This Minestrone is not your typical minestrone – in that it has been muscled up for my carnivore menfolk.
To begin, cut up 5 slices of bacon into half inch pieces.
Note: If you make this recipe with turkey (or beef) bacon to be biblically clean like I now do, you may need to add additional oil/fat as alternative bacons are very lean. See this post: How to Make Crispy Turkey Bacon
Heat a tablespoon of oil in a Dutch oven and toss the bacon in. Allow this to begin cooking over medium heat.
Mince 3 cloves of garlic and dice up a onion, then toss them in with the bacon.
While those get comfy, cut up some meat. I used just over a pound of beef chuck boneless ribs.
Toss the beef in with the rest and let it begin to brown a little.
While those are doing their thing, cut up 4 stalks of celery with the tops and 4 carrots.
Once your onions are tender and the meat has a little color, add the veggies into the Dutch oven, along with 28 ounces of diced tomatoes.
Rinse a cup and a half of chopped spinach and press the water out.
Stir it in.
Pour in 4 cups of beef broth.
And for the seasoning…add in 1 Tb parsley, 1 teaspoon crushed rosemary, 2 bay leaves, a teaspoon fresh ground black pepper, and a teaspoon of salt.
Finally stir in 1/2 cup of barley.
Bring this all to a gentle boil, turn down the heat, cover, and simmer on low for an hour.
After an hour, peel and cut up 2 russet or gold potatoes. Add them in.
Then take a 14-ounce can of great northern beans, drain and rinse them. Put half of the beans in the pot and the other half in a bowl. Ladle in some of the liquid from the soup.
Mash the beans with a fork until they are a pasty consistency.
Stir it all in and let it cook about 20-30 more minutes on low, until the potatoes are done.
Top with a little shredded parmesan cheese. Enjoy!
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