Soupe au Pistou

Chop up the onion and garlic. Lightly sauté in a big soup pot ( I love my Le Creuset Caribbean Blue Stock pot) with olive oil. Add the white beans and 16 cups of water. Add a teaspoon of sea salt and 2 branches of thyme and let simmer for 45 minutes until the beans begin to soften. If you are using canned white beans this process needs only be 25 minutes. This is what creates your vegetable bouillon.

While the bouillon is cooking, chop your tomatoes and zucchinis into little cubes. Peel and chop your carrots and tomatoes into little bite sized pieces as well. Snap the ends off your green beans and dice them into small sections.

Add the diced potatoes and carrots to the bouillon . Let simmer for 30 minutes stirring from time to time.

Add the tomatoes, zucchini and green beans. Let simmer an additional 30 minutes before adding the pasta: then let simmer for final 15 minutes.

If at any time you need to add more water - do so. The potatoes and the pasta absorb a lot of the liquid.

Best made with a pestle and mortar but a food processor also works well. (I have been using this immersion blender set for over 5 years now - I like that it doesn't take up counter space)

Muddle the garlic cloves to create a paste. Add the basil leaves and a pinch of salt. Pulverize them into a thick paste. Add the olive oil while stirring continuously. Lightly stir in the diced tomatoes, the pepper and the cheese. (do not pulverize again to keep the vibrant green color of the pistou) In the words of Bocuse, the pistou should have the consistency of thick cream. If it is too thick, dilute with some of the vegetable bouillon from the soup.

Once the Soup is cooked (test that the white beans are done), remove the branches of thyme from the pot and serve into individual bowls. Grate parmesan on each bowl and serve with a spoon full of Pistou. Add some basil leaves to garnish if you wish. (Le Chef's Wife tip: If you run out of time or will to make the Pistou - use a spoonful of pesto out of a jar. Not the same thing but the desired outcome is pretty similar and honestly, good enough...)

I served our Soupe au Pistou with a fresh baked baguette (that I made while the soup was cooking - here is the recipe for an easy to make baguette) and a wheel of goat cheese. This makes for a beautiful lunch on its own.