Can I make pesto minestrone soup ahead of time?

Absolutely. You can make the soup ahead, refrigerate it for up to 4 days, and reheat it when you are ready to eat. For the freshest basil flavor, wait to add the pesto until after you reheat the soup. Add a splash of stock if it has thickened overnight.

Why do you add the pesto at the end instead of cooking it in?

Pesto tastes best here as a finishing ingredient. Stirring it into the hot soup after you turn off the heat helps preserve its fresh basil flavor and color. If you boil it for a long time, that freshness can fade.

Can I freeze minestrone soup?

Yes. Let the soup cool promptly and freeze it in airtight portions for up to 3 months. If possible, freeze it before adding the pesto, then stir fresh pesto in after reheating. Potatoes can soften in the freezer, and pasta tends to get overly soft, so I prefer to add the ditalini after thawing.

Can I use canned beans, and which beans are best?

Yes! I usually reach for canned cannellini beans because they make this soup so easy. Drain and rinse them first. Great Northern or navy beans are good substitutes, and if you are starting with dried beans, you will need about 2 cups cooked.

Pesto Minestrone Soup with White Beans and Zucchini

Description

A proper minestrone built in layers, with potatoes, zucchini, tomatoes and cannellini beans simmered into one pot and a spoonful of pesto stirred in off the heat at the very end. No cream, six servings, and it is better the next day.

Ingredients

Units Scale

6 1/4 cups chicken or vegetable stock, or a combination of stock and water
3 tbsp olive oil, plus more to finish
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 leek, sliced
2 carrots, finely chopped
1 stalk celery, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 potatoes, peeled and cut into small dice
1 bay leaf
1 sprig fresh thyme, or 1/4 tsp dried thyme leaves
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 medium tomatoes, peeled and finely chopped
3/4 cup peas, fresh or frozen
2 to 3 zucchini, finely chopped
2 cups cooked or canned cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup dried ditalini (about 6 oz)
3 tbsp pesto
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, to serve

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Instructions

Pour the stock into a medium saucepan, bring it to a simmer over medium heat, and set it aside off the heat. Keep it hot.
Heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat.
Add the chopped onion and sliced leek. Cook for 5 to 6 minutes, stirring now and then, until the onion is translucent and soft but not browned.
Add the chopped carrots, celery and garlic. Cook over moderate heat, stirring often, for 5 minutes.
Add the diced potatoes and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring so nothing catches on the bottom of the pot.
Add the bay leaf and thyme, and season with salt and plenty of freshly ground black pepper.
Pour in the hot stock and stir well to lift anything stuck to the bottom.
Add the chopped tomatoes, the peas and the zucchini. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat slightly and cook for 10 to 12 minutes, until a potato cube gives easily when pressed against the side of the pot.
Stir in the drained cannellini beans and simmer for 10 minutes, so they warm through and take on the flavour of the broth.
Add 1 cup of ditalini and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, until the pasta is al dente. Stir every couple of minutes so it does not settle and stick on the bottom.
Take the pot off the heat. Stir in 3 tablespoons of pesto and taste for salt. Do not let the soup boil again once the pesto is in.
Remove and discard the bay leaf and the thyme stem.
Let the soup stand off the heat for 5 minutes. Ladle into warm bowls, drizzle each one with olive oil and finish with freshly grated Parmesan.

Notes

The pesto goes in off the heat. Basil turns dull and slightly bitter the moment it simmers. Cook the pasta first, then pull the pot off the burner, stir the pesto through, and let it sit for five minutes before serving.

Make ahead: Make the soup up to the beans, cool and refrigerate for up to 4 days, then reheat, cook the ditalini and add the pesto fresh. It genuinely improves overnight.

Freezing: Freeze for up to 3 months, ideally before the pasta and pesto go in, and add both fresh on reheating.

Parmesan rind: Drop one into the pot with the stock and fish it out at the end. It is the cheapest way to make a vegetable soup taste like it simmered twice as long.

Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Category: Soup
Method: Stovetop
Cuisine: Italian

Nutrition

Serving Size: 1 bowl