minestrone my way

With the cold weather, we crave hot dishes, and if they are eaten with a spoon, even better! Miriam, author of the blog Invitado de Invierno , brings us a minestrone loaded with healthy and varied ingredients, achieving flavors that will surprise you.

Minestrone is a typical Italian soup that is very substantial , prepared mainly with a variety of chopped vegetables, depending on the season, and to which pasta or rice is usually added. It can also be made with legumes and, if we want to give it more flavour, a meat or chicken broth, and some bacon and ham. It is usually served, like so many Italian dishes, with some grated Parmesan cheese so that each diner can serve themselves as they wish.

Well, today I bring you a minestrone with all the trimmings and to my taste (I'm a bit of a fool), although based on an adaptation of Jamie Oliver's popular minestrone soup . With a not very Italian addition: Serrano ham. But we already know that anything with Serrano ham improves considerably, even if it's Italian.

Ingredients

• 4-5 tbsp. virgin olive oil
• 2 slices of Serrano ham (or bacon)
• 1 clove of garlic
• 1 red onion
• 2 carrots
• 1 zucchini
• 1 leek
• ¼ cabbage
• 1 beautiful potato
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 can of natural peeled tomatoes
• 150gr of red beans (weight already cooked)
• 1 liter of chicken or vegetable broth
• A good handful of small pasta
• Salt and pepper to taste
• A few basil leaves as a garnish
• Parmesan cheese for sprinkling

Elaboration

1. We start by peeling and chopping the vegetables. Finely chop the garlic, onion and carrot. Cut the zucchini and potato into cubes and the leek into rings. Cut the cabbage into julienne strips. Set aside.
2. We cover a large frying pan , a pot or a cocotte with the oil and heat it over a medium heat. We add the ham or bacon cut into small pieces and fry it. We remove it and set it aside for later.
3. In the same oil, fry the garlic, onion and leek until they are transparent. Add the rest of the vegetables, except the cabbage, tomato and beans, and fry for a few minutes.
4. Once the vegetables are fried, add the chopped tomato with all its juice, the chopped cabbage, the broth, the reserved ham and the bay leaf. Cook over a low heat for 20-30 minutes, until the potato and cabbage are tender.
5. Then add the pasta and cook for the time specified on the package. Finally, add the beans, drained of their liquid if they are canned, and bring everything together for a final boil.
6. We serve the soup in a tureen or pot, sprinkled with chopped basil and a bowl of grated parmesan. Don't forget to add the basil because it gives it a wonderful touch. Ideal for this time of year, don't you think?