Minestrone with pesto Genovese Recipe from Liguria.
Minestrone is probably the most well-known of Italian soups. However, there isn’t actually one traditional recipe for it. In fact, there are many. It really depends on where in Italy this soup is made and on the available seasonal vegetables at the time. This recipe for minestrone with pesto from Liguria in North West Italy is one of my favourites. Not only is it packed with fresh seasonal veggies, but the addition of the local basil pesto really makes it uniquely flavourful.
Minestrone con pesto alla Genovese.
What makes this minestrone from Liguria so unique is the addition of pesto Genovese. In other words, basil pesto. Basil pesto is practically a culinary staple in Liguria. In more or less its present form, it has been made there since the 1800s. However, food historians say that it probably developed from an ancient Roman sauce called ‘moretum’ and a Medieval crushed garlic and walnuts sauce called ‘agliata’.
The Ligurians use basil pesto in many dishes, particularly with pasta. They even have an official recipe published by the Genova Chamber of Commerce. The official recipe has 7 ingredients; Ligurian basil leaves, Mediterranean pine-nuts, Vessalico garlic cloves, Ligurian extra virgin olive oil, coarse sea salt and two types of cheese, aged Parmigiano and Pecorino from Sardinia.
Of course, most of us have to use locally sourced basil leaves, nuts, garlic and olive oil. It may also not be possible to find both cheeses. In fact, I often make basil pesto with just Parmigiano (but don’t tell anyone from Genova!).
What exactly is minestrone?
Minestrone is a soup with pretty antique origins. Even the Ancient Romans made a version with onions, garlic, carrots, asparagus, lentils and mushrooms plus, whatever else they could find at the time. They just boiled all the ingredients in water.
Over time, other ingredients have been added to minestrone in Italy. Tomatoes and beans only arrived in Europe after the discovery of the Americas in the 15th century. So, these are relatively more recent additions.
But, traditionally, minestrone is a seasonal vegetable soup which normally has some thickening plant-based ingredients such as squash, potatoes or legumes, plus, a variety of veggies cut into pieces and rice, pasta or grains.
Ingredients in minestrone with pesto Genovese.
Ligurian minestrone with basil pesto has lots of veggies in it. However, some of those traditionally depend on the season. All versions of this recipe have beans, usually borlotti or cannellini, as well as some type of pasta. In summer, you are more likely to find it made with tomatoes, zucchini, green beans, fava beans, sometimes eggplant and freshly made basil pesto. Some people add peas and borrage is popular, as is chard.
In winter, this vegetable soup often has squash or pumpkin, cabbages, kale, leeks, potatoes, celery, and carrots. These are the veggies I used along with zucchini. However, nowadays, many vegetables are available year-round. So, it’s actually possible to make this Ligurian minestrone with your favourite veg whenever you want! And many people do!
One ingredient I can’t always find all year is fresh basil. So, for this version of minestrone with pesto, I used a ready-made pesto from a company called Girolomoni. This is actually one of my favourite pasta makers but they also produce other traditional Italian foods. You can read more about this company in my post about my visit to them. When making pesto particularly for this minestrone, Ligurians don’t include pine nuts.
The beans
In Liguria, they often use local bean types called ‘grixi’ and ‘balin’ for minestrone alla Genovese. But, most recipes call for borlotti (cranberry beans). However, if you can’t find those, cannellini are fine too.
Traditionally the beans are fresh ones or dried ones which have been soaked overnight. But, of course, you can use canned beans instead. The difference between dried and canned is that you won’t have the nutritious bean cooking water to add to the soup.
Some recipes actually use the bean cooking water as the base for the soup. In other words, the veggies are added to the beans once the latter are half cooked. I cooked the beans separately and added them with some of their cooking water to the soup, once the veggies had cooked a while.
The pasta.
I used broken spaghetti for my minestrone with pesto. This is the most traditional way. Although, pasta shapes such as ditalini or other soup pastas (pastina) are popular too. Rice can also be used instead if you like it better. Or you can leave the pasta out altogether if you’re on a low carb diet or just prefer it that way.
Making Ligurian minestrone alla Genovese.
Unlike other minestrone recipes, Ligurian minestrone doesn’t usually have a soffritto as a base (finely chopped onions, celery and carrots sautéed in olive oil). In some versions, all the veggies are just cooked together. I followed a recipe that involved just sautéeing the leeks and then I added all the other ingredients.
