Soup and Pumpkin Carving

It was time for the Schafferberg's annual pumpkin carving event so I decided to cook!

Pumpkins came out really great!

It was one of those bright and sunny chilly fall days, so I decided to make some soup for us to eat while we carved pumpkins at Rebecca's house.

What you need:
1 (15-ounce) can low-sodium cannelloni beans drained and rinsed
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 large onion diced
1 small zucchini diced
2 carrots, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
32 oz vegetable broth
2 cans of stewed tomatos
1/2 cup quinoa
2 bag of baby spinach leaves
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan reggiano, optional

What to do:
Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion, carrots, zucchini, garlic, thyme, rosemary, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper, and cook stirring occasionally until the vegetables are tender, about 5-10 minutes.
While the vegetables are cooking, cook quinoa in a separate pot until tender
Add the broth & tomatoes (with liquid) and bring it to a boil. Add the cannelloni beans, quinoa and the spinach leaves and cook until the spinach is wilted, about 3-5 minutes more.
Add more broth if needed, since quinoa tends to soak up some of the broth.
Serve topped with good Parmesan cheese

Instructions and Inspiration credited to the following blog: http://www.onetribegourmet.com/2010/12/tuscan-style-vegetbale-soup/