Recipe: Sweet Potato Minestrone Soup

Minestrone soup is my favorite cool weather food. Yesterday it was rainy, windy, and cool all day, so I decided to make something tasty to compliment the weather. I had sweet potatoes on hand and searched on Allrecipes.com for recipes that have sweet potatoes in them and came across one for Sweet Potato Minestrone, yum! Of course I made a few changes, so here's the recipe I made that my family and I absolutely loved.

*I didn't this time around, but you can also add a 16 oz. package of cooked mini shells pasta to this soup

Sweet Potato Minestrone Soup
1 Tbs. vegetable oil
1 large onion, chopped
3 large stalks celery, chopped
1-2 Tbs. oregano (or to taste)
1 tsp. crushed red pepper
salt and pepper to taste
2 (15 oz) cans diced tomatoes (use Italian-style for flavor, or plain if you prefer)- do not drain
1 (15 oz) can white kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 (32 oz) box of vegetable broth, or 4-5 cups
2 Tbs. apple cider vinegar
2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and diced in a food processor
2 large carrots, peeled and sliced thin
1 can of cut green beans
5 cloves garlic, minced

Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium-high heat. Saute onion, celery, oregano, red pepper, salt, and pepper until vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes.  Stir in tomatoes, beans, broth, vinegar, sweet potatoes, carrots, green beans, and garlic. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are tender, about 30 minutes. If adding pasta, add cooked pasta 5 minutes before serving.