Hearty and nutritious, minestrone soup is a tasty crowd-pleaser and is super-easy to tweak according to the vegetables you have in the house.

Ingredients:

• 1 clove of garlic
• 1 red onion
• 2 carrots
• 2 sticks of celery
• 1 courgette
• 1 small leek
• 1 large potato
• 1 x 400 g tin of cannellini beans
• 2 rashers of higher-welfare smoked streaky bacon
• olive oil
• ½ teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 fresh bay leaf
• 2 x 400 g tins of plum tomatoes
• 1 litre organic vegetable stock
• 1 large handful of seasonal greens, such as savoy cabbage, curly kale, chard
• 100 g wholemeal pasta
• ½ a bunch of fresh basil, optional
• Parmesan cheese

Method: (13 Steps)

• Peel and finely chop the garlic and onion. Trim and roughly chop the carrots, celery and courgette, then add the vegetables to a large bowl.
• Cut the ends off the leek, quarter it lengthways, wash it under running water, then cut into 1cm slices. Add to the bowl.
• Scrub and dice the potato. Drain the cannellini beans, then set aside.
• Finely slice the bacon.
• Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Add the bacon and fry gently for 2 minutes, or until golden.
• Add the garlic, onion, carrots, celery, courgette, leek, oregano and bay and cook slowly for about 15 minutes, or until the vegetables have softened, stirring occasionally.
• Add the potato, cannellini beans and plum tomatoes, then pour in the vegetable stock. Stir well, breaking up the tomatoes with the back of a spoon.
• Cover with a lid and bring everything slowly to the boil, then simmer for about 30 minutes, or until the potato is cooked through. Meanwhile...
• Remove and discard any tough stalks bits from the greens, then roughly chop.
• Using a rolling pin, bash the pasta into pieces while it’s still in the packet or wrap in a clean tea towel.
• To check the potato is cooked, pierce a chunk of it with a sharp knife – if it pierces easily, it’s done.
• Add the greens and pasta to the pan, and cook for a further 10 minutes, or until the pasta is al dente. This translates as ‘to the tooth’ and means that it should be soft enough to eat, but still have a bit of a bite and firmness to it. Try some just before the time is up to make sure you cook it perfectly.
• Add a splash more stock or water to loosen, if needed.
• Pick over the basil leaves (if using) and stir through. Season to taste with sea salt and black pepper, then serve with a grating of Parmesan and a slice of wholemeal bread, if you like.