If you’re not vegetarian a delicious addition to minestrone is to add a parmigiano rind to the soup. This really adds a lovely flavour. But since parmigiano is made with animal rennet, it’s not suitable for vegetarians. The same goes for traditional pesto as it has parmigiano or pecorino in it. However, there are versions with vegetarian cheese and you can make it without cheese too.
Let me know what you think.
Whichever combination of veggies you use to make this recipe, I'm sure minestrone with pesto is going to become a favourite for you too! It's uniquely delicious, nutritious, warming and filling. Pure comfort food!
If you do try this Ligurian minestrone, I’d love to hear what you think. Please write a comment here on the blog or post a comment on the Pasta Project Facebook page.
Your feedback means a lot to me!
Buon Appetito!
Other soup with pasta recipes.
- Tuscan minestrone with orzo pasta
- Pasta with beans soup (pasta e fagioli)
- Romanesco broccoli and pasta soup
- Canederli in broth
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Stela says
hello there! I will definitely make this soup! can I put tortellini instead of spaghetti? and can I add chicken? I'll definitely make homemade broth as well!
Jacqui says
Hi Stela, I think tortellini would go really well in this soup and even chicken. Of course, it will be much more filling with these additions but, I imagine, delicious!
Ramona says
This recipe looks super interesting and I am definitely planning on trying this out soon! thank you for sharing this recipe, I cant wait to make it.
Alex says
Ooh, I'd never heard of wild cabbage! I'm off to check that out. But I first wanted to say how wonderful this looks. Perfect for this chilly weather!
Erin says
Minestrone soup is one type I've never had. I'm not a big soup person but this sounds delicious! And I'll definitely take mine with the rind added. I love the flavor it adds!
Uma Srinivas says
I love all the vegetables and spices you have added here to the Pasta! I love making minestrone for parties and for potluck. next time I will try your recipe.
Kate says
This is a lovely recipe. I cooked it last night. I had lots of late basil to use up, so this was a perfect opportunity to make some pesto - the addition of homemade pesto really elevates this soup. I definitely recommend the addition of the Parmesan rind when cooking as it imparts so much flavour. Many thanks for sharing a beautiful dish.
Jacqui says
Thanks for your comment Kate. I'm glad you liked this minestrone recipe. I agree the pesto and the parmigiano rind really elevate the flavours in this soup! We love it too!
FOODHEAL says
When we think of pasta, sometimes we might just have pasta and cheese in mind! This recipe has a lot of veggies that make it healthy and I can imagine all the flavors.
Amy Liu Dong says
Wow! Such a truly great pasta recipe, you really know your way with pasta. Every recipe with it is like a masterpiece, from this instance looks so delicious and yummy.
Ashraf qureshi says
Awesome Site..!!
Barbara says
Just FYI. Among the ingredients listed is wild kale. In the U.S. it is usually called lacinato or dinosaur kale. It has become quite popular and easy to find.
The minestroni is delicious!
Jacqui says
Hi Barbara, thank you for your comment. I'm happy you liked this minestrone. I think it's delicious too. Thank you also for the info about the kale. I'll add it to the ingredients list.
Amy says
I love a good minestrone and a good basil pesto. Never thought to ever combine the 2 together! Love all the delicious ingredients you've used. A soup I can definitely have all year round!
Heather Perine says
I love a big bowl of minestrone soup in winter, but have never thought to add basil pesto to it! I bet it gives it wonderful flavors! Can't wait to try.
The Cooking Code says
I LOVE how many vegetables this pasta dish uses! Pesto is also my favorite, so everything about this dish looks fantastic to me. I can't wait to give this one a try!
LaRena Fry says
Love classic recipes. Minestrone is such a wonderful comfort food. I love that you added pesto to it.
Beth says
This minestrone looks so flavorful and hearty, and cranberry beans sound great in it. I love pesto in anything so that is fun to look forward to. I have just set up a grow light indoors so I hopefully can grow basil fresh year-round in Colorado.
Sharon says
This minestrone is so full of good for you vegetables and has lots of flavors. The pesto is the perfect topping!
Nisha says
Love the colorful variety of veggies in the minestrone looks so hearty and delicious!
Angela says
I love this version of minestrone. Very filling and the vegetables are wonderful.
Jere Cassidy says
I love all the colors and veggies you have added to this soup. I like the added pasta at the end.
Deborah says
I always enjoy reading your recipes and the history on them. So interesting! We love making minestrone for our church potluck dinners. I'm intrigued by your addition of basil pesto and Parmigiano rind and am going to have to try those additions! Thanks for sharing.