Hearty, healthy, and delicious minestrone soup with quinoa – an easy-to-prepare vegetarian and gluten-free soup recipe.

Minestrone Soup with Quinoa | TheRoastedRoot.net #healthy #vegetarian #vegan #glutenfree

One thing I don’t talk about on here very much is where I’m from.

If you’ve been lurking around my site for quite some time, you know that I grew up in Lake Tahoe, where cutting out of school early to go skiing is not only acceptable, but it is encouraged.

And you can get P.E. credit for it.

In the small, almost too cozy town I grew up in, seeing my teachers and coaches on the chairlift or mountain biking trails is commonplace, and secrets are simply a luxury you just do not have. 

 Tahoe residents have long-standing “you know you’re from Tahoe when. . .” jokes.  For instance, you know you’re from Tahoe when…

  • Your idea of a traffic jam is three cars lined up behind a snow plough
  • “Hucking the palisades” is a real life phrase. And you use it. Regularly. Similarly, “shredding the gnar” is also a real life phrase. You do this regularly.
  • You can’t make it out of the grocery store in less than 1 hour because you’re bound to run into at least 10 people you know.
  • You’ve dated at least one pro skier or mountain biker. Or you are a pro skier or mountain biker.
  • You and all of your friends make each other beanies for Christmas. Because you’re broke. And your head is cold.
  • You’ve biked Big Blue.
  • You are the proud 3rd owner of a 1998 Subaru Outback.
  • The population of the town you live in is lower than the elevation.
  • You’ve zip-lined across more lakes than most people have been to.
  • Your level of awesomeness is commensurate with the height of the cliffs you’ve jumped.
  • You can guess which of your friends caused the power outage by crashing into the pole with their bald-tired 1998 Subaru Outback.

Which brings me to my next point: power outages during huge snow storms are a frequent occurrence.

Being stuck at home because someone ram-rodded the power lines, and you can’t trudge through the 4 feet of snow to your car, much less un-bury your car, much less drive your car, much less park your car, in order to get from point A to point B, is to be expected multiple times per winter.

During these times, it is important to have a stash of candles and non-perishable food.

Welcome to Tahoe Survival Guide 101.

Growing up in a house with a well-prepared mountain dad meant we always, always had enough food in the pantry for our family to survive a nuclear holocaust….or an extremely large snow storm or power outage.

During these days of inclement weather when it wasn’t safe to leave the house, we’d break out the canned veggies and make a big pot of soup or stew.

Canned vegetables and soup fixings not only got us by the cooped up days, but they welcomed us and warmed our bellies after a long day on the mountain.

Aside from being immobile during certain times of the winter, it can be also be difficult to find good fresh produce at the store.

If you stock your cupboards with your favorite canned tomatoes and veggies so that you can not only eat when you’re hauled up in your cabin, but eat well, you’re one step ahead of your neighbor, who is, no doubt, eating saltines covered with grape jam.

Minestrone Soup with Quinoa | TheRoastedRoot.net #healthy #vegetarian #vegan #glutenfree

Because I’m huge on soup, especially during the snowy winter months, I love having a stock of canned food to facilitate my feeding process.

Girl gets hungry after shoveling snow for half the day. I use diced tomatoes in my soup and chili recipes as opposed to fresh tomatoes because they save time, and I like the texture and flavor they bring to soups.

Finding fresh green beans at my grocery store can be hit or miss, so I used canned to make this minestrone soup happen.

Traditional minestrone soup includes pasta noodles, but I replaced the noodles with quinoa in order to keep the soup gluten-free.

You can easily re-tradition this recipe by adding noodles and skipping the quinoa.

More Healthy Soup Recipes:

And that’s it, folks! Enjoy your cozy, healthy winter soup!

