Healthy family recipe: Quick minestrone soup

This is a soup that I've made for many years during the winter months. It's a hit with everyone in my family. We like to top it with shredded or grated parmesan cheese. My husband likes to stir in a small teaspoon of pesto. I always make a double batch since it freezes well. I've adapted it from the orginal recipe to use fresher ingredients instead of bottled and frozen ones.

Quick minestrone soup

Ingredients:

Directions:

1. Cook pasta
2. Heat the oil in a 4 1/2 quart Dutch oven or soup pot over medium-high heat, begin slicing carrots, adding them as you slice, cook, stirring occasionally for 1 minute
3. Add the onions and continue to cook 1 minute, add garlic, add green beans, and continue to cook until carrots are crisp and tender, about 1 minute more
4. Remove any visible fat from beef broth, raise heat to high and immediately add both broths, stewed tomatoes, tomato sauce, Italian seasoning and sugar, cover pot and bring to a boil
5. Rinse and drain kidney beans and chickpeas
6. When soup is boiling add remaining ingredients, let soup boil for about 5 minutes more
7. Put pasta into bowl and ladle soup on top (You can add pasta in the soup before, but I like to separate it. That way, it doesn't soak up all the broth if you have later as leftovers.)

Adapted from Desperation Dinners!: Home-cooked meals for frantic families in 20 minutes flat by Beverly Mills & Alicia Ross

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