Soupe Au Pistou from Nice

Ingredients

• 5 cups vegetable stock
• 1 zucchini, diced
• 1 small potato, diced
• 1 shallot, chopped
• 1 carrot, diced
• 1 (8 ounce) can chopped tomatoes
• salt and pepper
• 1/2 cup thin green beans, cut in 1/2 inch lengths
• 1/2 cup frozen baby peas
• 1/2 cup pasta, small pasta shapes (for example, conchigliette, ditali or farfalline)
• 4-6 tablespoons traditional basil-based pesto sauce (commercial or homemade)
• 1 tablespoon sun-dried tomato paste
• grated parmesan cheese (optional)

Directions

1. 1

   Place vegetable stock in a large saucepan, add zucchini through tomatoes and season with salt and pepper.

2. 2

   Bring to a boil, cover, lower heat and simmer 20 minutes.

3. 3

   Add green beans through pasta and cook about 10 minutes longer until pasta is tender.

4. 4

   Adjust seasonings if necessary.

5. 5

   Whisk together pesto and sundried tomato paste.

6. 6

   Ladle soup into 4 bowls and stir a spoonful of the pesto mixture into each.

7. 7

   Pass around grated Parmesan to be sprinkled on soup, if desired.