Courgette Pea Pesto Soup (Printable Version)

Vibrant spring soup blending courgette, peas, and basil pesto into a silky smooth bowl. Ready in under an hour.

# What You’ll Need:

→ Vegetables

01 - 2 medium courgettes (zucchini), diced
02 - 1 medium onion, chopped
03 - 2 garlic cloves, minced
04 - 1⅓ cups frozen or fresh peas
05 - 1 medium potato, peeled and diced

→ Liquids

06 - 4 cups vegetable stock

→ Herbs & Seasoning

07 - 2 tablespoons olive oil
08 - ½ teaspoon salt, or to taste
09 - ¼ teaspoon black pepper

→ Pesto

10 - 4 tablespoons basil pesto, store-bought or homemade

→ Garnish & Accompaniments

11 - Fresh basil leaves for garnish
12 - Crusty bread for serving, optional

# Method:

01 - Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add chopped onion and minced garlic, sauté for 3 to 4 minutes until softened and translucent but not browned.
02 - Add diced potato and courgette to the pan, stir well to combine, and cook for 3 minutes.
03 - Pour in vegetable stock and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes until potato is tender and easily pierced with a fork.
04 - Stir in peas and simmer for an additional 5 minutes until heated through.
05 - Remove from heat. Using an immersion blender, purée the soup until smooth and creamy. Alternatively, carefully transfer soup in batches to a countertop blender and blend until desired consistency is reached.
06 - Stir in 3 tablespoons of pesto and season with salt and pepper to taste.
07 - Ladle soup into bowls, swirl remaining pesto on surface, garnish with fresh basil leaves, and serve hot with crusty bread if desired.

# Expert Hints:

01 -
  • This soup somehow manages to taste like sunshine and garden freshness in a bowl, even when made with frozen peas in the dead of winter.
  • The vibrant green color always makes guests ask for the recipe before they even taste it, and then they fall silent with pleasure at the first spoonful.
02 -
  • The first time I made this soup, I added all the pesto at once and lost the beautiful contrast of the swirl on top, so hold back some for serving.
  • Blending the soup while its too hot can create a vacuum in your blender and cause the lid to pop off, so let it cool slightly or work in small batches with the lid slightly vented.
03 -
  • For an extra layer of flavor, drizzle each bowl with a few drops of lemon-infused olive oil just before serving, a trick I learned from a chef friend that brightens all the green flavors.
  • When using an immersion blender, tilt the pot slightly and blend in that deeper section to prevent splashes and achieve a smoother consistency faster.
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