Farro Kale and Minestrone Soup
Servings: 8 people
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup of fresh not canned cranberry beans. If you can't find these beans then pinto or kidney beans will work.
- 4 ounces of diced pancetta
- 1 clove of garlic
- 1 small onion diced
- a pinch of red pepper flakes
- 1 sprig of fresh rosemary
- 1 sprig of fresh thyme
- 2 tbsp of olive oil
- 4 carrots peeled and diced
- 1 celery stalk diced
- 1 large bunch of fresh Kale about 3-4 cups cut of the stems and course chopped
- 1 cup of tomato puree
- 4 cups of chicken broth
- 1 cup of pearled farro this is a very fast cooking farro
- Freshly grated Parmesan for serving
Instructions
- In a medium pot add your fresh beans, thyme, and rosemary and pour in enough water to cover your beans by 1 inch with the water.
- Bring this to a boil and then cover and reduce the heat to a simmer.
- Let the beans simmer for about 30-40 minutes until they just start to get tender. Then set aside.
- In a large heavy bottom pot on medium heat, add your olive oil, pancetta and your red pepper flakes. Saute for 5 minutes to lightly cook your pancetta.
- Now add your garlic, onion, celery and carrots and saute for about 3 minutes until they just start to soften.
- Now add your chicken stock to the pot and mix well.
- Next add your tomato puree, farro and all of your beans and their water to the pot.
- Mix this all together.
- Add your Kale and let simmer on low heat for another 15-20 minutes or until the farro is soft but still has some chew.
- Season your soup with salt and pepper. Beans soak up salt so make sure to season well!
To serve
- Ladle into soup bowls and top generously with freshly grated Parmesan and crusty bread on the side.