Mother Theresa’s Minestrone Soup

1. Heat the oil over medium heat in a large soup pot or Dutch oven.

2. Sauté onion, celery, and carrots for approximately 5 minutes (onions should begin to turn translucent). Stir occasionally. Add salt.

3. Add garlic, green beans, and zucchini. Cook for approximately 3 minutes. Stir occasionally.

4. Add the spices and cook for another 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Make sure the spices are spread throughout the vegetables.

5. Add the tomatoes, beans, vegetable broth, beef broth, and the hot water.

6. Bring soup to a boil; then reduce heat.

7. After reducing the heat, add spinach. Let the soup simmer for at least 20 minutes.

8. Before serving, cook pasta according to pasta directions (al dente). Keep the pasta separate from the soup until you are ready to serve, then put the pasta in individual serving bowls.

9. Serve with parmigiano-reggiano cheese. Enjoy!

Note: If cooking pasta separately is too much of a hassle then you can add uncooked pasta to the soup along with the spinach, then simmer the soup until pasta is thoroughly cooked. This could, however, cause the pasta to become mushy, especially when reheated.