Reviewed: Nov. 5, 2009

Very Good! I changed a couple of things though. I cut the recipe in half and I used frozen mixed vegetables since I don't like the flavor of canned. I also used a orzo type pasta because macaroni swells up too much and I used half n half also. If you want meat in it you can slow cook some stew meat before making the soup then it turns out real tender or add precooked Italian sausage. I've also made the soup vegetarian with vegetable broth and it was still real good. Thanks for the recipe!

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Jane Johnson

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Reviewed: Oct. 28, 2009

Easy to make and so, so good!

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JBEVEL

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Reviewed: Oct. 28, 2009

my family loved !! I used half and half in stead of heavy cream.

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chlubas

Cooking Level: Expert

Living In: Clifton Park, New York, USA

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Reviewed: Oct. 8, 2009

This definitely lives up to it's name. I made this a couple of weeks ago and am shopping for the ingredients today to make more - loved it!

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Donna

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Reviewed: Sep. 4, 2009

I am going to start my review by saying that I did not follow the recipe. I tried to get rid of all the canned stuff to cut down on the sodium, and the soup didn't taste good at all. My guess is that the attraction here is to all that salt.

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kamdad

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Reviewed: Aug. 26, 2009

This is a great base-recipe for a really satisfying soup, and it results in the kind of food you want to eat again and again. I used fresh grilled veggies instead of canned, and added some cayenne to give it some punch. Half-and-half instead of cream seemed to work pretty well, too. Basically, if you're into cutting calories, it's easy to do that with this recipe and still yield VERY nice results!

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El Burrito Carlito

Cooking Level: Beginning

Home Town: Palos Hills, Illinois, USA

Living In: Madison, Wisconsin, USA

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Reviewed: Jul. 5, 2009

the soup tasted really good. My only complaint is about the macaroni. It gets really soggy and gross. I ruined the whole batch of soup because I added the pasta in then cooked like the directions say. the problem was the left over soup... I ended up throwing it out due to the mushy past. Next time I would just add the pasta per serving.

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soupson

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Reviewed: May 16, 2009

Excellent!

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nikolnoll

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Reviewed: Apr. 23, 2009

I too hate it when people change the ingredients and then say they "loved this recipe", but I was missing a couple things that this recipe called for and so didn't use them. I wanted to make a minestrone soup really bad, but even with the slight changes i made, MY WHOLE FAMILY LOVES THIS SOUP!!! First, I cut the recipe to 6 servings (still makes a lot). I did not have spinach or canned mixed veges, so i used frozen mixed veges and no spinach. I also did not have garbanzo beans so used 2 cans of kidney beans instead. Lastly, I used diced tomatoes instead of whole ones. I think even if i had not made those changes, it STILL WOULD BE AWESOME! YUMM! MAKE THIS! Oh, I wanted to add that this is the recipe that made me join this site even though I've been visiting it for a couple years now!!

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Bev

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Reviewed: Apr. 17, 2009

excellent!!!! everyone who tries this soup absolutely loves it... even the ones who don't like veggies! highly recommended.

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g

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Reviewed: Mar. 15, 2009

This soup is fabulous!! I followed the recipe exactly as written and it's one of the best I've ever made. Next time though, I'll use diced tomatoes instead of the whole ones

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Deb K.

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Reviewed: Feb. 21, 2009

I was impressed, even with only *half* the cream added. I used the entire 6 oz. of tomato paste, and later doubled the basil. FROZEN mixed veggies ("for soup") were perfect, and I used two 32 oz. boxes of chicken broth. Later, for kicks I added imitation lobster to the leftovers, and that was good too! Great recipe for a group, like our family, or guests.

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joy-of-jesus-smileymom

Home Town: Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA

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Reviewed: Feb. 20, 2009

Made this for our church group. Everyone loved it. I used half & half at the end in place of the heavy cream 'cuz I was scared it would be too creamy. Turned out great. Thanks for the recipe!

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Julie W.

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Reviewed: Jan. 11, 2009

I made this soup for our Italian themed Christmas office party. Everyone loved it. This recipe was enough for about 30 guests to each have a cup of the soup. I added red pepper flakes because we like things spicy in South Texas.

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frankieloveslila

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Reviewed: Dec. 27, 2008

All of the rave reviews for this recipe are true!! I increased the tomato paste from 2 T to 6ozs (one small can), used half and half instead of the heavy cream and I added already cooked frozen shrimp which was the "icing on the cake"! Superb!

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Sue

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Reviewed: Oct. 23, 2008

This was a fun easy dinner to make. The substitutions I made were 1 c. half/half, rest of cream substituted with 2% milk. I used fresh veggies, not canned, and only 2 tbs butter. Was fabulous- and not a load of calories. I also did it in the crock pot instead of stove. The only thing, this recipe is so big it could have filled 3 large pots! Will make this again :)

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msshiraz

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Reviewed: Oct. 11, 2008

THIS IS THE RECIPE THAT MADE ME JOIN THIS SITE......MY MOTHER IN LAW MADE IT FOR 50 FRIENDS & FAMILY MEMBERS, AND WE ALL LOVED IT! ~JOI

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JOI

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Reviewed: Sep. 13, 2008

Excellent, thick and makes a lot.

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JOZ116

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Camden, New York, USA

Living In: Swansboro, North Carolina, USA

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Reviewed: May 16, 2008

I thoroughly enjoyed this soup. Many in the home and offices did as well. I followed exact and get ready because it does make a lot!

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KIMMERS1104

Cooking Level: Expert

Living In: Denver, Colorado, USA

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Reviewed: Jan. 14, 2008

I always try new recipes on groups of friends! They loved it!!! I didn't blend the veggies, cause we like'em chunky!! It was a real Hit!! The flavor throughout and the heartyness was great.

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