A simple, delicious soup, inspired by Pistou soup from Provence in France. It’s fine to play around with ingredients – use what you have!
2 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
3 medium potatoes, chopped
3 carrots, chopped
1-2 courgettes, chopped
Handful of French beans chopped
Fresh Borlotti or Kew Blue beans OR ½ can of borlotti or canellini beans.
50-70g small macaroni
1.5 litres of vegetable stock
And for the Pistou sauce:
4-5 garlic cloves
Small handful fresh basil leaves
3 tbsp olive oil
250-300g fresh tomatoes
30g parmesan cheese (optional).
Heat the oil in large saucepan over a medium heat and sauté the onion and garlic for 5 minutes. Add all the other ingredients except the pasta, cover with the stock and simmer for 10mins, add the pasta and simmer again till cooked – about another 10-15mins, adding more water if the soup is too thick.
For the pistou sauce, combine the garlic, basil, tomatoes, olive oil in a blender to make a paste, add parmesan if you are using. Serve the soup with a dollop of the raw pistou.
