. I'm not complaining! It offsets her desire to eat candy every day---poor child, that doesn't happen!). I put it through my little food mill for baby I and he ate a couple of small bowls. Curtis liked it enough he took it for lunch two days in a row. It's a winner!!

Spanish Beans and Greens Soup

2 cloves garlic, minced
2 c onions, choppped
1 t salt
1 T olive oil
1 t fennel seeds
3 bay leaves
1 lb bulk sausage
2 c potatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes
8 c vegetable or chicken stock
4 c (or more) kale, collards, chard, or cabbage, stemmed and chopped
1 c celery with leaves, chopped
3 c cannellini beans, cooked and drained
generous pinch of saffron
1 1/2 t salt
1/2 t black pepper

In a soup pot, saute the onions and salt in oil on medium-high heat for about 10 minutes, or until the onions are golden. Add the fennel, bay leaves, and garlic and saute for another minute. Add the sausage and cook until it starts to brown, stirring frequently, about 5 minutes. Add the potatoes, stock, greens and celery. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and add the beans, saffron, salt, and pepper. Simmer until the vegetables are cooked, 5 - 10 minutes (depending the greens you used).

Risotta with Winter Squash and Collards

I made risotto for the first time last fall and discovered how much I loved it. Curtis and I really liked the dish--it was quite tasty and rather healthy too between the orange winter squash and the sturdy leafy greens. I will definitely make it again, even though the kids didn't eat it. These proportions make enough to serve 3 - 4 adults as a side dish. I roasted the squash and blanched the collards in the afternoon and then just assembled it at dinner time.

Risotto with Winter Squash and Greens
adapted from the New York Times

3/4 lb winter squash (of the orange variety--kabocha, butternut, etc), peeled, seeded and cut into 1/2" dice
1 T extra virgin olive oil
salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
1/2 lb collard greens or kale, stemmed and washed
1 qt chicken stock
1 small onion, chopped
2 large garlic cloves, minced
3/4 c arborio rice
1/4 c dry white wine
pinch of saffron
1/4 c freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 - 2 T flat leaf parsley, chopped (optional)

Toss the squash with 1/2 T olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and spread on a well oiled baking sheet. Roast in a preheated 425 degrees oven for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes , or until the squash is tender and caramelized. Set aside. Meanwhile, blanch the collard greens in a large pot of boiling, salted water. Blanch for 4 minutes and then cool immediately by plunging into ice water and rinsing it with cold water. Drain and squeeze out any extra water. Chop coarsely. (You can do to this point ahead of time).

Bring the stock to a simmer in a saucepan. Heat the remaining oil in a medium saucepan and add the onion. Saute for three minutes or until the onion begins to soften. Add the garlic and a dash of salt. Cook for another minute and add the rice. Cook, stirring, until the grains of rice are separate. Stir in the wine and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly. When the wine has almost evaporated, add the collard greens, a third of the squash and the saffron. Stir in a ladleful or two of the simmering stock, enough to just cover the rice. Bring to a slow boil. Cook, stirring frequently until stock is just about absorbed, then add another ladleful of stock. Continue in this way, adding more stock when the rice is almost dry, until the rice is tender all the way through, about 20 - 25 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings. Add the remaining roasted squash and another 1/2 c stock to the rice. Stir in Parmesan and parsley and remove from heat. Serve immediately.

Fusilli with Collards, Bacon and Garlic

I didn't feel like the fettucine with kale for this week (my menu has been rearranged for the week, mostly just shifted stuff from day to day to fit my whims), but needed to find a recipe that used collards or kale. I found this recipe from Epicurious. I was disappointed with it, I thought it was bland. I wonder if I didn't put the right amount of things in, maybe I didn't have enough garlic or bacon. There is no reason a recipe with garlic or bacon should be bland. Maybe it was just my taste buds tonight. M ate the pasta, but left everything else. J gobbled it up. Curtis thought it was ok, but nothing special. I'll probably try this recipe again at some point and be sure to add lots of garlic and bacon, but I think I'll skip it for a while.

Italian Meatloaf and Skillet Collards with Sauce

I love collards. As I have stated many times, I am not a southerner. I can't stand okra, I like my dressing/stuffing/whatever with bread and not cornbread. I can't make flaky buttermilk biscuits to save my life. I am not a fan of fried foods (I tend to pick the breaded/fried parts off). However, I love collards. Maybe there is hope for the other things if I am a collards fan. Between Curtis and I tonight, we easily ate a pound of collard greens and fought over the last bites.

All tonight's meal was missing was some nice thick mashed potatoes. I didn't plan ahead early enough to have potatoes, so we stuck to the comfort foods of meatloaf and greens (without the mashed potatoes). Next time, I am definitely also making mashed potatoes.

The meatloaf:
In 1 T olive oil, saute 1 seeded and minced red bell pepper (I omitted this because I had no more bell peppers), 1 diced onion, and 3 minced garlic cloves until they are tender. Allow to cool briefly. In a separate bowl, combine 1 lb ground beef, 2 eggs, 3/4 c bread crumbs, 1 c grated Parmesan, 1 T Worcestershire sauce, 1 T balsamic vinegar, 2 T chopped fresh basil (2 t dried basil), 1 T chopped fresh parsley, 1 t salt, and 1/2 t black pepper along with the sauted veggies. Pack into an oiled loaf pan. In a small bowl, combine 1 T brown sugar, 1 t Worcestershire sauce, 1/4 c ketchup, and 3/4 T prepared mustard. Spread evenly on top of meatloaf. Bake in a preheated 350 degrees oven for 5 0 - 60 minutes or until a meat thermometer registers 160 in the middle of the meatloaf. Let rest 5 minutes before serving.

The greens (recipe adapted from January's Bon Appetit magazine)
Dissolve 1/4 c sugar in 1 T water in a small saucepan over medium heat. Increase the heat; boil without stirring until amber, brushing sides with wet pastry brush occasionally (I am not sure what this does, but I did it), about 5 minutes. Add 1/2 c apple cider vinegar and 1 t dried crushed red pepper (optional, I omitted, but will use next time). Stir until caramel bits dissolve. Cool. In a skillet, saute 1 c chopped onions in olive oil until brown. Add 1 T bacon drippings (if you don't save the drippings--I have a can in my fridge that drippings go into--fry a few slices of bacons until you have enough drippings). Add half of collard greens (a total of 1 lbs of collard greens will be used. To prepare them, remove the stems and cut crosswise into 1/2" strips) and sprinkle with coarse sea salt and pepper. Toss until wilted. Add remaining greens, toss to wilt, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and cook until greens are tender, adding water 1/4 cupfuls if dry. This will take between 20-45 minutes depending on how hot your pan is and how tender the greens start out. It took me closer to 20 minutes than 45. Season with salt and pepper. Rewarm apple cider sauce (technical term-gastrique). Transfer greens to a large shallow bowl. Drizzle some gastrique over top (I used around 1/2 or less of the gastrique and it was plenty sweet). We sprinkled some chipotle Tabasco sauce over top to make up for omitting the crushed red peppers.

The meatloaf was a hit with M and both Curtis and I. However, like I may have mentioned earlier, the collards stole the show for both of us. I can't wait to get collards again!