Pasta Fagioli

By luvcookbooks • September 20, 2009 • 0 Comments

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Author Notes: Little Italy in the Bronx is my original source for pasta fagioli. I wanted to make my own at home and tried many different recipes and tried to recreate variations I had tasted on Arthur Avenue. This recipe is infinitely resilient. You can use different vegetables, different seasoning meats, and make it vegetarian or not. - luvcookbooks

Serves 4-6

3 tablespoons olive oil
4 ounces spice rubbed pancetta
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 carrot, sliced
1 cup shell beans, shelled
1 cup yellow wax beans, chopped
1 28 ounce can cannellini beans
1 quart low sodium chicken broth
1 bunch dandelion greens, carefully washed and torn
8 ounces ditalini or other small pasta
Parmesan cheese, grated
olive oil for the table

Cut pancetta into 3/4 inch cubes and heat gently in olive oil until slightly crisp.
Stir in the onion and saute until soft but not colored. Add garlic, carrot, shell beans, and yellow wax beans and stir to coat.
Add chicken stock and dandelion greens and bring to a boil. Add cannellini beans and simmer for about 25 minutes, until vegetables are tender but not mushy.
Smash some of the beans against the side of the soup pot with a wooden spoon. This adds great body to the soup.
Just before you are ready to serve the soup, stir in the pasta and cook until just done. Stir in a handful of Parmesan cheese, then serve more Parmesan and extra virgin olive oil to add at the table.