Sunday Fitness & Food Link-Up: Minestrone & Quesadillas

Welcome to the Sunday Fitness & Food Link-Up!  Today I am sharing another family favorite that I have posted in the past. It is a Quick & Easy Minestrone. I serve it with quesadillas on the side, which makes a hearty, delicious, and nutritious complete meal. It is also a great dinner to serve up if you participate in "Meatless Monday's" as it can be vegetarian.


Here is what you will need:

Minestrone:
-1 Tbsp Vegetable Oil
-1 Medium Yellow Onion, chopped
-5 Cloves of Garlic, minced (I love garlic, so I use a lot, but if you are not a fan...1-2 cloves is fine)
-8 Cups Vegetable Broth
-1 Butternut Squash, peeled and (1/2 inch) cubed
-2 Large Baking Potatoes, peeled and (1/2 inch) cubed
-6 oz. Green Beans, cut (1/2 inch)
-2 Carrots, peeled & diced
-2 tsp Oregano
-1 tsp Black Pepper
-1/2 tsp Salt
-6 Cups Kale, chopped with center vein removed
-1/2 Cup Orzo (Rice shaped Pasta)
-16 oz. can of Cannellini Beans, drained & rinsed
-Fresh Grated Parmesan Cheese (optional)

1. Heat oil in large Dutch Oven over medium-high heat.
2. Add Onion and saute until soft
3. Add garlic and saute for additional 30 seconds.
4. Next, add vegetable broth, squash, potatoes, green beans, carrots, and spices and bring to a boil.

5. Once boiling, add orzo and cook with pot uncovered until orzo & veggies are tender ( approx. 10 to 12 minutes).
6.  Reduce heat to simmer, then add Kale & Beans, cook 5 minutes.

7. Serve hot with sprinkled parmesan cheese on top, if desired.

Quesadillas:
-1 Can of Refried Beans (Vegetarian, if you are going meatless!)
-8 oz. Mexican Blended Shredded Cheese
-8 oz. of Roasted Red Bell Peppers, chopped (optional)
-8 Flour Tortillas (or whole wheat or multi-grain)
-Cooking Spray

1. Place rack on top shelf of oven
2. Preheat oven to 450 degrees
3. Warm Refried beans in microwave or on stove top
4. Coat cookie sheet or rimmed baking pan with cooking spray
5. Place 4 Tortillas on pan, then spread refried beans on tortillas
6. Spread cheese and chopped bell peppers (if desired) on top of beans
7. Top with remainder of tortillas, so you will have a total of 4 quesadillas. This may need to be done in 2 batches, if they do not fit on sheet.
8. Spray top of tortillas lightly with Cooking Spray and place in oven
9. Bake for approximately 5 minutes, then flip quesadillas over and bake for additional 5 minutes or until cheese is melted. Check often to make sure they do not overcook or burn!

We hope you enjoy the Sunday Fitness and Food Link-up! Please link-up with any food or fitness posts you would like to share and pass along the link to other bloggers. We just ask that you link back to the hosts, myself and my co-host Ilka and check out the other posts in the link! Also, feel free to add the badge below to your post by copying and pasting the code in the box under our badge. Have a great week and thank you for joining us!

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An InLinkz Link-up

I am also joining Deborah at Confessions of a Mother Runner and Sarah this week in their "Meatless Monday" link-up, as well as these other great Link-ups: Tasty Tuesdays, #Recipe of the week, & Real Food Fridays