Hearty Wild Rice Minestrone Soup

Hearty Wild Rice Minestrone is a vegetarian soup that’s so easy to throw together and perfect for staying cozy in the fall! It’s chock full of hearty veggies, rice, and cannellini beans and it’s punched up with a flavorful dollop of pesto and a sprinkling of shredded parmesan-reggiano. Serve it up with a generous hunk of crusty bread for ultimate satisfying cold weather comfort food.

I’ve done it. After hanging onto summer for as long as I could, I’ve officially given in and decided to fully embrace fall. No doubt the final push over the seasonal line had something to do with this last weekend’s camping fail where we were definitely NOT prepared for freezing cold nights. Sooo could’ve used about a hundred more blankets, mittens, stocking hats and multiple layers of thermal underwear! And while it’s still pretty warm during the day here, I’m starting to notice piles of leaves on the ground and the evenings have most definitely turned into sweata weatha. And sweata weatha means staying cozy under blankets, drinking hot tea and filling up on big bowls of soup. Specifically this Hearty Wild Rice Minestrone Soup that’s so incredibly delicious and so perfect for staying cozy this fall. It’s basically my most favorite thing right now!

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This Hearty Wild Rice Minestrone is So Easy to Make!

Seriously, is there anything better than getting under some blankets and cozying up to a warm bowl of soup?? I mean I don’t even want to think about winter life without soup! It’s my cold weather life line! Thankfully soup couldn’t be easier to make. It’s as simple as throwing a ton of veggies and other flavorful ingredients into a simmering pot of broth and calling it dinner. AND if you make a big enough pot, throw the leftovers into the freezer to have on hand for those days when you need hot soup STAT.

Ingredients For This Soup

• EVOO
• Onion, carrots and celery – This is your mirepoix. Aka, your ultimate trio of building an aromatic and flavorful base.
• Butternut Squash – Mix it up with acorn, buttercup or sweet potatoes.
• Wild Rice Blend – I had this brand handy, but sub in your fav white, brown or wild rice variety. Or try using another fun grain like barley or farro. Just keep in mind cooking time will vary. For instance, a heartier whole grain, like brown rice, will take longer to cook than white rice.
• Green Beans – This recipe calls for fresh, but you can also use frozen. Just add them towards the end of cooking (the last 10 minutes or so).
• Garlic – If using powdered garlic: 1/2 tsp. garlic powder = 1 garlic clove
• Dried herbs – Thyme, oregano and basil. Have fun with these herbs. You can add in sage or rosemary or try using all Italian seasoning.
• Canned tomatoes – The recipes states crushed, but diced tomatoes or whole tomatoes crushed with your hands work well too. For even more flavor, try adding in fire-roasted canned tomatoes.
• Vegetable Broth – I use a low sodium broth because I can better control the amount of sodium. And if you’re not vegetarian, chicken broth is an option as well.
• Canned beans – Use cannellini, navy, kidney, black beans, black eyed peas or any combo you like.
• Kale – Any winter green, like spinach or swiss chard work great too.
• Black pepper
• Parmesan Reggiano – optional but also too good not to! It adds a little extra savory flavor to each spoonful.
• Pesto – Try this homemade recipe or use store-bought.
• Loaf of crusty bread – Don’t skip this part! Serve the soup up with a generous hunk of rustic and crusty bread. You’ll need it to soak up all that amazing broth!

Happy fall y’all! And happy soup season to each and every one of you. I hope you love and enjoy this soup as much as my husband and I do!

If you make this Hearty Wild Rice Minestrone Soup make sure to leave a comment or give it a rating! And if you’re into taking photos of your food (like me), be sure to give me a tag on Instagram!

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