all white & green «from winter to spring» minestrone soup with walnut & parsley pesto

small pasta squares (makes  185 grams fresh/135 grams dry green pasta + 185 grams fresh/135 grams dry white pasta) :

• note : make the pasta one day or one night ahead …
• mix the dry ingredients together and set aside, mix the liquid ingredients together and set aside, separate in two batches if making white pasta and green pasta too and remove 3 tsp of flour (from the green pasta batch) and replace with 3 tsp of spinach or broccoli powder
• combine the mixtures together and knead for 1 minute, then wrap up each individual ball of pasta dough in plastic film and let hydrate in the refrigerator for at least 60 minutes, then let come to room temperature for 5 minutes before using
• separate each ball of dough into 4 smaller balls and flatten into longer shapes, using your hands
• roll out the pasta with a pasta machine into thinner sheets (like lasagna), starting at increment 1 and working towards increment 6, lightly flour each sheet before and between each higher and thinner setting or increment of your pasta machine and stop at setting 6 (not toot thick nor too thin), then cut into smaller squares about 2 cm x 2 cm, sprinkle with flour and set aside on pieces of baking paper to dry out for several hours or overnight and reserve and then brush excess flour off
• note : you will need only 200 grams (2 cups) total of dried flat pasta squares (100 grams white + 100 grams green) for this soup …

pesto sauce :

• place all ingredients (except for the olive oil and parmesan cheese) in a food processor and blend until smoother, then slowly add the olive oil and keep blending until very smooth and finally the grated parmesan cheese and blend again and set aside

vegetables for the broth :

• chop up all vegetables in smaller cubes or slices and set aside and reserve all the extra stems, cores, peels, skins, stalks, etc. to make the broth
• combine all ingredients for the broth and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium and simmer for 90-120 minutes, covered with a lid, then remove from the heat, let cool down, strain well and reserve the remaining broth

soup : 

• simmer the chopped onions and garlic with the olive oil at medium-high heat for 2-3 minutes until tender, then add the tougher, chopped vegetables (carrots, potatoes, fennel, celery) and simmer for 5 minutes while stirring, then add the broth and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium and let simmer for 30 minutes until more tender, then add the softer, chopped vegetables (cabbage and mushrooms) and let simmer for another 15 minutes until everything is equally tender 
• add the pre-cooked beans and simmer for an additional 5 minutes (or if using dry beans, soak them in hot water for 1-2 hours before adding them right at the beginning with the tougher vegetables that will boil and then simmer in the broth) and finally when everything is cooked and tender, add the pasta squares and simmer for an additional 5 minutes (if dried) or 2 minutes (if fresh)
• note : if not serving the whole soup for 8-10 servings immediately, then it is preferable to divide the soup in half and only add only half the pasta (25 grams or ¼ cup of dried pasta squares per person/serving), otherwise the pasta will get too mushy when re-heating it the next day …
• remove the soup from the heat, add 240 grams (1 cup) of the pesto and stir well into the soup

assembling & serving :

• serve each bowl of hot soup with one extra dollop (1 tbsp) of the reserved walnut-parsley pesto on top, ½ tbsp of shaved parmesan cheese and a sprinkling of fresh herbs and some good country or sourdough bread.