These Grab & Go Vegetarian Minestrone Soup Jars are a high-protein meal prep idea that comes together in 30 minutes or less!
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Oh hey there – I'm back at you again with some more delicious lunch jar ideas! I swear they serve a better function than you may be thinking; mason jars aren't just for pretty pictures on Pinterest! Pretty much every single thing I eat these days really needs to serve a purpose in my busy life.
I want to make sure I'm eating super healthy food that's jam-packed with veggies and lots of protein to keep me full throughout the day. I don't know about you but lunch is such a crucial meal of the day for me. It sustains my energy and keeps me feeling satiated while I get everything on my to-do list done.
That said, having lunch prepared ahead of my work day is key, even though I work from home and could technically just make this midday meal as the time comes to eat. At the same time I don't want to eat another soggy sandwich or salad that doesn't keep fresh when prepped ahead of time. I want something that still tastes fresh, and ideally as we head into the colder months, a delicious hot meal!
What's a busy girl to do? Make mason jar soup! It's certainly not the first time I've done it, and it won't be the last. But minestrone soup jars? These things are off the chain with flavour! And trust me, I've tested these out on a few people who all give the thumbs up and already can't wait for me to post this recipe. Yes, I'm bragging, I know. But I honestly didn't expect such flavour from what is otherwise an “Instant” soup mix.
Well, you should probably be aware that I've cheated on the “instant” thing, but only with fresh veggies that'll last in the fridge all week long.
Throw a bunch of mixed veggies in your Vitamix (I used celery, carrots and onions), then saute the veggies with a bit of tomato paste, garlic and salt. Add some Italian seasoning and you've got the base of your Minestrone Soup Jars. Top with kidney beans, gluten-free Chickapea Pasta shells (made with JUST chickpeas and lentils so the shells are super high in protein!), add a half bouillon cube + spinach and boom, you've got lunch for the week. When you're ready to serve, fill 'em up with water, microwave on high for 6 minutes, and that's all there is to it!
Will you be making these Grab & Go Vegetarian Minestrone Soup Jars?
When meal prep is this easy and delicious, it's hard to see how you couldn't just set aside a half hour each weekend to dedicate to these! The fact that they are vegetarian and gluten free, and JAM PACKED with protein is just the bonus!
If you try any of my recipes be sure to let me know on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook or in the comments – I’d love to see what you come up with!
Mason Jar Minestrone Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 medium-sized Carrots
- 2 stalks celery
- 1 small yellow onion
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1/3 cup tomato paste
- 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 can kidney beans, drained
- 1 box Chickapea Pasta, shells
- 2 vegetable bouillon cubes, cut in half
- 2 cups baby spinach, chopped
Instructions
- Roughly chop up carrots, celery and onions. Place in Vitamix and pulse on level 2 for 5-10 seconds until veggies are finely chopped. Alternatively, chop vegetables into a small dice.
- Heat olive oil in large skillet over med-high heat. Add veggies and sauté for 5-6 minutes until softened. Add tomato paste, garlic, Italian seasoning and salt, cooking another 5-6 minutes until fragrant. Remove from heat.
- Divide veggies evenly among 4 large Mason jars. Top each with kidney beans, Chickapea pasta shells, half bouillon cube and spinach.
- Keep jars in fridge up to 5 days; when looking to serve, fill just to top of spinach and microwave for 5-6 minutes. Let sit for 2 minutes before pouring into a large bowl. Pasta will continue to cook as you serve - enjoy!
Video
Nutrition
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bubbles says
I had serious doubts that pasta would cook from dry by microwaving it in water for 5-6 minutes. I mean if that worked that’s how people would cook pasta instead of boiling water for 10 minutes then cooking pasta for 3-15 minutes depending on shape. I tested it on some small rigatoni pasta (three rigatoni in a bowl of water microwaved for 6 minutes, sat for 2) and the pasta came out raw on the inside. Then I tried it again starting with boiled water from the kettle, microwaved for 6 minutes, sat for 5 minutes, and it was still raw. I thought maybe that rigatoni just takes to long to cook, so I bought some very small orecchiette that are supposed to cook for 9 minutes (the small shells take about the same time to cook as well). The orecchiette also came out raw. The only success I had was soaking small rigatoni for 90 minutes or so (while I went to the store). Those were cooked after 2 minutes in the microwave. I don’t know if there’s something special about pasta made from chickpeas and lentils that makes them cook faster when microwaved but I doubt it.
Taylor Stinson says
You are only supposed to use gluten-free chickpea/lentil pasta in this recipe – I never claimed that regular pasta would work in this recipe. Chickpea pasta cooks in 3-5 minutes in boiling water so it definitely works in this recipe, which I developed specifically for gluten-free pasta. If you had seriously doubts about regular pasta cooking in this recipe, you could have asked and I could have clarified that it would not work.
Elizabeth Wilson says
How much water do you use?
Taylor Stinson says
You fill the water just to the top of the spinach and then microwave 🙂 If I had to guess it’s about 1-2 cups of water?
Abby Campbell says
I am trying to convert your recipe to use as a gift jar for Christmas to just make soup-not for grab and go. If I am using dried kidney beans and dried vegetables for let’s say 1 box of Chickpea pasta, I’d say on the directions to precook the beans. I’d like to use sundries tomatoes instead of tomato paste. My question is, after the beans are cooked how much broth or vegetable bouillon cubes with water Would I need to say to add on the directions to cook the pasta and rehydrate the vegetables. I need to mail this gift so I need to use non-perishable items.
Taylor Stinson says
Hi Abby – you are making many substantial changes to my recipe so I’m unable to advise.
Annalisha says
This sounds amazing and I can’t wait to try! You said large mason jars… how large? I’m going to be meal prepping these for myself and friends and I need to grab the right size!
Taylor Stinson says
Hi Annalisha – they are 32oz jars!
Heather says
Hey Taylor! Love what you’re doing here girl! Thank you for all the great recipes. I’m going to try them in a pot instead of the microwave…no sense killing all those good nutrients! If you don’t mind me adding to the amazing help you’re providing here…Amazon.ca sells lunch size crockpots that you can literally carry like a lunch pail and heat your food right at your desk/lunchroom. They have a couple of different sizes & different colors to choose from.
I send stuff that way for my husband and the ripple effect through his office was phenomenal! He showed people how easy it was to eat healthy, hot meals with variety! People always ask him what smells so good.
Taylor Stinson says
Thank you so much for the kind words Heather and the tip ion the lunch size crockpots! Never heard of those!
Diane P says
Ok, HANDS-DOWN my new favorite food-prep recipe this winter!!! I also add 57g Upton’s Chorizo Seitan, 50g steamed (frozen) broccoli and 1/2 Tbsp nutritional yeast, to up the protein since I’m weight-training. My macros are: 412 cals, 55.4g carbs, 36.8g protein, 6.5g fat.
Thank you soooooo flippin much for this recipe!!! <3 <3 <3