Stan's Crock Pot Minestrone Soup

It's a cool Autumn morning here in Oklahoma...and that signals one of my favorite activities.  Something nutritious and warm going in the crock pot all day.  It's lunch....it's dinner....and it's a welcome greeting for anyone who happens to drop by the house and need a warm up!  Often, it will be chili beans or some home made soup.  This morning, I've decided on a big pot of Minestrone soup for the day.

I like a hearty soup, full of delicious vegetables and good stock.  So, the list of ingredients is long, but everything is inexpensive and easy to obtain.  You can be assured, no one will go away hungry nor not satisfied with something about this soup!  Let's get out the big crock pot and get started!

INGREDIENTS
3 Russet Potatoes (Medium Sized, peeled and cubed)
1 White Onion (Medium Sized, cubed)
1 Cup Roma Tomatoes (Diced)
2 Zucchini Squash (Cubed)
1 Cup Carrots (Sliced)
1 Cup Okra (Sliced)
1 Cup Kidney Beans
1 Cup Cannellini Beans
1/2 Cup Chopped Baby Spinach *
1/2 Cup Barley *
3/4 Cup Ditalini Pasta *
2 Cups Tomato Juice
2 Cups Vegetable Broth
1 Tablespoon Dry Oregano
1 Tablespoon Dry Basil
1 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste

* Spinach, Barley and Pasta are added to the soup about 1 hour before it's ready to eat.

PREPARATION
I like to start my crock pot soup early in the morning.  I put all the ingredients, except the Spinach, Barley and Pasta into the crock pot, early in the morning and set the crock pot on the "High" temperature setting.  After 2 hours, I reduce the crock pot temperature setting to "Low" and let the soup simmer for at least 4 hours.  If you're going to be away at work, I'd just set it on "Low" and let it cook all day while you're away.  The slow simmering blends all the flavors and makes for a great tasting soup.

This makes a huge pot of soup, but that's okay!  You can put the leftovers in freezer containers or zip lock freezer bags and freeze it.  On future chilly days, warm up a container of soup for a warming lunch meal!

If you have questions, please feel free to email me at: stan.kain@gmail.com  Also, you are welcome to subscribe to my recipe blog and you won't miss future additions, since I add recipes quite often!