Photo: c. foodblogchef 2020
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PASTA E FAGIOLI (PASTA AND BEAN SOUP)
Serves 6
Ingredients:
2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
½ slice of pancetta
1/2 lb. spicy (or sweet) Italian sausage (or a smokey sausage like Portuguese Linguiça)
1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
2 medium carrots, peeled and finely chopped
2 ribs celery, finely chopped
2 cups chopped kale or spinach (optional)
3 cloves garlic, minced
kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 15-ounce cans Great Northern Beans (or Cannellini Beans)
1 15-ounce. can diced tomatoes
1+ 32-ounce box chicken broth
1 Bay leaf
2-3 sprigs rosemary, leaves finely chopped (2 tsp. dried rosemary)
1/2 teaspoon ground fennel seed (optional, but recommended if you don’t use Italian sausage)
1 cup ditalini or small elbow pasta (or other small shape)
Freshly grated Parmesan, for garnish
Freshly chopped parsley, for garnish
Directions:
1. Heat the oil in a large, deep pot over medium heat. Add the pancetta and sausage and cook, breaking up the sausage with a wooden spoon, until cooked through, about 5 minutes.
2. Stir in the onion, carrots, and celery and cook until slightly softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, 1 minute more.
3. Add the beans (with their liquid), diced tomatoes, chicken broth, Bay leaf and rosemary and any leafy greens you want to add.
4. Bring to a boil, then stir in the ditalini. Reduce heat to medium and cook until pasta is al dente tender, about 8 minutes.
5. Taste and adjust the salt and pepper to your taste. Serve in bowls garnished with Parmesan and parsley.
**Note: If your cooking a big pot of soup, you might prefer to cook the pasta in the amount of soup for each meal. Reheating the pasta in the soup multiple times results in over-cooked pasta that has absorbed a lot of your broth. Ladle out the number of serving for your meal and bring it to a boil. Add about a ½ cup of dried pasta for two people.
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