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Spring minestrone soup, gleamingly green, is a wholesome bowl of renewal. Green shades, and the season itself, symbolize growth, new beginnings and abundance and this generous soup offers all that. Brimming with pasta, beans, seasonal greens and a zap of homemade pesto, this vegetarian minestone soup will have you feeling like a whole new you!
Once you’re a pesto pro, move on from soup and try these warm-weather dishes; salmon with basil pesto; pesto pasta with grilled chicken, cherry tomatoes and rocket; or ricotta dip with roasted cherry tomatoes and basil pesto.
Spring minestrone soup
Meet Spring Minestrone. The dazzling and delicious little sister to Autumn, or Harvest Minestrone and cousin to Sardinian Minestrone. Of course she’s female, she’s repping birth and fertility here! And she’s unashamedly different.
A true minestrone soup must contain pasta, legumes, tomatoes and Parmesan cheese. These ingredients and a sofrito base (sautéed carrot, celery and onion) result in an orange-hued broth with an earthy-flavoured undertone. Hearty, robust and warming.
Spring minestrone is a whole other story- strikingly green and gloriously uplifting, with a sweet leeks and herby base. Lush and verdant, this minestrone soup showcases seasonal vegetables; leeks and asparagus, and year-round reliables; peas, spinach and Tenderstem broccoli.
I’ve used cannellini beans, a white bean, so as not to interfere with the grassy greens, and a dainty ditalini pasta. You can use any bean or pasta shape you have in your pantry. As a rule, smooth-sided pasta is for soups and ridged pasta for sauces. But I rarely adhere to such kitchen stipulations.
Finally, my green minestrone soup has been adorned with a homemade, emerald-coloured pesto crown. This punchy addition is bursting with fragrant basil, tangy Parmesan cheese, and a shot of lemon juice.
It elevates this dish from green vegetarian minestrone soup to a frolic in a freshly mown meadow and then a plunge in a fast-flowing river.
Recipe tips and notes
- Italian minestrone soup is a method rather than a recipe. So, make use of whatever vegetables are lingering in the refrigerator. Just keep to the colour code; strictly green.
- Minestrone’s MO is to make something from nothing. I stick to this rigidly and never shop for ingredients when I make this soup!
- If going off script feels a little risky right now, you can follow this recipe to the letter. You’ll get the hang of minestrone eventually and will feel a profound sense of achievement when you’ve served a stunning bowl of would-be waste!
- If you tend to shy from vegetarian soups, feel free to add meat. I suggest cubed pancetta, or bacon, thrown in before the leeks. Or even leftover cooked chicken, a few slices can be added at the end with the vegetables.
- Homemade basil pesto offers maximum flavour and freshness, which this spring soup wholly deserves. However, there is no harm in a shortcut and store-bought will do the trick too.
- Not as naturally thick and chunky as her harvest-time brother, but if you prefer a brothier soup just add more stock.
Serving suggestions
Laden with pasta, legumes and greens, this deceptively dainty vegetarian minestrone soup is a standalone square meal. All I would add is bread, a spongy focaccia or a chewy sourdough.
Storage and leftovers
This green minestrone soup is best consumed on the day while hot and toothsome. The bountiful tender vegetables; zucchini, broccoli, asparagus and spinach will not survive the freezing, thawing and reheating. I usually advocate for freezing soups, but in this case, your once al dente dish of greens may result in an unappetising silage.
I even hesitate over refrigeration, although it will just about tolerate a brief 2-4 day-stay in the fridge and gentle reheating on the stovetop. Add a splash of water or stock if the pasta has slurped up all the liquid in that time.
More hearty vegetarian soup recipes
Spring Minestrone Soup
Equipment
- This is an affiliate link.Food processor
- This is an affiliate link.Large pot
- This is an affiliate link.Lemon squeezer
- This is an affiliate link.Fine grater
Ingredients
For the basil pesto
- 30g/2 cups fresh basil
- 30g/¼ cup pine nuts
- 30g/1 oz This is an affiliate link.Parmesan cheese, cubed
- 80ml/⅓ cup This is an affiliate link.olive oil, extra virgin
- ½ lemon, juice only
- ½ clove garlic
- Salt to taste
For the soup
- 1 tbsp This is an affiliate link.olive oil, extra virgin
- 1 leek, sliced
- 3 cloves garlic
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- ½ tsp dried basil
- 1½ litre/6 cups vegetable or chicken stock
- Salt to taste
- 100g/3½ oz asparagus
- 160g/1 cup green peas
- 200g/7oz Tenderstem broccili
- 400g/14 oz canned cannellini beans, drained
- 200g/5 baby zucchini, sliced
- 70g/1 cup small pasta
- 50g/1½ cup spinach
- 1-2 tbsp This is an affiliate link.Parmesan cheese, grated
Instructions
- Firstly, make the pesto. In a food processor or a blender combine the fresh basil, pine nuts, cubed Parmesan cheese, pressed garlic clove and the juice of one lemon. Process until smooth. With the motor of the food processor still running pour in the olive oil through a chute and process for 10-20 seconds longer. Turn the food processor off and taste the pesto, add a pinch of salt if necessary. Set aside till needed.
- In a large soup pot heat the olive oil and add the sliced leeks, saute over medium heat for 5-7 minutes, then add the diced garlic, dried basil and oregano and cook for 30 seconds longer.
- Add the stock, cannelloni beans and a pinch of salt and bring to a boil, then add the pasta and cook for 5 minutes, add the rest of the vegetables and cook for 5 -7 minutes longer until the vegetables are done.. Add salt to taste. You can either stir in the pesto in the pot pot soup or into individual bowls.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
