Directions for: Canadian Minestrone
Ingredients
6 slices bacon, diced
cup onion, diced
cup carrot, peeled and diced
cup parsnip, peeled and diced
cup green zucchini, diced
cup red bell pepper, diced
2 clove garlic, minced
2 tsp chopped fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
1 14-oz tin white kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 14-oz tin diced tomato
3 cup chicken stock
2 Tbsp maple syrup
salt and pepper
1 cup soup pasta, such as orzo or Acini di Pepe
12 slices peameal bacon
cup grated Parmesan cheese
cup chopped Italian parsley
Directions
1. Cook the bacon over medium heat in a large soup pot until crisp. Remove the bacon and reserve, draining all but 2 Tbsp of the bacon fat.
2. Add the onion, carrot and parsnip to the pot and saut 5 minutes. Add the zucchini, pepper, garlic, thyme and bay leaf and saut 1 minute more. Add the kidney beans, tomato, chicken stock and maple syrup. Cover loosely and simmer until the vegetables are tender, 20 to 30 minutes. Remove the bay leaf and season to taste.
3. While the soup is simmering, cook the pasta in boiling salted water until just tender, then drain and rinse to halt the cooking. Set aside.
4. Cook the peameal slices in a saut pan over medium-high, about 5 minutes on each side until cooked through.
5. To serve, rinse the cooked pasta under hot water to warm it, then drain. Spoon 2 Tbsp of pasta into each soup dish, then ladle the soup on top. Slice the peameal into strips and place on top. Sprinkle each soup dish with Parmesan, parsley and reserved bacon and serve immediately.
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