Minestrone alla Genovese ~ Silky vegetable soup with basil pesto – Organic Tuscany Cookbook

Ingredients

• 250g/8 oz dried cannellini or bortlotti beans soaked overnight and cooked (see below)
• Extravirgin olive oil
• 2 onions
• 2 leeks
• 2 carrots
• 2 sticks celery
• 1/2 savoy cabbage
• Half head of cavolo nero (Tuscan kale)
• 2 potatoes
• 10 mushrooms
• Other seasonal vegetables (winter squash etc) – a handful
• 1 litre/2 pints vegetable stock
• A handful of dried pasta, either small shapes or broken up spaghetti
• Salt, pepper
• Pesto sauce