Mac’N’Cheese Minestrone #SoupSwappers

 

So, welcome to the June #SoupSwappers event. Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm started this group and I'm always grateful to have a few more recipes to try. This month, Wendy is hosting and we are sharing soups that start with leftovers. Here's the line-up of deliciousness...

• Palatable Pastime shares Corned Beef and Cabbage Soup 
• Sneha’s Recipe shares Keto Almond Biscuit With Keto Chicken Pot Pie Soup 
• A Day in the Life on the Farm shares Leftover Steak Teriyaki Soup 
• Culinary Adventures with Camilla shares Mac’N’Cheese Minestrone 
• Karen’s Kitchen Stories shares Pappa al Pomodoro (Tomato and Bread Soup)

Mac’N’Cheese Minestrone

On the day that titles were due - thankfully Wendy sent me a message while we were hiking - I thought about what I had in the fridge and settled on making minestrone with leftover mac'n'cheese. The night before I had taught R how to make homemade cheese sauce for pasta. Easy peasy!

Minestrone is the catch-all name for all Italian vegetable soups that might include vegetables, beans, pasta, and herbs in a broth. When I lived in Italy, it was our clean-out-the-vegetable-bin Sunday evening dinner; that's a traditional that persists in my household today. 

Lots of times I will toss a rind of Parmigiano-Reggiano into the soup, so I figured adding a pasta with cheese sauce would accomplish the same thing.

Ingredients makes 4 to 6 servings

• olive oil
• 1 cup diced onions
• 1 cup diced carrots (I had purple carrots the day I made this)
• 2 cups small broccoli florets
• 1 can or small tetra cooked beans (I had red kidney beans the day I made this)
• 4 cups vegetable stock
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 2 to 3 cups leftover mac'n'cheese(or whatever pasta shape you used!)
• freshly ground salt, to taste
• freshly ground pepper, to taste
• Also needed: large soup pot (I used a Dutch oven), cheese toasts for serving

Procedure

Heat the oil in a large soup pot (or Dutch oven) and sauté the onions and carrots ver medium heat until the onions are translucent and softened. Pour in the stock and stir in the herbs. 

Stir in the broccoli and let the liquid come to a boil. Cook until desired texture; we prefer the veggies to still be fairly firm.

Fold in the cooked beans and mac'n'cheese. Heat until the cheese sauce has loosened from the pasta. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

To serve, ladle into individual bowls. Garnish with cheese toasts. Serve hot and enjoy!

I hope this inspires you to use those leftovers and get a little bit creative with them. I can't wait to try out the other offerings from the group. Next month we'll be sharing summer soups recipes. Stay tuned!