Copycat Easy Carrabba’s Minestrone Soup Recipe

Last updated on March 10th, 2024 at 06:56 pm

Craving for a delicious and nutritious soup that satisfies both your hunger and your diet? Well, you have come to the right place. We’ll guide you step by step on how to make Carrabba’s Minestrone Soup, a great Italian dish, that is suitable for any occasion.

This homemade Carrabba’s Minestrone Soup Recipe that has only 8 steps and takes just over an hour to make. So, grab your apron, and follow the recipe below to satisfy your taste buds.

Why You Should Choose Our Carrabba’s Minestrone Soup Recipe over Others

Authentic Ingredients

Our recipe uses high quality, fresh ingredients modeled directly after the actual restaurant’s soup. This includes diced tomatoes, cannellini beans, pasta shells, spinach, carrots, onion, and celery blended with chicken broth and Italian herbs and spices.

Complex Flavors

By sautéing the vegetables first before simmering everything together, our recipe develops deep, robust flavors that meld beautifully. The balance of savory, salty, sweet, and slightly bitter notes is on point.

Vegetarian Adaptability

Our recipe was created vegetarian-friendly to begin with. But it’s also easy to add meat if desired, making it versatile for all eaters. Simply brown some Italian sausage before the vegetables for a meatier version.

True Comfort

The hearty beans, pasta, and vegetable medley come together into the ultimate comforting soup that both soothes the body and soul. It conjures memories of quintessential Italian nonna’s soup.

Health-Supporting

Our soup delivers major nutrition in one bowl with antioxidants, fiber, vitamins, and minerals from sources you can recognize and pronounce. This allows the tastiness to also nourish your body.

Health Benefits of Carrabba’s Minestrone Soup Recipe

Provides Antioxidants

The tomatoes, spinach, carrots, onions, celery, and beans in the soup contain antioxidants like lycopene, lutein, beta-carotene, vitamins C and E, selenium, and flavonoids. These help fight inflammation and cell damage.

Boosts Immunity

The variety of vegetables is packed with immune-supporting vitamins and minerals. For example, the beans provide folate; the carrots, spinach, and tomatoes have vitamin A; the tomatoes offer vitamin C. These nutrients strengthen the immune response.

Supports Heart Health

The high fiber content from beans, vegetables, and whole grains can help lower cholesterol and blood pressure levels. This reduces the risk of heart disease. The folate in beans also helps decrease homocysteine, a marker for cardiac issues.

Aids Digestion

The soluble and insoluble fiber make this soup excellent for digestive regularity, bowel movements, and GI health overall. The variety of vegetables provides prebiotics for healthy gut flora as well.

Provides Energizing Iron

This mineral is necessary for oxygen transport in red blood cells. The spinach and beans supply a substantial amount of iron to help prevent deficiency, which causes fatigue and weakness.

Carrabba’s hearty minestrone delivers a wealth of phytonutrients that provide antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and immune-enhancing effects that may help combat various diseases and promote overall wellness.

Essential Equipment for Carrabba’s Minestrone Soup Recipe

Sturdy Pot

A heavy-bottomed 6-8 quart pot is crucial for cooking all the vegetables, beans and broth together. The thickness helps distribute heat evenly while simmering so ingredients cook through without scorching.

Wooden Spoon

You’ll need a long, sturdy wooden spoon for sautéing the aromatics, stirring often while simmering, and incorporating the spinach at the end. The wood is important so you don’t damage the pot’s surface.

Sharp Knife & Cutting Board

A quality chef’s knife along with a large cutting board will be essential for the beginning mise in place of chopping onions, carrots, celery, and any other quick veggie prep needed. Sharp is key for efficiency and safety.

Measuring Cups & Spoons

Having a range of dry and wet measuring cups and spoons will ensure you accurately portion out amounts for uniform chopped sizes and precise seasonings. This allows consistency from batch to batch.

Ladle

Once the soup is done, you’ll need a sturdy ladle for serving perfect bowlfuls of the minestrone. Pick one that has an adequate capacity to get all the components in one scoop.

Mixing Bowls

Having small and medium prep bowls for chopped ingredients ready to go will make the cooking process smooth. No scrambling for where to place prepped items!

Necessary Ingredients for Carrabba’s Minestrone Soup Recipe

Vegetables

• 1 cup chopped carrots (about 2 medium)
• 1 cup chopped celery (about 2 stalks)
• 1 cup chopped yellow onion (about 1 small)
• 3⁄4 cup chopped zucchini (about 1 small)
• 3 cups chopped spinach
• 1 28oz can diced tomatoes

Beans

• 1 15oz can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

Pasta

• 1 1⁄2 cups pasta shells

Broth

• 6 cups low-sodium chicken broth

Seasonings

• 2 tablespoons Italian seasoning
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1⁄2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1⁄4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1⁄4 cup Parmesan cheese (for serving)

Oil/Butter

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Step-by-Step Instructions for Carrabba’s Minestrone Soup Recipe

Step 1: Prepare The Vegetables

Chop your carrots, celery, yellow onion, and zucchini to around 1/2 inch pieces. Mince 3 cloves of garlic as well.

