Pistou Soup

Another repost from a summer a few years ago. This is a traditional recipe, the origins of which are claimed by both Italians and French.  Watching Raymond Blanc the other night has prompted me to share its deliciousness and simplicity with you.  It is perfect in its use of ‘everything but the kitchen sink’ in vegetable garden style.  

The ingredients for the soup soup can be varied enormously.  Just follow the gist of the recipe with whatever you have available.

Ingredients
Soup
Virgin Olive oil
8 Runner Beans
1 onion
2 carrots
1 large courgette
½ tsp salt
a few grinds of pepper
1 large tomato, diced
Boiling Water

Basil pesto with no nuts
2 large handfuls basil
1 large clove of garlic
100ml olive oil
1 handful freshly grated parmesan

Extra grated parmesan to sprinkle on top of the soup before serving.

1.  Pour the olive oil into a pan and heat.

2. Chop all of the vegetables into small pieces of an even-ish size.

3. Add the veg to the pan with some salt and cook for a few minutes until a dente.

4. Pour boiling water to cover the veg and let it simmer for 4-5 minutes.

5.  Blitz the basil pesto ingredients in a blender. Taste and season with more parmesan and salt if needed.

6. Stir in a spoonful of the pesto and the diced tomato.  Serve with a sprinkling of parmesan.