Basil

Bruce Weinstein & Mark Scarbrough's Pesto Minestrone Soup

by:
October 15, 2020
0
0 Ratings
Photo by Eric Medsker
  • Prep time 5 minutes
  • Cook time 8 hours 30 minutes
  • Serves 6
Author Notes

This summer delight is a version of minestrone with the flavors of pesto: lots of basil and some nuts, even cheese stirred in at the end. We didn’t sauté the onions and other vegetables first because we wanted a cleaner, brighter flavor. The soup’s actually a bit sour, best on a warm evening (with a G&T — trust us). Calm it down with lots of crunchy bread to sop up every drop.

Excerpted from THE INSTANT POT BIBLE. Copyright © 2018 by Bruce Weinstein & Mark Scarbrough. Used with permission of Little, Brown, an imprint of Little, Brown and Company. New York, NY. All rights reserved.Food52

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 1 1/2 quarts (6 cups) vegetable broth
  • 1 (15-ounce) can white beans, drained and rinsed (1 3/4 cups)
  • 4 large round red tomatoes, chopped (4 cups)
  • 2 cups medium celery ribs, chopped (2/3 cup)
  • 1/2 cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves, chopped
  • 1/2 cup roughly chopped walnuts
  • 3 medium garlic cloves, peeled and minced (1 tablespoon)
  • 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • 2 ounces regular, whole-wheat, or gluten-free elbow macaroni
  • 1 cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
Directions
  1. Mix the broth, beans, tomatoes, onion, carrots, celery, zucchini, basil, walnuts, garlic, salt, and red pepper flakes in a 6- or 8-quart cooker. Stir in the pasta and lock the lid onto the pot.
  2. If you’ve used a pressure-cooking setting, use the quick-release method to bring the pot’s pressure back to normal.
  3. Unlatch the lid and open the pot. Stir in the cheese, set the lid askew over the pot, and set aside for about 5 minutes to blend the flavors.
  4. Beyond

    You must halve the recipe for a 3-quart cooker.

    Make the soup less sour by adding up to 1 tablespoon granulated white sugar with the vegetables.

    Substitute 1⁄4 cup pine nuts for the walnuts.

    Substitute 6 ounces spiralized zucchini for the zucchini slices.

    Finish the bowls with a drizzle of fine, aromatic olive oil.

See what other Food52ers are saying.

0 Reviews