Sunday night - Minestrone

I'm a bit surprised that in the past few weeks of my pregnancy the thought of meat, particularly a chunky steak, has made me feel a bit squirmish. Surprised, because throughout my life and even this pregnancy I've enjoyed most foods at any time but with only 5 weeks to go, I shall get over it! My husband pulled some sirloin from the freezer before heading out for a round of golf, expecting that to be his dinner. Anyway, will attempt a meaty dish tomorrow night, this is what he got....

Something hearty...

My mother used to make a version of this soup when we were children. The vegetable bins in my fridge were full of vege that needed using up; celery, carrots, courgettes, butternut...this is a really easy, nourishing and hearty meal, that's cheap to make.

Serves 4

a couple of tbsps olive oil
1 onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, crushed or finely chopped
1 carrot, diced
2 large celery stalks, diced
2 courgettes in chunky slices
1/2 a small butternut, de-skined, de-seeded and diced. (You could use potato or kumara instead)
2 fresh tomatoes, core removed and diced
1 can tomatoes
1 can red kidney beans (alternatively to fill out this soup, you could use 200-300gms pasta shapes eg. macaroni or orzo)
2 cups chicken stock (I didn't have any vege stock so technically this isn't a vegetarian recipe!)
2 tbsps fresh oregano, chopped (use whatever you have on hand eg. thyme, basil, parsley)
1 tsp dried tarragon (try other dried herbs you may have - although fresh is best in my opinion)
seasoning to taste

To serve: a dollop of sour cream, pesto or some grated cheddar and crusty bread

In a medium saucepan, heat the oil and sweat the onion, celery and carrot for a few minutes until the onion is translucent but not brown. Add garlic, butternut, fresh tomatoes, canned tomatoes, herbs, stock and seasoning, bring to the boil then simmer for 10 minutes. Add courgettes and simmer for a further 5 mins before adding the red kidney beans for another 5 minutes until heated through