Green spring minestrone with homemade chicken stock, asparagus and parsley pesto

chicken stock

• »1 organic boiler chickens rinse with cold water
• »2 onions cut in half
• »2 carrots roughly chop
• »1 parsley roots roughly chop
• »1/2 leek roughly chop
• »1/2 celeriac roughly chop
• »1 bunch parsley
• »2 bay leaves
• »4 cloves
• »4 juniper berries
• »1 tsp peppercorns
• »1 tsp coriander seeds
• »1 drop parmesan rind
• »4 tsp salt

pesto

• »1 bunch leaf parsley roughly cut off the leaves from the stalks
• »1 garlic cloves peel
• »5 tbsp pine nuts
• »1/2 organic lemons juice and zest
• »5 tbsp grated parmesan cheese
• »3/4 cup olive oil
• » Fleur de sel and white pepper ground

minestrone accompaniments

• »1 3/4 pounds green asparagus remove the woody ends, cut off the heads of the asparagus and cut the rest of the green asparagus into pieces of equal size
• »1 turnip cabbage peel, cut into pieces and slices of equal size
• »7 ounces fresh green beans open by hand and remove the green beans inside
• »5 sticks green celery remove the end pieces and cut into pieces of equal size
• »4 1/2 ounces small pasta

chicken stock

1. Place the onions in a hot frying pan with the cut surface facing downwards, fry until dark brown and then remove from frying pan. (Browning the onions gives the stock taste and also a beautiful golden colour).

2. Fill the Kuhn Rikon HOTPAN®/DUROTHERM® Gourmet pot with a good 2 litres of cold water, place the boiler chicken centrally and add the rest of the soup ingredients (finely sliced vegetables, parsley leaves, Parmesan rind and spices – apart from the salt, we add this later).

3. Place the lid on the pan, and bring to the boil on high heat.

4. Then reduce the heat, and allow the stock to simmer on gentle heat for a good hour, continually skimming off the foam appearing on the surface during cooking.

5. After an hour place the pan with the still hot stock into the HOTPAN®/DUROTHERM® bowl and allow it to carry on gently drawing for one hour.

6. After that, take out the boiler chicken, and pour the stock through a fine sieve. Pour the clear stock back into the HOTPAN®/DUROTHERM® pot, add the salt and bring to the boil once more on high heat for a few minutes.

7. Finally, season to taste with salt and ground pepper.

pesto

1. Carefully dry roast the pine nuts in a frying pan until golden brown whilst keeping your eye on them.

2. Place the parsley leaves, roasted pine nuts, garlic, lemon juice and zest, grated Parmesan, olive oil, sea salt and white pepper into the food processor and purée into a smooth pesto.

minestrone accompaniments

1. Cook the pasta separately in salted water according to the instructions on the packet until al dente, place on one side.

2. Heat up the chicken stock in the DUROTHERM® / HOTPAN®, add the green vegetables and bring briefly to a boil.

3. Place the pot directly into the HOTPAN®/DUROTHERM® bowl, and allow the minestrone to cook on gently in it for approx. 8-10 minutes. This way the vegetables keep their beautiful green colour and the vitamins are preserved during cooking.

4. Then add the still warm, pre-cooked al dente soup pasta.