Hearty Greens Soup with Bowtie Pasta and Tomatoes

Today we're making one of my favorite soups, courtesy of the Whole Foods website. There are a few things we changed this time, from the original recipe. We used reduced sodium vegetable broth instead of the water, because it was a little too bland the first time around. And on top of carrots, we added some parsnips we had left over from the Irish stew. A little extra veggies never hurt anyone! =) Also, we couldn't find escarole, so we just left it out and put in a little extra spinach. We have yet to actually cook it with the parmesan rind in the soup, but do add a sprinkle of parmesan when it's ready to eat along with some crushed red pepper that gives it the perfect amount of spice.

 

Onions, parsnips, carrots, fresh bay leaves, tomatoes, and spinach. 

 

The beautiful red Swiss chard we got at Whole Foods. 

Hearty Greens Soup with Bowtie Pasta and Tomatoes  

Serves 6 to 8

Use all manner of kale, chard or other hearty greens in this filling cold weather soup. Look for Parmigiano Reggiano rinds, ideal for flavoring soups and stews, in the specialty cheese department.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 bay leaf
Salt and pepper to taste
4 plum tomatoes, cored and chopped
2 carrots, chopped
8 cups water
1 bunch Swiss chard (about 3/4 pound), roughly chopped
1/2 bunch escarole (about 1/2 pound), stemmed and roughly chopped
1/2 pound dried bowtie (farfalle) pasta
1 (3-inch) Parmigiano Reggiano rind, plus grated Parmigiano Reggiano for garnish
1/4 pound baby spinach

Instructions:

Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add garlic, onions, bay leaf, salt and pepper and cook, stirring often, until caramelized, about 15 minutes. Add tomatoes and cook until most of the liquid is released and absorbed, about 5 minutes more. Add carrots and water and bring to a boil, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot.

Stir in Swiss chard, escarole, pasta and Parmigiano Reggiano rind, reduce heat, cover and simmer until broth is flavorful and greens and pasta are tender, about 15 minutes. Stir in spinach and season with salt and pepper.

Remove and discard bay leaf and rind from soup then ladle into bowls, garnish with grated cheese and serve.

Nutrition Per serving (about 17oz/476g-wt.): 200 calories (45 from fat), 5g total fat, 1g saturated fat, 0mg cholesterol, 350mg sodium, 34g total carbohydrate (5g dietary fiber, 4g sugar), 7g protein