Pasta e fagioli

Today is our first day of snow and I thought it was appropriate to share this recipe.
Pasta e fagioli or pasta fagioli, means "pasta and beans", and is a traditional meatless Italian dish. This is a favourite in our house. I often make it early in the day or the day before we plan to eat it as the longer you leave it the thicker it gets due to the starch in the pasta. It is a great meal to come home to after a day of skiing or skating. Just heat it up and serve it with a nice loaf of crusty Italian bread and a salad on the side.

It is also a very versatile soup/stew and you can play with the recipe. I like to have chunks of carrot, celery & tomato but if you prefer a smoother version simply puree more of the ingredients. You can use chicken broth, vegetable broth or simply water as the liquid. You can also use different varieties of beans as well as what ever shapes of pasta you have in your cupboard. I used some fettuccine noodles I had left over this time and broke them up into bite size pieces. You can top it with different cheeses, croutons and also herbs such as parsley. Use you imagination and remember this recipe is simply a guideline.


Ingredients:

• 1 Onion chopped
• 3 Cloves of garlic chopped
• 2 Carrots chopped
• 2 Celery chopped
• 3 T olive oil
• 5 Cups of broth
• 1 Large can of whole tomatoes
• 2 Bay leaves
• 1 Can of white kidney beans rinsed
• 1 Can of red kidney beans rinsed
• A pinch of red pepper flakes, optional
• 1 cup of uncooked pasta in bite size pieces
  
• Salt & pepper
• Parmesan cheese
• Cinnamon (optional)
  

Preparation

1. Heat the olive oil and saute the onion, garlic, carrots & celery for approx 10 minutes. Stir often and don’t let them brown you just want to soften them.

2. Add the broth & the can of tomatoes, bay leaves, salt & pepper and let simmer for 20 to 30 minutes

3. With a slotted spoon scoop out approx ½ of the soup ingredients and reserve. Add ½ the white beans and ½ the red beans. If you have a hand held blender you can puree the soup now or you can simply mash the beans directly into the soup with a potato masher. Once this is done you can add the remaining beans and the reserved ingredients.

4. Add the pasta and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and let simmer for 20 minutes. Stir on occasion to ensure the pasta doesn’t stick to the bottom of the soup pot. The starch from the pasta will thicken the soup.

5. Serve topped with large shavings of Parmesan cheese & a sprinkle of cinnamon is optional

( Cinnamon is commonly used in Northern Italian cuisine and adds depth to the flavours of dishes such as chicken cacciatore, veal stew and this dish)