Minestrone Soup with Quinoa | TheRoastedRoot.net #healthy #vegetarian #vegan #glutenfree

Minestrone Soup with Quinoa

4.10 from 11 votes
This rustic classic Minestrone Soup with Quinoa is a fresh Italian-inspired light soup recipe.
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
Servings: 5 Servings

Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 yellow onion chopped
  • 2 carrots peeled and chopped
  • 3 stalks celery chopped
  • 2 red potatoes chopped
  • 6 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 teaspoon dried basil
  • ½ teaspoon dried oregano
  • ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
  • ½ teaspoon ground sage
  • 2 14.5 ounce cans Diced Tomatoes
  • 6 cups low sodium vegetable or chicken broth*
  • ½ cup dry quinoa
  • 1 rind parmesan cheese optional
  • 1 14.5 ounce can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 14.5 ounce can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 14.5 ounce can Cut Green Beans, drained
  • ½ teaspoon salt or to taste

Instructions

  • In a large stock pot or Dutch oven, add oil and heat to medium. Add the chopped onion and sauté until fragrant and softened, about 3 minutes.
  • Add the carrots, celery, and red potatoes. Continue sautéing, stirring frequently, until vegetables have softened, but are still al dente, about 8 minutes.
  • Add the garlic and spices and sauté another 1 minutes.
  • Add the diced tomatoes, chicken broth, quinoa, and parmesan cheese rind. Bring the soup to a full boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cover the pot and cook for 30 minutes or until vegetables are cooked through and quinoa is cooked.
  • Add the 3 types of beans and cook an additional 8 minutes.
  • Remove the parmesan rind (or leave it in and eat it).
  • Test the soup for flavor and add desired amount of salt.
  • Serve with crusty bread and shredded parmesan cheese

Nutrition

Serving: 1of 5 · Calories: 459kcal · Carbohydrates: 45g · Protein: 15g · Fat: 3g · Fiber: 5g
Author: Julia
Course: Soups, Stews, & Chilies
Cuisine: Italian
Keyword: easy soup recipe, healthy soup recipe, Italian food, Italian soup recipe, minestrone soup with quinoa, vegan recipe, vegan soup recipe, vegetarian
Did You Make This Recipe?I want to see it! Tag @the.roasted.root on social media!
Julia Mueller
Meet the Author

Julia Mueller

Julia Mueller is a recipe developer, cookbook author, and founder of The Roasted Root. She has authored three bestselling cookbooks, – Paleo Power Powers, Delicious Probiotic Drinks, and The Quintessential Kale Cookbook. Her recipes have been featured in several national publications such as BuzzFeed, Self, Tasty, Country Living, Brit.co, etc.

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4.10 from 11 votes (11 ratings without comment)

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Questions and Reviews

  1. I always have canned tomatoes; diced, whole, and crushed on hand! I also keep plenty of black olives and artichoke hearts in my pantry just in case I get a salty craving. I am loving how you replaced the noodles with quinoa. I have to try this. Minestrone is my fave soup!

  2. Great minds totally thinking alike this week…I have minestrone lined up for later in the week AND also used my Thanksgiving turkey stock 🙂 Love your version, and especially the addition of quinoa!

  3. I somehow always seem to have kidney beans on hand, and artichoke hearts. Love this soup, girl! Someone get me a bread bowl. 😉

  4. Love a big pot of soup on cold days. My favorite veggies to have on hand in cans are diced tomatoes and corn. Both work great for my go- to crockpot meal, chili.

  5. I buy canned tomatoes, stewed tomatoes, , tomato sauce, and tomato paste all in bulk — I use them so often! but my favorite is no-salt canned corn. It tastes like fresh corn and has a phenomenal texture.

  6. I keep the petite diced tomatoes on hand, because I’m ok with tomatoes, but don’t want a large bite of them. I like the quinoa addition!

  7. I also appreciate the convenience and taste of canned diced tomatoes in my soups– so those, and canned pineapple. Ya never know when you might want to throw them into a dish to give a nice sweet flare!

  8. I like to have canned tomatoes, tomato sauce and paste, kidney beans, black beans, garbanzo beans, green beans, low sodium chicken stock, pears, apple sauce, fruit cocktail, pineapple and cans of premade soup and chili if I don’t feel like making any of my own. 🙂 There’s so much you can do with all of the above!

  9. I ALWAYS have DelMonte canned sliced peaches in lite syrup on hand. Also diced tomatoes. Canned peaches make a Great lunch when you are snowed in and have no food!

  10. Hi There! I’m a new subscriber here as of January 4th, and I just love your blog<3 Anyway! I My go-to MUST have pantry staples are fire roasted organic canned tomatoes ( no salt added). They turn just about any soup I make into this savory sweet heaven!:) I also like to stock canned pumpkin on hand year round. I'm actually weird and prefer it to fresh!:) Thanks for the giveaway!!

