Garden Minestrone

Yield: 8 servings (serving size: 1 1/2 cups soup and 2 tablespoons cheese)

Ingredients

• 2  teaspoons  olive oil
• 1  cup  chopped onion
• 2  teaspoons  chopped fresh oregano
• 4  garlic cloves, minced
• 3  cups  chopped yellow squash
• 3  cups  chopped zucchini
• 1  cup  chopped carrot
• 1  cup  fresh corn kernels (about 2 ears)
• 4  cups  chopped tomato, divided
• 3  (14-ounce) cans fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth, divided
• 1/2  cup  uncooked ditalini pasta (very short tube-shaped macaroni)
• 1  (15.5-ounce) can Great Northern beans, rinsed and drained
• 1  (6-ounce) package fresh baby spinach
• 1  teaspoon  salt
• 1/2  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
• 1  cup  (4 ounces) grated Asiago cheese
• Coarsely ground black pepper (optional)

Preparation

Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion to pan; sauté 3 minutes or until softened. Add oregano and garlic; sauté 1 minute. Stir in squash, zucchini, carrot, and corn; sauté 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Remove from heat.

Place 3 cups tomato and 1 can broth in a blender; process until smooth. Add tomato mixture to pan; return pan to heat. Stir in remaining 1 cup tomato and remaining 2 cans broth; bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes.

Add pasta and beans to pan; cook 10 minutes or until pasta is tender, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. Stir in spinach, salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Ladle soup into individual bowls; top with cheese. Garnish with coarsely ground black pepper, if desired.

Nutritional Information

Calories:

217 (25% from fat)

Fat:

6.1g (sat 2.7g,mono 2g,poly 0.6g)

Protein:

12.6g

Carbohydrate:

30.5g

Fiber:

7.9g

Cholesterol:

12mg

Iron:

2.7mg

Sodium:

812mg

Calcium:

206mg