I'm making a batch of this tomorrow, so decided to post the recipe. Like most of Chef John's recipes, it's very good. Here is what he says about this recipe: I always feel a little apprehensive when I post a recipe like this minestrone soup. It's the type of dish I never make the same way twice, and the fear is that someone will watch and assume that this is my "official" version. You don't need a recipe for minestrone, just like you don't need a recipe for a great sandwich or an epic salad. To make minestrone soup precisely the same way every time, using a very specific list of ingredients and amounts, is to trample on the soul of this Italian classic. Your perception of how a recipe tastes involves so many factors above and far beyond the list of ingredients. Remember that time you made that super awesome whatever, and it was so perfect, and then you made it again, exactly the same way, but somehow it just didn't taste as great? This is why. I thought that was an interesting perspective. Maybe I'll throw a smoked hock in it. Chef John's Minestrone Soup 6 servings 2 tablespoons olive oil 3 ounces or more chopped pancetta (or bacon) 1 onion, diced 1 cup diced celery 4 cloves garlic, minced 4 cups chicken broth 2 cups water, plus more as needed 1 (28 ounce) can plum tomatoes, crushed fine 1 cup cranberry beans, shelled (soak dried beans overnight) 2 cups chopped cabbage (1/2 medium head), or more to taste 1 (15 ounce) can garbanzo beans, drained 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes, or to taste 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning 2 teaspoons salt 1 bunch Swiss chard, chopped salt and ground black pepper ⅔ cup ditalini pasta ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling ¼ cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese ¼ cup chopped fresh Italian flat-leaf parsley Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in large stock pot over medium-high heat. Add pancetta; cook and stir until it begins to brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in onions and celery; cook and stir until onions start to turn translucent, about 3 minutes. Stir in minced garlic and cook for another minute. Pour chicken broth, water, and plum tomatoes into the pancetta and onion mixture. Bring to a simmer. Stir cranberry beans, cabbage, garbanzo beans, red pepper flakes, Italian seasoning, and 2 teaspoons salt into broth mixture. Bring to a simmer and cook until cranberry beans are tender, adding more water as needed if the soup becomes too thick, about 45 minutes. Stir in Swiss chard and simmer until softened, about 15 minutes. Season with salt and black pepper to taste. Stir in pasta and increase heat to medium-high and simmer until pasta is tender, about 15 minutes. Ladle into bowls and top with extra virgin olive oil, Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, and Italian parsley. pdf attached
It's not what it sounds like. I wondered when I first encountered them in a recipe. They are a type of dried bean, like limas, navy beans, pinto beans, etc. "Cranberry" is the coloring, not the flavor. I think they are chosen primarily for their size (meaning they have the right cooking time for this recipe), then their texture, then their appearance. I just read that they are related to pinto beans and kidney beans, which are substitutes for the cranberry bean. I've made minestrone soup (and other Italian dishes) a lot of times without the specialty pasta...I just break up spaghetti into it. But the ditalini is pretty good in a soup: It's tiny enough to fit inside a straw. I was surprised to find it at Food Lion.