Julia Child once said, “Cooking well doesn’t mean cooking fancy.” With that mantra in mind, for the next few weeks we’ll be featuring recipes for the ultimate delicious and low-key food: soup. First up, a satisfying minestrone with sweet potato, pesto and chickpeas from Heather Poire of the food blog Sunday Morning Banana Pancakes. Here’s how to whip it up in just half an hour…
Sweet Potato Minestrone
By Heather Poire of Sunday Morning Banana Pancakes
This recipe is for those with an impossible schedule or those of us who find we have only 30 minutes left at the end of the day to get dinner on the table. You can have an impressive homemade soup on the table in no time. It takes kindly to substitutions, like white beans instead of chickpeas, hearty baby greens such as kale or Swiss chard in place of spinach and orzo instead star pasta.
You will need:
Drizzle of olive oil
2 tbsp pesto
1 small onion, diced
1 large carrot
1 large sweet potato, peeled and cubed
2 cups canned tomatoes
1 tbsp nutritional yeast
4-6 cups water
Salt to taste
1/3 cup stelline (star) pasta
1 15 oz can chickpeas
Handful of green beans, trimmed and cut into bite size pieces
2 cups baby spinach
Parmesan cheese
Heat a medium soup pot over medium-high heat. Add olive oil, pesto, onion and carrot. Sauté until onion begins to soften and turn golden.
Add sweet potato, tomatoes, nutritional yeast, water and salt. Stir, then bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes.
Add pasta, chickpeas and green beans. Simmer for an additional 7-8 minutes.
Stir in baby spinach and cover. Serve once spinach has wilted.
Ladle into bowls and top with Parmesan and serve with toasted bread.
Keeps well up to 4 days (but it’s the best after day 2).
Thank you so much, Heather!
P.S. More delicious recipes, including chicken soup with wild rice and tomato soup
with parmesan croutons.
(Recipe and photos by Heather Poire. Thanks to Stella Blackmon for helping with this series.)
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I get giddy every time I prep to make this soup. It is SO good. I think due to the pesto and tomato juice base, versus broth. Whatever – it’s simmering now for the millionth time and I’m just so stoked to have a yummy and healthy meal at the ready this week!
I just made this and it’s delicious. Thank you. I don’t know why I’ve never thought of making minestrone before since it’s basically just vegetables but this was so easy and cheap.
This was a huge hit- especially with my 2 year old. Thanks!!
We made this today and it was delicious–filling and perfect for this ridiculously chilly weather we’re having in NYC now!
This was a huge hit last night and a cozy start to the cold, long weekend. My 5 year old won’t “do” soup, but happily ate up all the veggies extracted from the broth!
Amazing recipe! It’s such a great twist on the classic! Thank you for sharing!
Mariam | The Petite Bijou
http://www.thepetitebijou.com
Made it for dinner tonight – skipped the pesto and nutritional yeast and added in Italian herbs and a dash of a couple other spices, but otherwise followed the recipe. SO good and satisfying.
This looks amazing and I cannot wait to try it. Looking forward to all the soups coming up, that’s all my daughter has been requesting for dinner lately.
Ohh, this looks so yummy!
Hello, is it possible to get the nutrition facts for the recipe?
Thank you!!!
Just ate dinner, but now I’m already hungry again from looking at those photos!!! Can’t wait to expand my recipe book soon with this dish :)
http://www.femininefeminists.me
Although it’s summer where I live, somehow this recipe sounds like a good idea. Too yummy!
Alina
http://www.eclecticalu.blogspot.com
Perfect timing, thank you cup of jo!
With 40 days of Lent starting today, I will be abstaining from meat on Fridays, so this will be my first new dish!
Also have been trying to use nutritional yeast beyond just as a popcorn topping.
Absolutely making this next week! Winter is soup season, and this sounds wonderful! Soup is always a perfect go-to in our family that everyone loves, even our toddler!
xoxo http://www.touchofcurl.com
This soup looks delicious! The ingredients list is a little interesting – pesto, yeast, green beans – I could be into this :) One of the best things about soup is you can (usually) give or take an ingredient and it still works. Thanks for sharing! – Charlie, http://www.lemonbutterlove.com
P.S. I thought there was also a Banana Pancake recipe in this post, and I wanted to compare to my recent banana pancake recipe, http://www.lemonbutterlove.com/2015/12/banana-pancakes.html, so easy and yummy!
I’m always feeling run down after a long day of work and a quick and easy healthy dinner recipe is SO appreciated! This soup sounds delicious! I can’t wait to add it to our meal plan next week:)
XO – Sarah
http://beautyandblooms.com/
Yum! That looks delicious, will have to try it out this weekend!
I’ve literally just been looking at two leftover sweet potatoes in my kitchen wondering what to make with them. Thanks Joanna and Heather.
http://www.cocktailsaturdays.com
must try. always wondering what to do with the cans of chick peas (though I prefer the term garbanzo beans, say it – garbanzo…its FUN to say! can’t you just see it being a sesame street character…GARBANZO!!!) I have in my cupboard. so I got an email from skill crush the other day they have a new lesson about the perfect grilled cheese and I thought you and Alex would like it…like I know you! silly me!
YUM! this looks so good.
http://www.kelseymarie.co
Does this freeze well? It looks so tasty!
This looks SO good!!
Yum!!
Mmh that looks soo delicious!! :)
If you need more ideas what to cook next, then head over to my blog: https://carolinespassion.wordpress.com/recipes/
Because you can never have enough recipes right?
xx Caroline
Totally with Julia on that one. Soup looks delice.
http://www.the-domestic.com
This looks divine – I absolutely love sweet potatoes. Can’t wait to try this soup!
http://homegardenlove.com/
This looks delicious! I just started going vegan and this would be an easy one to adapt! Thanks for sharing — can’t wait to try it.
Lindsey I http://www.treasuredinspiration.com
Can’t wait to try this, I have never made soup with nutritional yeast before but it makes perfect sense, a complete protein with the added benefit of iron – it really does make this soup an entire meal in one. Perfect for the children after a long day at school, thank you
Hi Sarah! Thanks so much for your kind comment. I checked with Heather and she said a bouillon cube could work instead! Hope this helps.
xx Stella
I have been on such a sweet potato kick lately and have been trying to come up with different recipes that uses them. This is such a great way to enjoy them, especially in the winter months! I am going to try this out this week. Thanks for the recipe!
Rachel
http://rachelinflight.com
YES! so happy you’re doing soups for this month. my favorite winter food (group? i’m making it a food group)
hammyta.wordpress.com
That recipe looks amazing! Soups are such a great way to get hearty nutrition in the colder months and I’m always looking for new recipes!
Katy
http://www.alittledailyhappiness.com
Looks great! We eat soup all the time in winter and I can’t wait to try this one! Is there any substitute for nutritional yeast? I never cook with it and wonder if I might already have something in my pantry that could replace it.
Thanks for your sweet note, Bethany! I checked with Heather and she said a bouillon cube would also work!
xx Stella
Hi, is the yeast required for the recipe? What does it do for the soup? Thanks – it sounds delicious!
My guess is that it is added for its health benefits and for flavor. In my opinion, nutritional yeast has a slightly cheesy flavor. I use it often!