Spring Minestrone Soup

4.9 stars (31 ratings)

Gluten Free Gluten Free Refined Sugar-Free Refined Sugar Free

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This spring minestrone soup is a fresh and flavorful take on traditional tomato-based minestrone. Colorful, seasonal spring vegetables, creamy mini potatoes, savory pesto, and sharp parmesan cheese make this vibrant soup stand out. It's a versatile recipe for a satisfying one-pot meal that will be on the table in under 30 minutes.

If you love spring flavors, also try our spring veggie enchiladas, sweet sautéed radishes, or asparagus soup.

Even when the temperatures start to warm, there's nothing more comforting than a nourishing bowl of soup for dinner. This one-pot, springtime minestrone uses asparagus, carrots, mini potatoes, peas, and snap peas with a healthy dose of pesto and parmesan cheese. It's easy and affordable to make, loaded with nutrients, and leftovers store well in the fridge for a perfect packable light lunch.

What is minestrone soup

Minestrone soup is a hearty Italian vegetable soup that's traditionally made with vegetables, beans, tomato broth, and pasta or rice. It's a soup that's meant to use up abundant seasonal vegetables and greens, which makes it really versatile with the seasons. It can be made vegetarian or using animal bone-broth or meat.

How to make spring minestrone soup

This one-pot soup is really easy to make and comes together in just a few simple steps:

Heat olive oil in a large pot and cook the vegetables for about 3 minutes, followed by the garlic.
Add the potatoes, broth, and chili flakes and bring to a boil then lower to a simmer until the potatoes are almost tender.
Add the asparagus, peas, and snap peas and cook for another 5 minutes.
Stir in the parmesan cheese, pesto, and lemon juice then taste and adjust the salt and pepper. Top with fresh pesto and parmesan.

The full recipe instructions are in the recipe card below.

Variations to try

This spring minestrone soup is wonderful because it's really flexible. Use your favorite ingredients or mix it up with some of these variations:

Beans: kidney beans, white kidney beans, cannellini beans, chickpeas, lima beans, fava beans, and borlotti beans
Potatoes: this recipe uses mini potatoes (also called creamer) but any thin-skinned variety works well. If they are larger than a golfball size, slice them into quarters to make them bite-sized.
Pasta: opt for small pasta like orzo, macaroni, shells, orecchiette, fusilli, farfalle – cook it in a separate pot and add in the cooked noodles at the end.
Vegetables: most seasonal vegetables will work well. Just be mindful of different cooking times to avoid overcooking them. For example: chop dense vegetables into smaller pieces so they cook evenly or add quick cooking vegetables last.
Leafy greens: If using leafy greens, chop them roughly into small pieces and stir them into the hot soup after it's finished cooking to wilt them. Some greens we love are kale, spinach, chard, collards, or mustard greens.