5 Italian Winter Soups

So how cold is it where you are?  I was talking to my sister the other day and they received piles of snow and I must say -20 Celsius doesn’t sound very welcoming.  I can’t complain though, here in Italy we are averaging about 12-15 Celsius.  My eldest daughter who came back home after 3 years of studying in Canada, laughs at how bundled up the Italians are.  Heavy coat, scarf and gloves.  Hey,  for them this is cold!

So for anyone and everyone who is suffering from the cold or just because it is January and we all need some comforting. I thought I would share 5 Italian Winter Soups that will warm or comfort you when you need it most.

This is probably one of my all time favourites, which makes it number 1 and  that I make at least once a week during the winter.  For the best tasting Minestrone or any of these soups use fresh or frozen but not canned vegetables (if you can help it)!

1. Minestrone

I have to admit I have a soft spot for beans.  I never really liked beans before until a few years ago, now I can never get enough of them.  I occasionally hear “beans again?”.  “Yes now eat them because they are good for you!”  If you have never tried chick peas or garbanzo beans before, this soup is the best place to start.

2. Chickpea Soup (garbanzo beans)

Number 3 has to be Prosciutto and bean soup, a dish that I used to wait for every winter from my mother-in-law and which I now prepare myself, with some beans added in, of course.

3. Prosciutto and Bean Soup

Soup number 4,   Two Bean Soup,  I combined my 2 favourite Italian beans, borlotti and cannellini and of course spices and some hot pepper flakes don’t hurt either.

4. Two Bean Soup

And here we are last but of course not least, Lentils and Sausage Soup, which is an amazing combination.  Italians eat this soup after the stroke of midnight on New Years Eve and on New Years Day, brings money luck so the saying goes.  So good luck to you and enjoy!