  11. My goal this year is to get over my fear of a pressure cooker and can my own veggies. Love the soup and your description of Tahoe life!

  12. Definitely canned peas to decorate any meal. Canned fruit (minus the added sugars/syrups!) for a quick, delicious dessert snack. Also, canned tomatoes for the days (like today; -50 degrees) when you are in desperate need of some chili!!

  13. I always keep a varied assortment of fruits and veggies but what I always have is different flavors of tomatoes. I love adding them to salads, soups, and even sandwiches.

  14. My favorite fruits and vegetables to have in stock are sweet potatoes, blueberries, sweet cherries, tomatoes, and peppers. 🙂

  15. Man, I’d love to knit beanies and zipline over lakes! Sounds like heaven. Seriously though, Brandon and I dream of retiring in Tahoe. It’s one beautiful place.

    I always have diced tomatoes in my pantry. They’re so versatile!

    p.s. I love the idea of adding quinoa to minestrone. I will definitely be giving that a try!

  16. I have corn, peas. green beans, lima, beans, kidney beans. baked beans, peaches, pineapple and mixed fruit in my kitchen cabinet.

  17. Ditto on the canned diced tomatoes! I use them for soups, shakshuka and spicy braised green beans. Eager to try this soup, too!

  18. I always keep some cans of black beans on hand, along with fresh oranges and lemons for juice or zest to add

  19. Mmmm, LOVE me some minestrone! I haven’t made a homemade version yet (I KNOW) but I know what recipe to try first!

  20. Haha! I love your ” you know you’re from Tahoe when…” It is pretty much the same thing here!!

    Love the soup. I wish I had a bowl right now. I am freezing and hungry!

  21. Loved this post, Julia! My husband and I always play around with the idea of leaving the Bay Area and moving to Tahoe whenever we are up there to play. My daughter would have no problem playing hookie to ski, that’s for sure! Ah, maybe one day.

    This bowl of soup is perfect for a cold winter day. As for canned goods, I always have a bevy of canned tomatoes, beans, and olives in the pantry. Always works in a pinch!

  22. G’day! very healthy looking soup! Great photo, true!
    Love the idea of adding healthy superfood quinoa which have never cooked with to date, but your recipe inspires me to do!
    Cheers! Joanne

  23. We dont’ really have power outages like that in NYC, but that doesn’t stop me from keeping my pantry stocked with good quality ingredients like this! Especially if they’re what I need to make this soup. YUM.

  24. I stock everything in my pantry: cranberries, beans of all types/sizes, green beans, corn, pineapples, potatoes, etc etc etc. I am a cannery!

  25. I LOVE tomatoes 🙂 From fat, juicy tomatoes off the vine to cherry tomatoes! They’re all so good 🙂 Lately, I’ve also started developing a thing for cucumbers. I don’t know why, but suddenly I am finding them super delicious 🙂

  26. I always keeps plenty of cans of tomatoes on hand. Whole, diced, crushed, you name it!

    And oh my goodness, I’m from the East Bay Area and I go to Tahoe at least twice a month! In fact, we’re driving up this weekend. We stay in S. Lake Tahoe, and the Mont Bleu Casino usually. It’s like my second home : )

  27. Canned corn is easy to use when on hand! Also, this may be weird but canned artichokes …when used properly can be very good.

  28. I always have onions, potatoes, sweet potatoes, squash, tomatoes and cucumbers on hand. My daughter likes fresh veggies for snacking. Great recipe!!

  29. I buy dried beans in the hopes that one day I’ll actually use them, but canned beans are just so much easier! 🙂 This soup looks wonderful!

  30. For a quick addition to any tomato based soup, I really like to have either canned turnip greens or kale stocked in my pantry. Right now, prices on these items are reasonable.

  31. We love everything! we have tomatoes, green beans, peas, corn and black beans, we also love peaches and applesauce.

  32. I keep peas, corn and peaches.
    I tweeted with #SweepstakesEntry”.
    I want to thank you for this awesome sweep 🙂

  33. I will make it, and eat it, and eat it, and when I am almost done, i will eat it again. That’s three times eaten. Yum.

