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Minestrone
A thick Italian vegetable soup with kidney beans, pasta, and canned tomatoes — uses whatever cheap vegetables are on hand.
veganvegetarianbeanspastasoupone-potmeal-prep
SERVES 4
410 CAL / SERVING
15 min PREP
30 min COOK
$9.57 TOTAL
1 can (540 mL) red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
$1.50
1 can (796 mL) diced tomatoes
$2.00
200 g dry small pasta (ditalini or elbows)
$0.44
2 medium carrots, diced
$0.59
2 stalks celery, diced
$1.00
1 medium yellow onion, diced
$1.07
200 g green cabbage, shredded (about 2 cups)
$0.60
1 can (900 mL) chicken or vegetable broth
$1.69
500 mL water
$0.00
4 cloves garlic, minced
$0.32
1 tbsp tomato paste
$0.10
2 tbsp vegetable oil
$0.12
1 tsp dried oregano
$0.05
1 tsp dried basil
$0.05
0.5 tsp salt
$0.02
0.5 tsp black pepper
$0.02
SUBTOTAL$9.57
GST / HSTyou've suffered enough
TOTAL$9.57
— — — TEAR HERE — — —
8 06420 00957 4
THANK YOU FOR SPENDING LESS
THE METHOD
1
Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion, carrot, and celery. Cook 6 minutes until softened.
2
Add garlic, oregano, and basil. Cook 1 minute.
3
Stir in the tomato paste and cook 1 minute.
4
Add diced tomatoes, broth, and water. Bring to a boil.
5
Add the kidney beans and cabbage. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook 10 minutes.
6
Add the dry pasta. Cook 10–12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until pasta is just tender.
7
Taste and adjust salt. The soup will thicken as it sits — add a splash of water when reheating.
When the math doesn't work
Cabbage replaces zucchini here because zucchini runs $2–4 each in Ottawa and is seasonal. Cabbage is $2.99 a head; 200g is about one-fifth of it.
- Use vegetable broth instead of chicken broth to make this fully vegan. Same price.
- This freezes well before the pasta is added. Freeze the soup base, then cook fresh pasta when reheating.
Nutrition Per Serving
410
Calories
14g
Protein
60g
Carbs
6g
Fat
12g
Fiber
640mg
Sodium
~20% DV Iron~10% DV Calcium~25% DV Vitamin C
Estimated values per serving.
Gluten-Free
This recipe can be made gluten-free with substitutions.
- Replace small pasta with gluten-free pasta or an extra 100g of rice (GF pasta adds $1–2 to the total.)
Use vegetable broth and verify it is GF. All other ingredients are naturally gluten-free.
Pricing updated June 2026 using Ottawa No Frills averages. Kidney beans $1.50. Diced tomatoes $2.00. Pasta $0.22/100g, 150g = $0.33. Carrots $2.93/kg, 200g = $0.59. Celery $2.99/bunch, 2 stalks ≈ $1.00. Onion $1.07. Cabbage $2.99/kg, 200g = $0.60. Broth $1.50. Garlic $0.08 × 4 = $0.32. Oil $0.06/tbsp × 2 = $0.12. Tomato paste $0.10 estimate. Spices $0.14.