Fire Roasted Minestrone Soup

When they say opposites attract, they must have been talking about my love for soup vs. Mike's dislike for soup. Soup is one of my favorite meals, and Mike associates soup with his many hospital visits in the past. I can't say I blame him, but despite his aversion, he adores this one specific soup.

Recently I started using fire-roasted tomatoes in place of regular tomatoes, which really enriched the flavor of this soup. In this symphony of flavors, the fire roasted tomatoes harmonize effortlessly with the other ingredients.

Pick a designated time during the week for meal prep to streamline your meals. Consider washing and chopping extra veggies to store in the freezer for convenient use in future soups.

This soup is a great option as it contains easily digestible veggies and protein-rich lentils. Find the recipe below and enjoy!

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Fire Roasted Minestrone Soup

Ingredients

• 1/2 medium yellow onion, diced small

• 1 cup carrots, diced

• 1 cup celery, diced

• 1.5 to 2 cups gold potatoes, diced

• 1-2 cans organic diced fire roasted tomatoes

• 1 cup lentils or quinoa (soak ahead of time)

• 1 tbsp avocado oil

• 1-2 tbsp minced garlic

• 1 tsp ground black pepper (to taste)

• 1 tsp thyme

• 1 tsp paprika

• Salt (to taste)

• 1/2 tsp oregano

• 8 cups chicken broth/stock (or more)

Optional: frozen peas, frozen spinach (add at the end)

Instructions

1. In a large pot, add avocado oil and saute onion until soft.

2. Add the celery and carrots, saute for about 5 minutes.

3. Add minced garlic, saute for a couple of minutes. Add in fire roasted tomatoes.

4. After simmering the tomatoes for a couple of minutes, add in your potatoes.

5. Slowly add in your broth, increasing the heat to bring it to a boil. I usually fill with enough broth/water so it hits about 4-5 inches from the top. We will be adding in lentils or quinoa, so leave enough room for that. You can supplement with water if you don’t have enough broth.

6. Add in your seasonings. Taste as you go and add more salt, etc.

7. If you’re using quinoa, add it now. If you are using lentils, add them in during the last 6-7 minutes.

8. Turn down to a simmer, and let it cook for about 15 minutes. Check the potatoes/carrots/celery to see if they are tender after 15 minutes. If not, cook for another 5 minutes. Taste test as it cooks to make sure flavor is good.

9. Allow to cool before putting soup in storage containers. Stable in refridgerator for up to 5-6 days. You can also freeze the soup.