Minestrone Soup with Italian Sausage

Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 500 grams Italian pork sausage
- 1 brown onion, finely diced
- 1 leek, pale section only, diced
- 2 sticks celery, diced
- 1 carrot, peeled, finely chopped
- 1 parsnip, peeled, chopped
- 400-gram tin chopped tomatoes
- 1.5 litres chicken stock
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 zucchini, halved lengthways, sliced
- 120 grams pasta elbows
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 390-gram tin cannellini beans
- 2 tablespoons basil pesto
- sea salt and cracked pepper
To serve
- fresh basil leaves
- finely grated parmesan
- slices of toasted sourdough
Instructions
- 1
Heat the oil in a large heavy-based saucepan. Squeeze the sausage meat out of the casing into small meatballs, add to the pan and fry until golden brown. Remove from the saucepan and set aside.
- 2
Add the onion, leek, celery and carrot to the saucepan and cook over a low heat until softened. Add the parsnip, chopped tomatoes, stock and bay leaf and simmer for 30 minutes.
- 3
Add the cooked meatballs, zucchini, pasta and brown sugar and simmer for 7-8 minutes, until the pasta is al dente. Add the cannellini beans and basil pesto and heat through. Season with sea salt and cracked pepper.
- 4
Divide the soup among bowls and top with basil leaves and parmesan. Serve with toasted sourdough.




