Meaty Minestrone Soup and Parsley Supper Ring

This is our soup and bread for the week.  I will print the bread recipe after the minestrone soup recipe. Really good soup.  O.K. bread. I like my regular homemade bread recipe better, but this is a nice change. It is sort of like a monkey bread in that you cook it in a ring.
Soup from The Big Book of Soups and Stews by Maryana Vollstedt. The bread - Cookbook called The No-Knead Way - Ann Pillsbury's Amazing Discovery


Ingredients:
1 cup dried Great Northern or navy beans, presoaked. May substitute canned beans that have been   washed and drained.  If you use canned beans add them at the end.
1 can (16oz) plum tomatoes, coarsely chopped, with juice
6 cups beef stock or broth
1 pound beef stew meat
1 small yellow onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 carrots, sliced
1 stalk celery, sliced
1 cup shredded cabbage
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme, or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 bay leaf
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1X1 inch wedge Parmesan cheese
1 1/2 cups cut-up green beans
1 small zucchini, unpeeled, halved lengthwise and then sliced
1/2 cup small uncooked macaroni
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese for topping (optional)
In a large soup pot or Dutch oven, combine drained beans,(unless you are using canned beans--add them last) tomatoes, stock, beef, onion, garlic, carrots, celery, cabbage, thyme, bay leaf, salt, and pepper.  Bring to a boil. Immerse the Parmesan cheese wedge in the soup. Reduce heat to medium-low heat and simmer, covered, until beans and meat are tender, about 1 hour 15 minutes. Add green beans, zucchini, and macaroni. I cooked the macaroni separate and added it to the bottom of the bowl and then ladled the soup in to the bowl. I knew I would have soup left-over and didn't want my macaroni to get mushy. Cover and simmer until vegetables are tender-crisp and macaroni is al dente, about 20 minutes longer.

Remove bay leaf and discard. Ladle into large bowls and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese, if desired.
Note: You can use 1 can (15oz) white kidney beans (cannellini), rinsed and drained, instead of the presoaked beans. Add them when you add the macaroni.
For a thicker soup, at the end of the cooking time, puree 1 cup of the begetables in a food processor or blender. Return to soup, mix well,
and reheat. I did not do this.

Parsley Supper Ring
Soften 1 package yeast, compressed or dry granular, in 1 cup lukewarm water.
Add 3 tablespoons melted shortening
2 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons salt.
Blend in 1 egg
Add 3 cups sifted all-purpose flour. Mix until well blended and soft.
Turn into a greased, 9" ring mold. Let rise in a warm place until light, about 45 minutes.
Bake in a 400 degree oven for 25 minutes. Cut into thick slices, spread generously with garlic butter and sprinkle with parsley.