A hearty, parmesan broth minestrone filled with pasta, beans, seasonal vegetables, and topped with a generous amount of pistou (or pesto). Serve with thick slices of warm focaccia, if possible.
Have you noticed what a polarising soup minestrone is? People either hate it or can’t sing its praises loud enough.
And really, it all comes down to the broth.
Minestrone is a chunky Italian soup, traditionally made with a tomato-based broth, vegetables, and either pasta or rice. It’s the ultimate everything but the kitchen sink soup, endlessly customisable to what’s in season or whatever veggies are in the fridge that need to be used up.
With a few veggies, some pasta, a flavour enhancer or two, you’re only 30 minutes away from a steaming hot bowl of comfort.
As long as you have tinned tomatoes on hand.
And this is where the dissent about minestrone comes from. The tomato broth. For not all tomato broths are created equal, and this leads to many a disappointing bowl of soup.
Featured Video:
But with a decent vegetable stock and a chunk of cheese, a parmesan broth won’t disappoint.
I first made a parmesan broth minestrone simply because I had no tomatoes on hand. I had a bunch of vegetables about to turn, some stock and some cheese. A rummage in the pantry revealed a tin of chickpeas, and there was a little basil left to make a small batch of pistou.
Although a good traditional minestrone is tasty and comforting, you don’t need tomatoes to keep the essence and simplicity that is this Italian rustic soup, just a handful of pantry staples and whatever veggies are in your crisper.
The Ingredient List
- Stock – The stock is the base of your broth, so use a good one that you like. I used vegetable stock, but you can use chicken stock or your own homemade stock too.
- Parmesan – The golden key to all that is yummy in this broth. Just throw in the parmesan rind and let it slowly melt into the stock for a delicate, umami flavour. Don’t worry if your parmesan doesn’t have a rind, the flavour will still be the same, your broth just might be a bit more cloudy. Don’t forget the extra grated parmesan to mix in just before serving!
- Veggies – I used leek, zucchini, tomato, asparagus and baby spinach, because that’s what I had that needed using up. You can use whatever combo of seasonal veggies you like, or use up whatever is in your fridge and freezer.
- Pasta – The best pasta for minestrone is any pasta small enough to be scooped up and eaten with only a spoon. So all of the soup pastas, like ditalini and stars, and small pastas like macaroni and tiny shells. On the larger side would be orecchiette (what I ended up using) and farfalle. Orzo and risoni work well too if that’s more your jam.
- Beans – though I believe kidney beans might be the most commonly used, any beans you like go. Tinned four-bean mix is a good, speedy, weekday choice. Hate beans? Leave them out! Want to cook your own instead of using canned? Go for it (just don’t forget to soak them first)!
- Flavour bomb – Pistou is a condiment made from basil, garlic and oil. Its flavour profile is like a more garlic-y pesto without the pine nuts. You can absolutely sub it out for some pesto (I just didn’t have any), or even some fresh, chopped basil. You’re just looking for some bright freshness to pair with the lemon, and the garlic is an added bonus.
- Salt – Save the seasoning until you’ve stirred in all the other ingredients. Different stocks and cheeses have different amounts of salt, and what might be salty for me, might not be salty enough for you. So get everything into the pot first, let it meld, and then season to taste.
Leftovers and Meal Prep
Other than a chunk of good bread, this parmesan broth minestrone doesn’t need to be served alongside anything else to be a complete meal, especially if you’ve included both pasta and beans to the broth. But if you do end up with leftovers, don’t worry. The magic of minestrone is that it somehow, always, tastes better the next day, so leftovers are great heated up gently for lunch.
If you plan to meal prep a big ol’ pot of minestrone, keep the cooked pasta separate from the broth and veggies, mixing in only what you need for individual portions to stop the past from becoming stodgy. The same goes for if you’re planning on freezing any leftover soup.
Looking for other Italian-Inspired Recipes? Try these:
- Appetiser: Green Olive and Thyme Focaccia (pairs well with this parmesan broth minestrone)
- Seasonal pasta: Zucchini Flower, Mint and Pecorino Pasta
- Cheesy pasta: Summer Tomato Spaghetti with Burrata
Parmesan Broth Minestrone with Pistou
Ingredients
For the Soup
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 leek, white part only, halved and thinly sliced
- 1 zucchini, finely chopped
- 2 tomatoes, finely chopped
- 400 g canned chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 4 cups vegetable stock
- A piece of parmesan rind, around 5cm in length, or a 30g chunk of parmesan
- 1 cup small dried pasta
- 1 bunch asparagus, sliced into rounds, tips left whole
- 2 cups baby spinach
- 50 g extra parmesan, finely grated
- 1/2 lemon, zest and juice
For the Pistou
- 3 garlic cloves, peeled
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- 10 basil leaves, torn
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
To Serve
- Focaccia, optional
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large, heavy-based pot over medium heat. Add the leek and cook, stirring occasionally, for 2 to 3 minutes or until the leek begins to soften. Add the zucchini and tomatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes.
- Add the chickpeas, the stock and the parmesan rind (or the parmesan chunk if a rind isn’t available) and bring to a boil.
- In a separate pot, bring water to a rapid boil and cook the pasta for 1 minute less than the packet directions say (see notes). Drain and refresh in cold, running water. Set aside.
- Meanwhile, to make the pistou, crush the garlic cloves and sea salt into a paste using a mortar and pestle. Add the torn basil leaves and pound everything together until mostly smooth. Stir in the olive oil to make it saucier and set aside until the soup is ready.
- Once the broth comes to a boil, reduce the heat to low and stir in the asparagus, baby spinach and extra grated parmesan. Simmer for 3 minutes or until the baby spinach starts to wilt.
- Remove from the heat, add in the cooked pasta, lemon zest and juice, and stir. Taste and season with a little salt, if needed.
- Ladle the minestrone into bowls, top each with a teaspoon of pistou, extra parmesan and serve with chunks of focaccia (optional).
Cook along with me
Notes
- If you’re not going to make the pistou topping, add two cloves of minced garlic to the leeks when you add the zucchini and tomatoes.
- Cook the pasta separately and to before al dente, usually a minute or two before the time listed on the packet as it will continue to cook in the residual heat of the broth.
- See the ingredient list above for suggestions on customising the soup.
