Green Spring Minestrone (Vegan)
A hearty and flavorful soup chock-full of fresh spring vegetables, pasta and herbs. Easy, budget-friendly and healthy, it's a perfect one-pot meal.
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Servings: 6
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Equipment
- Soup pot or Dutch oven
Ingredients
- 1-2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 leeks or sub 1 medium diced onion
- 1 medium parsnip or carrot peeled and diced
- 2 stalks celery diced
- 2-4 cloves garlic minced
- 8 cups vegetable broth
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 cups trimmed and chopped green beans or 1 cup each asparagus and green beans
- 1 (15 oz) can white beans (e.g. cannellini or great northern) drained and rinsed
- 1 cup small dry pasta e.g. ditalini or small shells; or 3/4 cup tiny pasta like orzo or acini de pepe
- 2 packed cups kale stalks removed, thinly sliced
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 2 tablespoons white miso paste optional but recommended — see notes
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice from about half a lemon
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/2 cup fresh chopped basil or dill to garnish
- grated vegan parm optional, to garnish
- red pepper flakes optional, to garnish
Instructions
Prep Leeks
- Slice: Cut off the dark green end of the leek. Discard or save for homemade vegetable stock. Thinly slice the remaining portion of the leek into thin rings. Discard the root end.
- Rinse: Place the leeks in a bowl and cover with cool water. Vigorously agitate them with your hands to remove any dirt or grit between their layers. Let the leeks sit in the bowl for a few minutes, allowing the dirt to sink to the bottom of the bowl.
- Drain: Use a slotted spoon or your hands to scoop the leeks from the water into a colander to drain.
Make the Soup
- Sauté aromatics: Heat olive oil in a soup pot over medium heat. When oil shimmers, add in sliced leeks. Add a generous pinch of salt and sauté 2-3 minutes, or until leeks have softened. Then add in celery, parsnips, and garlic and sauté for another 2-3 minutes.
- Add broth, veggies and more: Pour in vegetable broth and add in dried oregano, thyme, and bay leaves. Bring the mixture up to a boil, then add in green beans, rinsed white beans, dry pasta, kale, and frozen peas.
- Simmer soup: After adding ingredients, reduce heat as needed (to low or medium-low) to establish a rapid simmer. Simmer for about 15 minutes, or until pasta is al dente. (Start checking pasta for doneness at around 10 minutes.) Make sure to stir occasionally to keep pasta from sticking together.Note: If you prefer your green beans to stay slightly crisp, add them in a few minutes later than the other ingredients.
- Add the miso paste: Remove a ladleful of broth from the soup into a small bowl. Add in the miso paste and whisk it into the broth to break up lumps. Stir this into the soup.
- Finishing touches: Stir in fresh lemon juice. Taste and adjust salt and pepper to preference. Serve garnished with fresh basil or dill. We also love to top ours with grated vegan parm (from Violife or Follow Your Heart).
Notes
- Pasta: If using a tiny pasta shape such as orzo, stelline, or acini de pepe, use only 3/4 cup.
- Additional vegetables: This recipe is very flexible; you can substitute in other veggies such as asparagus, zucchini, mushrooms, etc. Occasionally I will add 1-2 small gold potatoes to make it extra filling.
- Leftovers: If you think you'll have lots of leftovers, you may wish to cook and store the pasta separately, so it doesn't get soggy in the broth overnight. Simply cook the pasta until al dente according to package directions. Add it to your bowl and ladle the broth with veggies over it to serve.
- Miso paste: This will add so much depth of the flavor to the soup and make it extra savory. If you don't have miso, a chicken-style bouillon cube can help achieve something similar.
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