Homemade Alphabet Vegetable Soup

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 3 garlic (cloves, minced)
• 1 cup yellow onion (chopped; about 1/2 of a large onion)
• 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
• 0.75 tsp salt
• 0.75 tsp dried thyme
• 0.25 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 8 cups broth (beef, chicken, or vegetable broth)
• 3 cups vegetables (3–4 cups; frozen, canned, or fresh; exact vegetables unspecified)
• 1 potato (medium, peeled and chopped (about 1 heaping cup))
• 1 bay leaf
• 6 oz tomato paste (1 can)
• 14 oz diced tomatoes (1 can; do not drain)
• 1 cup dry alphabet pasta
• fresh Parmesan cheese (optional, for topping)

Steps

1. 1

   Heat the olive oil in a 5-quart or larger pot or Dutch oven over medium heat.

2. 2

   Add the garlic, onion, Italian seasoning, salt, thyme, and black pepper. Stir and cook for 5 minutes, until the onion softens.

3. 3

   Add the broth, vegetables, potato, bay leaf, tomato paste, and diced tomatoes. Bring the soup to a boil.

4. 4

   Add the uncooked alphabet pasta. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes.

5. 5

   Remove the bay leaf. Serve the soup warm, topped with fresh Parmesan cheese if desired.

6. 6

   Cover and refrigerate leftovers for up to a week. To reheat, pour the soup into a pot and warm over medium heat. Add more broth as it cooks if it has become too thick; the potatoes and noodles absorb liquid as the soup sits.

Notes

The recipe allows favorite spices and vegetables; it says alphabet pasta can be replaced by another small-shaped pasta. The page description says the soup freezes well. Broth type and the specific vegetables are left to the cook's choice. Source lists 3–4 cups of vegetables; 3 cups is used here to represent that range, so adjust up to 4 cups as desired. Parmesan is an optional serving topping and has no specified amount.

Nutrition per serving

• soup
• main
• vegetarian option
• family-friendly
• stovetop
• make-ahead
• freezer-friendly
• lunch