My favourite Minestrone
I was a little sceptical about the simplicity of this soup; which does away with lengthy time spent finely chopping all the vegetables, and sautéing and sweating ad nauseum (the vegetables, that is).
The only sautéing required is for the rich tomato sauce that brings this soup together.
The quantities in this recipe are a general guideline, rather than a rule, and you can swap out some of the ingredients (I have included some suggestions below) depending on what is in season and affordable.
For me, so long as you have that trio of the tomato sauce, the pumpkin and the mushrooms, any other seasonal vegetables will work, and it will always taste lovely. This is probably why this is my favourite minestrone.
The recipe is adapted from The Food of Italy by Claudia Roden.
Ingredients
For the soup
1/4 small pumpkin (I prefer the Jap or Kent varieties), deseeded, peeled and roughly chopped
1/2 medium cauliflower, broken into florets (you can also use 1/4 small white cabbage, shredded and chopped)
260g tin beans (I prefer butter beans, black eyed beans, or cannelini beans, however borlotti beans and even chickpeas work well)
2 large potatoes, diced (you can substitute this with 1/2 cup of broken up dried pasta, or even a handful of medium-grain rice)
100g brown field mushrooms, cut in half, then sliced
200g green beans, chopped (I love to use italian flat beans, when I can find them)
a handful of fresh or frozen peas
1 cup washed and chopped cavolo nero / chard / silverbeet or baby spinach (whatever is available and in season)
1 cup salt-reduced stock or broth (optional)
Murray salt and cracked black pepper
For the tomato sauce
2 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
260g tin San Marzano tomatoes (or 4-5 large ripe tomatoes, chopped)
1 small brown onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped (optional)
1/2 bunch parsley, leaves finely chopped
A good pinch Murray sea salt flakes
To serve
Plenty of fresh basil leaves (or a good basil pesto)
Grated pecorino cheese (try to find a traditional sheep milk variety, it’s better in my opinion)
dried chilli flakes
Place a large, heavy based soup pot over medium heat with stock/broth (if using, I often just use water and season at the end). Meanwhile, have some more boiled water in a kettle at the ready.
Add the pumpkin, cauliflower, mushrooms, potatoes, and tinned beans to the pot. Top up with enough boiled water to cover everything. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cover with a lid to cook for about 20 minutes, or until vegetables are tender and falling apart.
Meanwhile, heat oil in a large fry pan over medium-high heat. Add onion, and fry for a few minutes until softened, then reduce heat and continue to cook until golden in colour, stirring occassionally (this will take about 10 minutes). Turn up the heat to high, add the garlic (if using) and cook for a further minute, then add in the San Marzano tomatoes (or chopped fresh tomatoes) and fry off for a couple of minutes, then reduce heat to medium and cook for for another 8-10 minutes, stirring in the chopped parsley in the last minute of cooking.
Add this tomato sauce to your pot of soup, topping up with more boiled water if needed - according to your preference (how thick you like your soup) and season to taste. If using fresh tomatoes, the soup will be a little lighter in flavour. Add in the chopped green beans, peas, and greens, and cook for another 5 minutes, or until green beans are just tender.
Ladle into bowls and serve with plenty of ripped basil leaves (or a spoon of pesto), grated pecorino and a pinch of chilli flakes.
