A recipe from our school Harvesting & Cookery Workshops, ‘Veg Plot Minestrone Soup’. Uber-healthy, uber-tasty and uber-easy to make. Vary your veggies as to what’s in season or you have in. There’s no rules here other than to dice the veggies fairly finely and to a similar size so they cook evenly.  Cook root veggies (like parsnips, carrots, swede, turnips, potatoes, sweet potatoes) for longer than green easier to cook ones (like green beans, cabbage, kale, spinach, courgette, chard, peas etc).

 

INGREDIENTS, serves 4 – 6

1 tbsp Olive Oil

1 Onion, finely diced

1 Leek, finely sliced

2 Carrots, finely diced

2 cloves Garlic, finely chopped

2 medium Potatoes, finely diced

2 heaped tbsps Tomato Puree

500g fresh or tinned chopped Tomatoes

1 tbsp fresh Rosemary, finely choped

2.5 litres hot Veggie Stock (I use Marigold Lower Salt)

Black Pepper

200g French or Runner Beans, finely sliced

200g Cabbage, Kale or any other green leafy veg, finely shredded

1 small Courgette, finely diced

80g Spaghetti, snapped into short lengths

 

METHOD:

1. Wash and scrub all the veggies. Dice, slice and chop as per the ingredients list.
2. Heat the oil in a large saucepan. Add the onion, leek and carrot and cook for 5 minutes, stirring regularly.
3. Add the garlic and potatoes and cook for 2 minutes.
4. Stir in the tomato puree, chopped tomatoes, rosemary, hot stock and a generous pinch or two of black pepper. Bring to a simmer, cover and cook on a gentle heat for 10 minutes.
5. Tip in the beans, green leafy veggies, courgette and snapped spaghetti. Stir well and cook for a final 15 to 20 minutes, stirring from time to time. 
6. The soup is ready when all the veggies are tender.