  34. My parents live in Virginia, so we’ve got some similar ‘you know you’re from here when…’ jokes, with some more redneck undertones to them 🙂

    The power always go out at their house, especially with any kind of POLAR VORTEX! They always always have canned tomatoes and beans.

    This looks totally delicious!

  35. This soup looks delish! We keep canned beans on hand, and also canned tomatoes for soups and chili!

  36. I always have a fully stocked pantry, tons of different kind of beans are what is most often used though, very versatile and healthy.

  37. I love to keep Del Monte’s green beans and pineapples in my pantry. They are so good.

    amy [at] utry [dot] it

  38. Such a great post! I love your Tahoe phrases 🙂

    My favorite canned vegetables has to be tomatoes. I use ’em in everything!

  39. This looks great! I haven’t had a hot bowl of minestrone in so long. I love stocking up on green beans, tomatoes, and corn. Thank you for the nice giveaway!

    lola_violets_2010{at}yahoo{dot}com

  40. This may sound crazy, but I must always have canned mandarin oranges. When I get sick with the flu, my appetite goes right out the door and the ONLY thing I am willing to eat is those tiny little orange segments. When I’m well, they’re great in cottage cheese for breakfast or a snack.

  41. I keep stewed and diced tomatoes on hand because I use them so often in cooking.
    Digicats {at} Sbcglobal {dot} Net

  42. My favorite vegetables to stock in the pantry are sweetcorn, carrots, green beans and beans. I love to choose them all in a variety of recipes but I have to admit I am rather obsessed with green bean casserole at the moment!
    My favorite fruits to store are tangerines, pineapple and peaches! My children love to eat them straight from the cans and I like to use them in trifles.

  43. Green beans, corn, lots of types of tomatoes, fruit like peaches and pears – all yum amd good places to start when cooking.

  44. I always keep canned tomato products on hand along with canned peaches and pineapple and mandarin oranges.

    I’ve never visited Tahoe but loved your “Your know you’re from…” list! Thanks.

  45. A lot of those “You know you’re from Tahoe…” items could be labeled “You know you’re from Sun Valley”! Except…we don’t so much have snow this year. Sad. No “skiing the Burn” this year!

    1. This winter has blown my mind…I hear nothing is in the forecast and our economy is hurting pretty badly up here. I’m hoping mother nature gives us some snow lovin soon 😉

  46. I keep a well-stocked pantry of canned goods. Favorites: Cannellini beans; diced tomatoes; cut green beans; peaches; pineapple – chunk, slice and crushed; black beans; asparagus; mandarin oranges.
    I love Lake Tahoe. My husband and I were married there 31 years ago this May! Hope to visit it again.

  47. I love having corn, beans and tomatoes in my pantry. There are endless possibilities for recipes with those 3 stapes.

  48. I love to stock up on canned green beans and pineapple chunks.

    Thanks for the chance to win!
    wildorchid985 at gmail dot com

  49. I try to keep a pretty good supply of several fruits and vegetables on hand, but the mainstay is tomatoes, in various forms.

  50. I like to keep in stock canned corn, peas and tomatoes, mandarin oranges, pineapple chunks, pickles, olives and jars of artichoke hearts. Can always make something quick with those on hand.

  51. I use tomatoes so often I have to keep a big supply on hand. I also keep corn and green beans as well as kidney and pinto beans. For fruit I have to have peaches, pears and mandarin oranges if for no other reason than to add to my cottage cheese.

  52. Canned green beans are the fave here. We have them pretty often so we keep a bunch in the pantry. My daughter is crazy about peaches, so we always keep some on hand too.

  53. I love to have canned pears stocked in my pantry. I can never have enough of them. susansmoaks at gmail dot com

  54. PICKLES! I must have both hamburger dill slices AND whole dill pickle halves on hand at all times. I eat them all the time!

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  56. This looks super good and especially since I love soup all year long! By the way, how big is a serving? 1 cup or more? I am having a hard time with portions and calorie control!

    1. So glad you like it! I’d say 2 cups would be a portion. Not gonna lie, I typically eat myself silly when it comes to soup cause I feel like it’s pretty guilt-free. Hope you enjoy!

  57. Made this minestrone tonight. Good, but even with the Parmesan rind, needs more umps. Maybe up the spices, particularly the garlic. Thanks for the healthy recipe!