Spring Green Vegetable Minestrone | 80 Calories

“This is my nourishing vegetable soup of the moment.  I absolutely love eating it, not only because it tastes so good, but because I can instantly feel the goodness and the benefit to my body.   I love it straight from the pot and often top it with chopped avocado and a generous drizzle of salsa verde. If I want to pump up the protein, I’ll add some chicken or creamy white cannellini beans.” — Healthy Chef Teresa Cutter

What’s good about it?   Basically everything!

Studies show that the health benefits from following a diet that focuses on a daily intake of vegetables include weight loss; diabetes control; lowered insulin secretion; improved sports performance; and reduced risk for diabetes, cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure and cancer.

These veggies act like pre-biotic in the digestive system that help to stimulate the favorable growth and activity of the good probiotic bacteria.  This minestrone is low carb and low GI that will fill you up as well as help to keep insulin levels steady. Make a big pot and eat as much as you want any time of the day.

Green Vegetable Minestrone

Print Pin Rate

Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes minutes

Course: Soups

Cuisine: Healthy Spa Cuisine

Keyword: Kale, Leeks, Peas, Vegan, Vegetarian, Zucchini

Servings: 4

Calories: 80kcal

Courtesy Of: Theresa Cutter

Top this Green Vegetable Minestrone with chopped avocado and salsa verde just before serving. Pump up the protein by adding white beans or chopped chicken breast when adding the stock.

Ingredients

MINESTRONE

• ▢ 1 large leek cleaned and sliced
• ▢ 2 stalks celery cut into small chunks
• ▢ 1 large green bell pepper seeded and cut into chunks
• ▢ 2 large zucchini cut into small chunks
• ▢ 3-4 ounces kale chopped
• ▢ 9 ounces green peas fresh or frozen
• ▢ 4 cups vegetable stock

SALSA VERDE

• ▢ 1 bunch fresh green basil
• ▢ 1 bunch fresh parsley
• ▢ 1 clove fresh garlic
• ▢ ½ teaspoon sea salt
• ▢ 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• ▢ 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• ▢ Fresh Ground White Pepper to taste

Instructions

• Sauté the leek and celery in a large saucepan over a low heat for 2 minutes until soft.
• Add the stock, zucchini, bell pepper and kale, and simmer over gentle heat for 10 minutes
  
• Add the peas and simmer for another 3 minutes.
• Season with freshly ground white pepper, if desired
• Combine salsa verde ingredients in a high speed blender and puree until a paste forms.
• Adjust consistency of the salsa verde with olive oil or lemon juice.
• Ladle the minestrone into a bowl, and top with a generous drizzle of the salsa verde.
• Serve immediately and enjoy!

Spa Index Kitchen Notes

Delightful with added beans or chicken.  The nutrition is for one cup of soup, without the salsa verde, or added beans or chicken, so adjust accordingly.  If you use a very scant drizzle of the salsa verde, your added calories are minimal -- roughly the fat grams of a teaspoon of olive oil.

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Nutrition

Serving: 1 bowl | Calories: 80 kcal (4%) | Carbohydrates: 11 g (4%) | Protein: 7 g (14%) | Fat: 2 g (3%) | Fiber: 8 g (33%)

About the Chef

Teresa Cutter is one of Australia’s leading authorities on healthy cooking and the founder of The Healthy Chef.  Healthy Chef is a company that creates purely delicious functional foods for optimum health + wellbeing.  We use organic and natural wholefoods and pride ourselves on developing quality that will inspire a deeper commitment to healthy living. A change in diet can bring about a change in health.   Teresa is the author of five healthy cookbooks – Bite Me, The Anti-Aging Cookbook, Fit Food, The 80/20 Diet, and 101 Ways to Lose Weight.