Step 2: Heat Oil and Butter in a Pot

Add 2 tablespoons olive oil and 1 tablespoon butter to a large 6-quart soup pot over medium heat.

Step 3: Sauté The Aromatics

Once hot and melted, add the chopped onion, carrots, celery and garlic. Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until softened.

Step 4: Add Canned Tomatoes

Pour 1 28 oz can of diced tomatoes including all the juices into the pot. Use a wooden spoon to break up any large pieces.

Step 5: Include Chicken Broth and Beans

Add 6 cups of low sodium chicken broth and your can of drained and rinsed cannellini beans. Stir well to incorporate.

Step 6: Season and Adjust The Taste

Bring the soup to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Season with 2 tablespoons Italian seasoning, 1 teaspoon oregano, 1/2 tsp kosher salt, and 1/4 tsp black pepper. Taste and add more seasoning if desired.

Step 7: Cook The Pasta Shells

Add the 1 1/2 cups of pasta shells and cook for 8-10 minutes until al dente, stirring occasionally.

Mix in spinach – Remove from heat and stir in 3 cups of chopped spinach until it wilts.

Step 8: Serve with Parmesan

Ladle the minestrone into bowls and top with grated Parmesan cheese, a drizzle of olive oil, and crusty bread.

Secret Tips for Carrabba’s Minestrone Soup Recipe

• Toast the pasta shells: Toasting the uncooked pasta shells for 1-2 minutes with a bit of olive oil in a separate skillet adds incredible depth of flavor once combined with the soup broth. This enhances the nuttiness.
• Sauté, don’t caramelize: It’s important to only sauté the onions, carrots, and celery without any caramelization or browning. This allows their sweetness to stay intact for the soup.
• Create depth with tomatoes: Combining diced tomatoes with a small can of tomato paste and 1⁄4 cup of red wine vinegar creates complexity, sweetness, and light tartness.
• Add garlic last: Throwing the garlic into an almost-finished vegetable sauté rather than from the beginning prevents any burning. This preserves its bright flavor.
• Use Parmesan rind: Tossing in a 3-inch Parmesan rind into the broth while simmering infuses a hit of savory umami that catapults the flavors. Fish out later.
• Finish with oil and herbs: After ladling the minestrone into bowls, always finish with a nice drizzle of robust olive oil and a sprinkle of freshly chopped flat-leaf Italian parsley.
• Feature good bread: Never forget to serve the soup with freshly cracked salt and pepper focaccia or crusty, toasted Italian bread for dipping. It makes all the difference!

Alternative Carrabba’s Minestrone Soup Recipe

Equipment

• Stock pot
• Wooden spoon
• Knife and cutting board
• Measuring cups
• Spoons

Ingredients

• 1 cup chopped carrots
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 6 cups vegetable or chicken broth
• 1 cup dried lentils, rinsed
• 1 14oz can diced tomatoes
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 2 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp basil
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Prepare the vegetables: chop carrots, celery and onion. Add 2 tbsp olive oil to stock pot and sauté vegetables until translucent.
2. Add broth, lentils and tomatoes: Pour in broth and add lentils and canned tomatoes. Stir in tomato paste, oregano and basil. Carrabba’s Minestrone Soup Recipe
3. Simmer and cook lentils: Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 30-35 minutes, stirring occasionally until lentils have softened but still have a bit of texture left. Taste and season with salt and pepper.
4. Finish and serve: After simmering, stir in 2 cups fresh spinach and cook for about 1 minute until wilted. Ladle into bowls and top with parmesan and fresh parsley. Serve with crusty bread!

I wanted to offer a Carrabba’s Minestrone Soup Recipe, a hearty vegan option featuring protein-packed lentils instead of pasta shells. You can use any small green or brown lentil variety. This soup delivers on flavor, nutrition and comfort without meat or dairy.

Bottomline

Carrabba’s Minestrone Soup Recipe makes up for both the criteria for a nutritious as well as delicious dish. It’s full of vegetables and other rich elements, with an Italian vibe.

This soup is suitable for different dietary preferences, as it’s a vegan, gluten-free, and dairy-free meal. You can also customize it with your favorite vegetables, or add cheese or meat for extra flavor and protein. Carrabba’s Minestrone Soup Recipe is an adaptable dish that you can serve as a main course or a side dish.

Try Carrabba’s Minestrone Soup Recipe, if you’re looking for a cozy and comforting soup that will warm you up. It is also a perfect way to utilize any leftover vegetables or pantry staples. Try this recipe today and enjoy a bowl of homemade Carrabba’s Minestrone soup.