Our significant others love minestrone soup; each time we go out to eat and there is a minestrone special, you know one of them is going to order it. With all the different variations of minestrone available, it has become a crapshoot – you never know what you’re going to get, except that it will be some sort of vegetable medley soup. Some recipes include pasta, some include rice, some exclude starch altogether. Usually the common ingredients include beans, onions, celery, carrots, stock and tomatoes, although we’ve had versions that did not have any of the aformentioned ingredients.

Making minestrone at home usually gives us extra kudos points with our siginificant others, and we’ve found a very simple and very tasty recipe from Giada De Laurentiis. Her trick of adding pureed cannelini bean mixture into the soup gives it the right amount of thickness and the addition of the Parmesan cheese rind gives the soup added depth and flavor. So don’t throw away your Parmesan cheese rinds! Store them in the freezer and toss it right into the soup when the time comes.

We made this soup last night and once again, it never fails.

Winter Minestrone
(from Giada De Laurentiis on Food Network’s Everyday Italian)

Yields 4 to 6 servings

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 carrots, peeled, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
3 ounces thinly sliced pancetta, coarsely chopped (or bacon)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound Swiss chard, stems trimmed, leaves coarsely chopped
1 russet potato, peeled, cubed
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 fresh rosemary sprig
1 (15-ounce) can cannellini beans, drained, rinsed
2 (14-ounce) cans low-sodium beef broth
1 ounce piece Parmesan cheese rind
2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves
Salt and pepper

Heat the oil in a heavy large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, celery, pancetta, and garlic. Saute until the onion is translucent, about 10 minutes. Add the Swiss chard and potato; saute for 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and rosemary sprig. Simmer until the chard is wilted and the tomatoes break down, about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, blend 3/4 cup of the beans with 1/4 cup of the broth in a processor until almost smooth. Add the pureed bean mixture, remaining broth, and Parmesan cheese rind to the vegetable mixture. Simmer until the potato pieces are tender, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes. Stir in the whole beans and parsley. Simmer until the beans are heated through and the soup is thick, about 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Discard Parmesan rind and rosemary sprig (the leaves will have fallen off of the stem.)

Ladle the soup into bowls and serve.