Sardinia, Italy was the first identified blue zone, so it’s not surprising that minestrone soup was the first blue zones recipe to go viral on TikTok following the launch of Dan Buettner's Emmy-Award winning Netflix series, "Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones." Minestrone soup is incredibly delicious and consumed by the longest-lived family every day, so we were overjoyed to see it flooding our feeds on social media!

At Blue Zones Kitchen, we were inspired by Dan's experiences cooking large pots of homemade minestrone in Sardinia, Italy. We crafted this delicious, quality and convenient meal for those nights when you don't have time to prepare a blue zones meal from scratch. Our Minestrone Pasta Bowl is a hearty dish that features garbanzo beans, red lentils, durum wheat pasta, kale, ripe tomatoes, and an array of colorful veggies, just like Sardinian recipe.

“Beans, sometimes pasta, and the available vegetables – whatever happens to be growing in the garden. All these ingredients have a wide variety of fiber, and that keeps your inflammation in check and your immune system strong” - Dan Buettner on what goes into minestrone soup in Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones.

The pasta in this meal is made from ground durum wheat. This Italian pasta is high in protein and fiber and has a lower glycemic index vs pasta typically found in the US, which minimizes blood sugar spikes and keeps you feeling full longer. This dish also features red lentils, a sweeter variety of lentils that is protein-packed and rich in B vitamins, helping to boost brain function and metabolism. Red lentils are complex carbohydrates and provide essential energy to fuel you throughout the day.

We're thrilled to see people incorporating red lentils and other legumes into their homemade minestrone soup as they cook with longevity in mind. For those nights when you don’t have time to make minestrone soup from scratch, you can purchase our Minestrone Pasta Bowl at a retailer near you and enjoy in minutes!